Month: July 2023

Start: 232.6

Stop: 252.2

Today’s miles: 19.6

Total PCT miles: 440

Before I drifted off last night, I could hear a helicopter flying overhead and it felt close. It was dark, and after 10pm, so I found that strange. It made me wonder if they were out on a rescue mission. I prayed everyone was ok.. and then drifted off quickly afterwards. I slept so dang great, I do remember waking up once or twice just to verify I wasn’t cuddling with the marmot from last night, but easily fell right back to sleep.

I got on trail by 6:30, a bit behind Marquis but before Margot. I didn’t see where Annie and Riley camped, they came and set up not too long before nightfall. The trail was immediate switchbacks downhill for several miles. Not too long after I got going, I saw and heard another helicopter flying over.. what in the world is going on?? As I got lower in elevation, into the valley floor, more and more blow downs were everywhere. I got a bit frustrated, because there was also a ton of water crossings and I didn’t keep my feet dry.

Not that it mattered, because around 9:45 I ran into Marquis sitting on a log before a creek crossing with no bridge. Like, there used to be one and now it was all gone, except for the bases on either side of the bank. There would be no dry crossing on this thing. I went first while he ate is either second breakfast or first lunch. The water was cold and fast but it was easy to cross. It came up to my knees in one spot but that was it.

I got to the other side and sat on the wooden base of the “bridge” to filter water. I decided I’d wait for Margot either way, even though I knew she’d be fine. Marquis crossed and just as he was getting into the water, she was coming down the hill. Perfect timing. We all sat on the base for a rest after they made it over.. none of us really excited about the climb to come.

From there, the trail climbed 2100 feet of elevation in 3.5 miles. It started in a burn zone, in hot blaring sun with no shade. I had my umbrella out for protection and literally was sweating through all of my clothes. It was brutal. (I found out days later from Marquis that is was 88 degrees on this day.. definitely can confirm that it felt like 88 degrees!)

When I finally came to a bunch of blowdown trees in a small chunk of other trees creating some shade, I tossed off my pack and decided 11am was going to be lunchtime today because I was too miserable to continue climbing right this second. And I wasn’t even half way up this beast of a climb.. and even when I made it up this climb, there was still a lot more to come before this day was over.

As I flopped down and started to pull out my food, Margot appeared and decided to do the same. We ate lunch together, both dreading our near future, and slowly started hiking again after close to 45 minutes of not moving. We made it to a big creek and refilled our water not long after we left our lunch spot.. and maybe 10-15 minutes after that, we passed an incredible waterfall all in the shade with a bridge and everything. If only we had pushed to here to eat lunch! Oh well, hindsight and all that.

The switchbacks continued climbing and eventually we made it to the top, where we found Marquis taking a break. From there we had a small descent and then came up to a circus around a huge range of mountains. We’d climb along the sides, easing higher until we’d cross over a pass, to then come down some before traversing across another mountain.. I could see the trail, way across the valley on the opposite side of where we were.. so it was like hiking in a “U” shape around this mountain range. Parts were seriously breathtaking!

What wasn’t so lovely was the rocks all over the place. There were rocks that reminded me of Pennsylvania, there were some that sounding like walking across hundreds of broken dishes and then some that sounded like walking over thousands of pennies. All of them hurt my feet, causing them to twist and turn and become extremely tender. There was some snow, too.. all of which we just walked around, or climbed down and across-none of it was scary or sketchy-which it definitely would have been if we couldn’t have maneuvered around it.

We passed some gorgeous lakes, some large, some small.. all beautiful. I got service on a ridge line and called Mom for a minute. My feet were on fire by then and she said I sounded sad-I wasn’t, I was quite thrilled with the beauty of the day-my feet were just ready to have my ass off of them.

The last mile or so ended up being uphill, after Marquis had said, “it’s all downhill from here!” And I had a minor meltdown. I was walking tenderly, at a snail’s pace, with the two of them behind me-laughing constantly at my rant of the climb after I thought we were done climbing for the day. They claim I was entertaining, really I was just hangry and tired.. but I’m glad I made them laugh.

We found the lake we were to camp at and scoped out a site. We ended up all three cramming into a small spot right beside the water. It’s tight, but it works, although Marquis has a pretty large rock in his vestibule.. haha whoops.

Margot and I soaked our feet when we got water to filter and I took forever to do anything else. Now, dinner has been eaten, finally, and I just finished actually blowing up my air mattress. It’s almost 9:45 already. I’m a little cold, but comfortable with my quilt (best purchase, seriously). As I’m writing this, there are people walking through our campsite with their bright ass headlamps on, shocked that we’re here.. and mostly blocking their access to the water. They’re being quiet now though.. since they realized we’re in bed. Hopefully they stay that way.

My feet are throbbing and every now and then a sharp pain shoots through them. I think I need some ibuprofen and to prop them up on my pack. So, that’s what I’m about to do.. all of that and to try to get some sleep. We get to town tomorrow and I can’t wait for that. Hopefully my feet relax a bit so I can get some rest before all the town chores. Goodnight, y’all.

Start: 212.8

Stop: 232.6

Today’s miles: 19.8

Total PCT miles: 420.4

Whoa buddy, do my feet hurt today. I slept really good.. so good in fact that I woke up with my eyes puffy and swollen from burying my head into the down of my quilt. I think I’m slightly allergic, but not enough to be worrisome.

I was up, packed, and on trail by 6:20.. not bad. The mosquitoes were already awake, too, so I brushed my teeth while walking to avoid them as much as I could. I was slathered in deet and Picardin and if I could have walked with a flame thrower I would have. Marquis quickly passed me within the first few minutes of walking, but Margot was still packing when we left her.

The day started with a climb, and the sun was already bearing down on me. I was hot and profusely sweating by 7am. Yikes. This is going to be a L O N G day if it’s this hot already. The climb brought us to some gorgeous scenery, the huge rock mountain we slept under last night was now right next to me.. Margot later told me they called it Cathedral Rock.. I don’t know if she was joking or not though, but I’ll claim it to be true.

On the back side of this mountain, I started the 8 miles of descent. On the top 3 switchbacks, I got a little service and called Mom. I like this every couple days thing way better than once every 7-8 days.. but who knows what the future holds in that regard. We chatted for a minute and then I kept walking downhill. It would take me all day to get this almost 20 miles in.. simply because even though right now is downhill, the lower I go raises the chances for blowdowns and more bugs.. and then after that descent, it’s another 8-9 miles uphill to end the day. SOS.

So, I cruised downhill. I caught up to Marquis twice, and at some point got ahead of him when he stopped to eat his first lunch. I pushed on until after 11am when I found a shaded log to sit on at a stream crossing. There were hardly no bugs, a miracle in of itself. I got water and ate my lunch with my socks and shoes off.. and then I just sat there until Marquis got there.. and stayed sitting there til Margot got there. Eventually, an hour and a half later, I slowly started hiking again.

But only for a couple more miles. I came across a bridge with a shallow but wife crystal clear stream flowing under it. I wanted to get in. I wanted to stay all afternoon and camp 5 feet away.. but, I waited until they caught up. I soaked my feet and washed my legs, but didn’t get my clothes wet. Then I laid on the bridge and dried out. Annie and Riley came by and hung out there too. It was a beautiful spot.

When the realization sat in that I still had to climb this 8 miles before I could camp-I got my socks and shoes back on. Margot and Marquis had already left and I knew I was going to be dragging myself up that mountain. I turned on a podcast some friends from work told me about (pretty sure it was Keyara?) ‘Crime Junkie’ and listened to stories about people being abducted and murdered.. and honestly it helped distract me from the difficulty of the climb.

I caught up to Margot and Marquis and then the three of us leap frogged a bit. As we climbed higher, again the views opened up and the scenery looked unbelievable. Sharp jagged peaks and rounded rocky ones, clouds rolling through threatening rain but never releasing it. We were all worn slap out, barely moving, but determined to get to this pond to camp.

We rolled in just minutes before 7pm. The pond is gorgeous, more lake looking than pond.. and we walked around to find spots for our tents. We’re a bit spread out, and as if to welcome us: the mosquitoes reappeared. Our grand plans to eat dinner together on a pretty rock over looking the water was quickly squashed. I was in my rain gear and bug net, cussing, and setting up my tent.

A marmot, a potentially deaf and blind one at that, came through our campsites, completely unconcerned with us. I recorded him, talked to him, all kinds of stuff and he just couldn’t care less. He just continued to chew on whatever he found and ran around the area like we weren’t here. He came up to all of our tents.. which has me a little concerned for tonight. I pray he doesn’t chew through any of our tents.

It’s 9:15, the sun is behind a mountain in the distance, and the sky is slowly fading to darkness. I think both of them are asleep, I haven’t heard a rustle of their sleeping pads in a while. It’s just a little chilly, to where I’m comfortable under my quilt, dinner has been eaten, and I’m thinking it’s time to try to sleep. Tomorrow should be another 19+ mile day, and my feet are not thrilled about it. We’ll have another long downhill, followed by a long uphill and then several ups and downs from there.. but all over 5000 feet, so hopefully once up there we’ll be in the exposed areas with less bugs and blow downs. That’s the prayer anyway.

Start: 195.8

Stop: 212.8

Today’s miles: 17

Total PCT miles: 400.6

I’ve hiked 400 miles! That 10 mile a day average isn’t going to get me to Mexico on time. But that’s a problem to worry with later. Washington is said to be the most remote and have the most difficult sections (and we’ve already done the *most* difficult section..) so I’m excited to see how well I’m able to pick up the pace here in the next few weeks. And maybe if I skip a few zeroes I’ll stay on track. I’m really wanting to be done before my sister Michele gets married in October, but that may be too difficult to come by. I really hope I can work it out though, that way when I get off trail for the wedding I don’t have to come back, either afterwards or the following spring. I should definitely be somewhere in the desert of Southern California by then.

I was up and on trail quick this morning. I slept until 6:30 and then packed fast since I couldn’t eat my breakfast until 7:30 since I didn’t take my medicine during one of my watch snoozes. That was alright, it was warmer this morning, I’m getting sick of oatmeal, I have some caffeinated Nuun tablets so I could skip coffee, AND the ever favorite mosquitoes were excited we were up and were desperately trying to have their breakfast, too.

Our day started with a climb, as always. I huffed and puffed a lot and the higher I got the better the views got. We didn’t have as incredible views as we have had in the previous section, but I loved it anyway. There were also several people out with dogs-which was nice-but also.. WHERE DID THEY COME FROM?! Lol I mean, there were a ton of junctions and obviously they go down to remote trailhead parking lots, but still.

There was a section with a tiny bit of snow to cross surrounded by huge boulders and mountain peaks with sporadic snow on them.. every switchback I expected to have to cross even more snow, but it was only that once. I was so happy that I didn’t care that the rocks were actively trying to destroy my feet. At the top of that climb I could finally see the lake that was off to the side in the deep woods earlier in the morning. It was lovely from above, the blues and greens of the water reflecting back the sky and trees.

At what I thought was the top I ate my lunch, cursing the bugs the entire time. Marquis got there and did the same, but shared his Picardin with me-they really don’t seem to like that stuff. *adds another thing to the list of items to find in town* It (and some deet I had already applied) allowed me to eat my lunch without completely losing my mind.

Margot caught up to us but wasn’t ready to eat, so we all continued on. I quickly realized the trail only seemed to be at the top-there was quite a bit more uphill switchbacks to conquer. Boy, did they kick my butt. A full stomach, steep trail, bugs, sun, oh my. When I made it to the real top my legs were on fire. But, the good news was, from there, the rest of the day minus the last mile and a half were all downhill. And it wasn’t steep, and there weren’t many blowdowns. It was calm and twisting, and covered in mosquitoes but they weren’t as aggressive with all the different bug sprays all over me.

I sat at a stream and got water around 3.. and rested my feet. Shockingly, in this spot, the bugs weren’t all that bad. Margot caught up to me again (Marquis was long gone), and joined me for a break. We had roughly 3 miles left until we would hit a water crossing that was fast flowing and potentially dangerous. Marquis knew about it, too, so he would wait for us there so we could cross with him. Margot is only 5’2” and fast water really scares her.. I’m at 5’5” and it scares the shit out of me, so I can only imagine how much more difficult it is on her shorter legs.

We cruised, talking off and on, and then I startled Marquis by tickling his foot with my trekking pole. The water was so fast moving that it roared like a train, so he didn’t hear me calling his name. He had been there for an hour and decided to take a little cat nap waiting on us. He really is such a sweetheart.

The three of us walked up and then down the side of the creek until we finally found the safest way to cross. We had to do a little AT rock scrambling to get down to the safe spot, which meant poor Marquis had to deal with catching both of us and keeping us from slipping. He went across the water first.. side stepping, facing the current, hip and chest straps unclipped-that way if you go down you can hopefully get out of your pack and get your head above water.

It was moving so fast and was freezing cold. I took small side steps and made it across just fine, but Margot got half way and panicked a bit. When she’d lift her foot to get it over a rock in the water, the rush of the current felt like it was going to sweep her feet out from under her. Marquis went back out to her and helped guide her the rest of the way. We’re seriously lucky to have him.

We rock scrambled up to the trail and then royally got our asses kicked climbing uphill the last mile and a half to camp. The area we’re in looks like it was either in a landslide or an avalanche. The trees are just snapped in half and all over the place.. but there’s 3 places for our tents and there’s a beautiful little creek next to my site-so, it’s home for tonight. I am a little sad that I’m a bit farther down from them because there wasn’t enough space to get our three tents together, and mine being the only 2 person tent needed more space to set up. It’s peaceful though. And they aren’t far. The mosquitoes are out for blood, so we all retreated quickly.

I’ve already set everything up and I’ve eaten dinner. It’s not even 8pm yet. I may read.. I may crunch numbers.. I may just go to sleep. Love y’all, goodnight!