July 28 Seiad Valley

1644-1662
Before reaching the small town of Seiad Valley we reached another milestone...
WOW mile 1653!
Only 1000 miles left to reach Canada!
Unfortunately in our tired, hot, stupor we mistakenly wrote 10000 miles and neither of us caught the error- I guess it only seems like we have 10000 miles left-anyway we spent a lot of time collecting materials and making the marker so I am putting it on the blog anyway. I believe you will all forgive the error and enjoy seeing it regardless. We may seem to have super-human strength but sometime that circulation doesn't get to the brain.






It should read 1000 miles to go

In route we met hiker Scrambled Leggs. He started out a south-bound thru-hike from Canada but could not get through Washington and northern Oregon so started in Ashland. He reported there was snow above 5,000' but it was melting fast. GPS and micro spikes would be helpful to us.
Our hike took us through deep shade as we descended into Seiad Valley.



We paralleled Grinder Creek and crossed several bridges.








The water looked so inviting but we had our mind set on reaching the RV Park before dark.
Blackberries lined the 6 mile road walk and helped make the shadowless walk more tolerable.

We reached Seiad Valley by 430. The small town consists of an RV park, cafe, and small general store.













The cafe was closed but the store was open and we helped ourselves to drinks and of course ice cream. Temperatures in the valley were in the 90's but the RV Park was shaded with lovely full-canopied trees. We picked a shady spot under the plum trees and visited with other hikers.



Running Wolf, Backwoods, Train, and many others were resting under the trees. There is a 10 mile, 5,000' climb out of Seiad Valley so most are planning an early morning departure.
Temperatures cooled to the high 50's and made for good sleeping. We zeroed here today and before 5pm over 20 other hikers arrived, one of which was my previous hiking partner Ooops!



So great to see Ooops again!
We caught up on hiker adventures and commiserated about our injuries. Ooops came face to face with 2 bears and had a close encounter with a rattlesnake. None of his injuries were the result but unnerving nevertheless.

Heart

July 27 Marble Mountains and Wildflowers Galore

Mile 1624-1644
Marble Mountain's signature is the beautiful wildflowers and today it did not disappoint us. We walked slowly snapping pictures all along the way.



We stopped at an abandoned ranger station for lunch and attempted a swim at Paradise Lake but sunk to our knees with our first step into the clear water with the mucky bottom.
Here are more pics for you to enjoy. Tomorrow we will reach Seiad Valley.

























Heart

July 26 Leaving Etna

Mile 1607-1624
White Jeep showed up yesterday and took trips of hikers to the trail this morning.
Do you think its possible to fit 12 people in a Dodge Ram duel cab? If they are PCT thru-hikers it is ...



Like sardines in a can


Sister Sue, Train, Kate 8, Thing One, Gone Fishing, Heart, Cue Ball, Jeremiah Johnson, Wolf Pack, Beardo and Backwoods, At the trail head- we all fit in the Ram!
We all hit the trail together and spread out from our own pace. My knee slowed mine but we still ended up hiking 17 miles. I wore a knee brace so hopefully it will help.
We cooked up tortillas on a camp fire and cowboy camped on a rock at a great saddle where we had views of both sunrise and sunset reminiscent of the Sierras.




Gone Fishing watching the sunset at our campsite

Here are some picks from today...


Train hiking in his 16th wedding dress



Train and Me before we hit the trail






Gone Fishing Filtering Water
Yes that is snow!












Heart

July 24,25 Etna

What a great place to Zero! Etna will go down as one of my favorite towns. It was like going back in time like Mayberry. I expected to see Opi come around the next corner.



I loved the old-time feel and architecture of this town






Old-Fashion Soda Fountain at the local pharmacy- this would make a great Norman Rockwell painting


On Tuesday we hiked 5 miles to Etna Summit trailhead - views along the way were spectacular...









Snow again?!

We met Dave who gave us and 5 other hikers a ride to the hiker friendly Hiker Hut. Grey wolf greeted us as Vicki and Dave were taking a rare day off.

Homeless and Unemployed were among several other hikers all either coming or going. Some were camped out on the picturesque setting put back,


Others bunked in the hut



We met Pepper and his son who were there recuperating from shin splints. Pepper's son, Chili, is just 13 and has done amazingly well.


Running Wolf doing therapy for Chili's shin splints

Ron was there in his 16th wedding dress so I had to get a pic- this is his sexiest one yet!



We settled into the Hiker Hut quickly, had our showers, washed our clothes, then headed into town on bikes provided.





Riding bikes into town


Wild Flowers blooming along the side of the road
I was able to get my crown put back on by the only dentist in town and got a brace for my knee.


Thanks Dave and Vicki for making our stay so pleasant!



The Hiker Hut is truly a hiker haven!

Heart

July 23 Another Milestone

Today we traveled 24 miles through the Russian Wilderness in the Klamath National Forest. Cliffs gave way to large boulders and we hiked through a fir forest. We passed several creeks and springs and this distinctive dry bedrock water shoot.






Just past this area we rounded a ridge and viewed a massive wall of granite, reminiscent of the High Sierras.


We met a few trail angels who were out for a 3-day hike and they offered us so trail bars. We just happened to be out of all our snack food so were grateful to them.



Thanks Chris, Scott and Eric!

Shortly after leaving the trail angels I mistakenly took a wrong turn and went off-trail for, when I realized my mistake I quickly back-tracked and found Gone Fishing consulting other PCT hikers as to my where-abouts. We have been leap-frogging several hikers from Isreal. They are a great group and we enjoy visiting with them.



High Point, Sugar-High, and Masad

Just 5 minutes into my trail gummy snack I felt something hard in my mouth - a crown had come off my tooth! Luckily I did not swallow it and hopefully I would find a dentist in Etna tomorrow. I tucked it away in a safe place. We hiked another several miles and reached our 1600th milestone. We had been collecting feathers along the trail since we left Mt Shasta and put them on a bed of moss. Then Gone Fishing gathered a unique black moss to underline it.



Gone Fishing found a great campsite by a hidden lake just a mile later. I opted for the tent to escape the bugs and Gone Fishing cowboy camped. Tomorrow we will reach Etna and then it's on to Seiad Valley and beyond.



Heart