Thursday, September 27, 2012
Important Message
I am in Stehekin but due to internet connections here cannot publish previous entries yet. I will have to wait until I have a better connection which will probably be when I get to Seattle in about 10 days. I will be leaving for my final leg this morning. This last leg is 89 miles and will complete the PCT (2,663 miles) and get me to Manning Park. I will stay there overnight then take a bus to Vancover. After a few days site-seeing in Vancover I will head to Seattle, meet with friends then on to Texas. While in Seattle I will get my posts up-to-date. All is going well. The weather has been good and it looks like good weather through to the end. I plan to be at the momument on Oct 1. Thank-you all for your kind words of encouragment, your prayers, love and support.
Heart
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Glacier Peak Wilderness
Sept 23, 24
It's hard to get your arms around some parts of this trail- especially the leg to Stehekin which is one of the most difficult sections of the PCT.
Mud slides destroyed large sections of trail of the PCT in Oct 2003 and 2005 forcing closure of the west side of Glacier Peak for several years. Many new bridges have been built and all areas reopened in 2011. Much of the devistation is still apparent giving a heathy dose of respect to Mother Nature's powerful force.
Don't daydream along this section
Up, over and sometimes under obstacles on the trail
We had s choice of taking the old PCT route through several water crossings and over the feared high log or the new safer route over the new bridge which was 2 miles longer
We chose the log. GF walked across like it was laying on the ground, but I chickened out and scooted across on my butt- I could barely get my legs around it.
Sept 24
Beautiful views today...
We found more mushrooms for lunch and dinner
And celebrated Mark's birthday with a hostess cupcake - Happy Birthday Mark! I wish you could have make it to your party!
Only 100 miles left!! We will reach Stehekin tomorrow:)
Heart
It's hard to get your arms around some parts of this trail- especially the leg to Stehekin which is one of the most difficult sections of the PCT.
Mud slides destroyed large sections of trail of the PCT in Oct 2003 and 2005 forcing closure of the west side of Glacier Peak for several years. Many new bridges have been built and all areas reopened in 2011. Much of the devistation is still apparent giving a heathy dose of respect to Mother Nature's powerful force.
Don't daydream along this section
Up, over and sometimes under obstacles on the trail
We had s choice of taking the old PCT route through several water crossings and over the feared high log or the new safer route over the new bridge which was 2 miles longer
We chose the log. GF walked across like it was laying on the ground, but I chickened out and scooted across on my butt- I could barely get my legs around it.
Sept 24
Beautiful views today...
We found more mushrooms for lunch and dinner
And celebrated Mark's birthday with a hostess cupcake - Happy Birthday Mark! I wish you could have make it to your party!
Only 100 miles left!! We will reach Stehekin tomorrow:)
Heart
Toughing it out to Stehekin
Sept 21
Today was a tough day. We woke to heavy smoke which initially hid the magnificent views and we did a lot of ups and downs. It took us 8 hours to go just 10 miles but at the end of the day we got 20 miles in, hiking the last mile in the dark. We crossed another milestone...
Mile 2500 made from fall leaves
We leapfrogged with the Pineapple Group, picked lots of huckleberries to boost our mood and energy, saw several grouse and a few black,white and brown marmots - different colors than the marmots of the sierras. They blended in with the rocks and were difficult to spot but we could hear their whistling calls so we knew they were close by.
Can you find the marmot in this pic?
By the afternoon the smoke had cleared and trail looked like this...
Sept 22
After yesterday's grueling day I slept 10 hours and woke dry and warm but the weather quickly changed. As GF and I descended into heavy fog the temperature dropped drastically and we found ourselves in a cloud of heavy mist. We had less than 200 meters of visability all day. This was the Washington weather we had been warned about.
Most of the hiking was uphill which kept us warm until you stopped for a break. Then with our wet clothes we quickly were chilled so the breaks were few and short. No noontime naps today.
We entered the Glacier Peak Wilderness and saw more marmots, grouse and several hawks.
Water sources were ample but not listed on our maps so we carried more than needed most of the day. A campfire was in-order and GF is a master at fire starting even in wet surroundings so we warmed-up and dried out our clothes and hoped for sunny skies tomorrow.
Heart
Today was a tough day. We woke to heavy smoke which initially hid the magnificent views and we did a lot of ups and downs. It took us 8 hours to go just 10 miles but at the end of the day we got 20 miles in, hiking the last mile in the dark. We crossed another milestone...
Mile 2500 made from fall leaves
We leapfrogged with the Pineapple Group, picked lots of huckleberries to boost our mood and energy, saw several grouse and a few black,white and brown marmots - different colors than the marmots of the sierras. They blended in with the rocks and were difficult to spot but we could hear their whistling calls so we knew they were close by.
Can you find the marmot in this pic?
By the afternoon the smoke had cleared and trail looked like this...
Sept 22
After yesterday's grueling day I slept 10 hours and woke dry and warm but the weather quickly changed. As GF and I descended into heavy fog the temperature dropped drastically and we found ourselves in a cloud of heavy mist. We had less than 200 meters of visability all day. This was the Washington weather we had been warned about.
Most of the hiking was uphill which kept us warm until you stopped for a break. Then with our wet clothes we quickly were chilled so the breaks were few and short. No noontime naps today.
We entered the Glacier Peak Wilderness and saw more marmots, grouse and several hawks.
Water sources were ample but not listed on our maps so we carried more than needed most of the day. A campfire was in-order and GF is a master at fire starting even in wet surroundings so we warmed-up and dried out our clothes and hoped for sunny skies tomorrow.
Heart
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Big boo boo!
Apologies are order as you may have suspected the title of the last entry should have said "Steven's Pass" !!
Steven's Ass to Skykomish
Got a late start after GF tried one last time to snag a fish but none surfaced so we headed to Steven's Pass. The weather was clear - no smoke or clouds, views to gawk, no rain, no bugs and we were on our way to town- life on the trail doesn't get much better than that.
We met PCT hiker David from Austin Tx and gabbed as we hiked into Steven's Pass together. There is no shortage of trail magic here in Washington and we were offered a ride to Skykomish by trail angel Scott. He had just dropped off some section hikers and was happy to help us out.
Thanks Scott !
Scott drove us the 14 miles from the pass into the small town of Skykomish. Under an extensive rebuild project triggered in 2000 by a high school research project called Dark Sky the town is back on its feet.
Our first stop was the famous Sky Deli
The food and service was great and we chowed down on deli sandwiches and ice cream.
Several hikers were in town and we linked back up with Niko and Liane. We commiserated and compared our injuries-everyone had at least two to complain about but like a hard's day work it comes proudly with bragging rights after much effort. All are looking forward to Canada and are being extra careful to ward-off a preventable accident. We end each day with prayers of thanks. What a blessing this trail has been!
Heart
We met PCT hiker David from Austin Tx and gabbed as we hiked into Steven's Pass together. There is no shortage of trail magic here in Washington and we were offered a ride to Skykomish by trail angel Scott. He had just dropped off some section hikers and was happy to help us out.
Thanks Scott !
Scott drove us the 14 miles from the pass into the small town of Skykomish. Under an extensive rebuild project triggered in 2000 by a high school research project called Dark Sky the town is back on its feet.
Our first stop was the famous Sky Deli
The food and service was great and we chowed down on deli sandwiches and ice cream.
Several hikers were in town and we linked back up with Niko and Liane. We commiserated and compared our injuries-everyone had at least two to complain about but like a hard's day work it comes proudly with bragging rights after much effort. All are looking forward to Canada and are being extra careful to ward-off a preventable accident. We end each day with prayers of thanks. What a blessing this trail has been!
Heart
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
On to Skykomish Part 2
Sept 17
2431-2452
It was a quite night save for a mouse that I dreamt ran across my head during the night. Turns out it wasn't a dream. The tent zipper was open just enough to allow the critter access and I found his dirty work in my snack sac. Ughhh!
The view from outside the tent was awesome- snow covered mountains towering over the Douglas-firs and Waptus Lake of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.
What-can't see them? We couldn't either. The smell of smoke was so strong and thick I thought a fire was burning just outside the tent. Later we learned from a hunter on horseback that over a hundred fires were triggered from the recent dry lightning storms. Other than the sprinkling we had a week ago there has been no rain for over 60 days in Washington. Unfortunately it was smoky with limited views most of the day so I did not take many pictures.
The weather was cool and we hiked a bit further than we intended. We crossed a challenging river and struggled to find a campsite before dark.
Sadly we did not come across any more mushrooms and the huckleberry bushes were fruitless having been raided by hikers, bears and birds. So the tiresome dehydrated fare was dinner but I changed mine up a bit-- I mixed the rice with the cream of wheat - added cinnamon sugar and Nido (dry whole milk), the appropriate amount of boiling water and called it rice pudding. Interesting but just not the same as mom made. GF stuck with his usual--mashed potatoes and Spam.
Sept 18
2452-2472
The smoke started to clear and I snapped this pic first thing in the morning.
Today was warmer than yesterday- mid 70's and we were faced with our most challenging Washington trek to date-- 5900' up and 5400' down! We met hiking couple Footprint and Illusion from the Czech Republic and leap-frogged with them all day. We stopped for lunch at an inviting lake and Footprint said they saw some good-sized trout during their swim. Thats all GF had to hear-his rod was in hand within 5 minutes and he had a big smile on his face. A few nibbles but no naive fish.
We met PCT section hiker Jackflash-a guitar player from Chicago who has been hiking from Kennedy Meadows, and crossed paths again with other familiar faces. I was finally able to get a pic of a grouse. I have seen several but they often fly off before I can get my camera out. This one was a bit of a ham.
The day ended at the Susan James lake and you guessed it...
A toilet in the woods?! An uncommon but welcomed sight at Susan James Lake Campsite
More pics to enjoy...
Typical trail tread through Washington
Fall Colors
A blanket of ferns changing into their fall colors
Lots of rocky areas
And a lake even shaped like...
Heart
2431-2452
It was a quite night save for a mouse that I dreamt ran across my head during the night. Turns out it wasn't a dream. The tent zipper was open just enough to allow the critter access and I found his dirty work in my snack sac. Ughhh!
The view from outside the tent was awesome- snow covered mountains towering over the Douglas-firs and Waptus Lake of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.
What-can't see them? We couldn't either. The smell of smoke was so strong and thick I thought a fire was burning just outside the tent. Later we learned from a hunter on horseback that over a hundred fires were triggered from the recent dry lightning storms. Other than the sprinkling we had a week ago there has been no rain for over 60 days in Washington. Unfortunately it was smoky with limited views most of the day so I did not take many pictures.
The weather was cool and we hiked a bit further than we intended. We crossed a challenging river and struggled to find a campsite before dark.
Sadly we did not come across any more mushrooms and the huckleberry bushes were fruitless having been raided by hikers, bears and birds. So the tiresome dehydrated fare was dinner but I changed mine up a bit-- I mixed the rice with the cream of wheat - added cinnamon sugar and Nido (dry whole milk), the appropriate amount of boiling water and called it rice pudding. Interesting but just not the same as mom made. GF stuck with his usual--mashed potatoes and Spam.
Sept 18
2452-2472
The smoke started to clear and I snapped this pic first thing in the morning.
Today was warmer than yesterday- mid 70's and we were faced with our most challenging Washington trek to date-- 5900' up and 5400' down! We met hiking couple Footprint and Illusion from the Czech Republic and leap-frogged with them all day. We stopped for lunch at an inviting lake and Footprint said they saw some good-sized trout during their swim. Thats all GF had to hear-his rod was in hand within 5 minutes and he had a big smile on his face. A few nibbles but no naive fish.
We met PCT section hiker Jackflash-a guitar player from Chicago who has been hiking from Kennedy Meadows, and crossed paths again with other familiar faces. I was finally able to get a pic of a grouse. I have seen several but they often fly off before I can get my camera out. This one was a bit of a ham.
The day ended at the Susan James lake and you guessed it...
A toilet in the woods?! An uncommon but welcomed sight at Susan James Lake Campsite
More pics to enjoy...
Typical trail tread through Washington
Fall Colors
A blanket of ferns changing into their fall colors
Lots of rocky areas
And a lake even shaped like...
Heart
On to Skykomish
Sept 15
2402-2411
Left Snoqualmie pass at 1130am uphill for 10 continuous miles climbing over 3100' up' into the Alpine Wilderness. During this leg we will climb 16,800 up and descend 15,900'. It is said to be one of the most challenging but beautiful parts of Washington.
Catwalk with views of the town
We met several day hikers out enjoying the fabulous weather this weekend. Daybreaker and friend Sporadic were on their returning from their hike and gave us some food bars. Daybreaker hiked the PCT last year and shared some stories and good info for what lies ahead.
Trail angels Daybreaker and Sporadic
We hiked on to Ridge and Gravel lakes. Steve tried to coax some fish out of the water but none of them were buying his line so we made our usual dehydrated fare and called it a day.
Sept 16
2411-2431
The highlight of today for me was seeing this beautiful mountain goat.
I nearly collided with him-- thats how close he was. By the time I got out my camera to snap this pic he was already up the mountain but was kind enough to pose for this last pic.
The views today did not disappoint...
We met PCT hiker Mad Dog Murphy and he shared information about tasty mushrooms to eat on the trail.
So we harvested some and had a great dinner.
Chicken Of The Woods Mushrooms --delicious!
More pics from today...
Heart
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