The Last Chapter

Oct. 1
A beautiful last day...
















Just 5 miles left...




















One Mile Left
We could see the division of Canada and the United States ahead




This was the hardest part of my blog entry to write. Unimaginable feelings of joy and sorrow mixed with a little exhaustion...




OK a Lot of Exhaustion
And...




A moment of Glory




We gave the trail all we had...




And Now...




We rest our weary bones
The monument is not much, but the people that make it there are a special breed and I am proud to be one of them.












A 2012 poster at the monument showed many that came before us.




My entry into the final register..




The entry reads:
I started this journey to inspire others. I was inspired everyday by the beauty and miracles I witnessed first hand. Curiosity and the realization that I was living a dream most never have a chance to experience coaxed me from my warm sleeping bag each morning. When the going got tough it was the love, sacrifice, and support from family, friends and followers that kept me going and it is with the grace of God I completed this journey.
From my Heart




A Special Salute to Steve Fitch (GF, Gone Fishing) my Hiking Partner who hiked with me through thick-and-thin for 4 months covering over 1800 miles.
We both came to believe...



Joy Shared Is Twice The Joy

Once home I will write a conclusion and will be happy to answer questions and help anyone who is considering hiking the PCT. You can email your questions to me at heartyhiking@gmail.com
With All My
Heart

Getting to the End

Sept 29, 30
2614-2656
Woke up to cold, damp weather.








It rained last night and looked like it would be afternoon before we could expect some sunshine. Leap-frogged with Huckfinn, Chow-Down, Cheetah, Tom Sawyer, Dan, and Moresee to Harts pass.




We saw more grouse and shared our mountain story with Cheetah. She one-upped us with her story of a bull moose sighting yesterday! We would keep our eyes peeled with hopes of seeing one today.
It was Saturday so we met a lot of day-hikers on the trail. All congratulated us and looked at us in awe. We are more impressive than our younger counterparts but that comes with a price - old age.
The mountain sides were colored with golden Tamaracks, and the red, yellow and orange colors from the huckleberry bushes. All putting on a beautiful show.








We were able to dry out out tent in the afternoon sun and we made it to camp an hour earlier tonight. Tomorrow would be our last 20 mile day!








Sept 30
2636-2656
We awoke to very cold frost on the ground and iced puddles this morning. I bundled up in my 4 layers and felt like Randy in his snow suit (Christmas Story).



The last map

Our last 20 mile day looked like it would be a great one. No clouds and great views as we climbed our last big climb- bright yellow Tamaracks, red, orange and yellow huckleberry bushes up against evergreen conifers and clear blue sky.











No chatter between GF and I today. Both of us were deep in thought. Tomorrow we would complete our journey of 2,660 miles, 6 months in the wilderness. Something that once seemed improbable but never impossible. We camped with hiking friends Bam and Shivers and enjoyed our last night on the PCT



Shivers and Bam



Heart

On To Canada!

The last leg of the PCT!
Sept 27 & 28
2580-2614
The last leg of the PCT! Hard to believe. I want to get to the monument, want to shout from the mountain tops that I did it but know it would also mean the end of my adventure.
I packed some items to send back home; my fishing rod, snow baskets for my trekking poles and other non-essentials. The post master said there were over 300 boxes awaiting hiker pick-up which is over double the usual number of hiker boxes this year. 2012 set a record for hikers attempting the PCT.
GF and I left on the Stehekin bus and after a final stop at the bakery we headed for the trailhead at high bridge.
There were 8 other hikers at high bridge waiting for the bus to take them to Stehekin. Looking like a homeless gang with ragged clothes, shoes duck-taped together and smiles on their faces, they boarded the bus.
The first night we hiked to Rainey Pass, the weather was pleasant and we were savoring our last 89 miles.




The views again were amazing...




The fall colors spectacular!




We hike 14 miles to a great campsite and watched another perfect sunset.
Sept 28
The morning was cold and misty and we were having breakfast in the tent when an unwanted visitor joined us. As the mouse streaked across our laps Steve dove for, and caught him with his bare hands, then quickly released him as I sat amazed and motionless. Later we discovered the mouse had eaten a hole through the tent, through a food stuff sac and a few ziplock bags to our beloved trail mix-. Well we almost made it to the end without a critter incident.
In 6 short miles we reached another milestone...




2600 miles done in Fall Leaves
Our last hundred-mile marker.
The trail was amazing with an eclectic look to the scenery today ...
















We met a few hikers traveling southbound. Most were PCT hikers who had completed the trail and were hiking back into the USA. Wiseman was one such hiker. He wanted to hike the last leg again, his way to decompress. Most go on to Manning Park in Canada but a surprising number return by hiking part of the trail backwards. We leap-frogged with Moresee, Tom Sawyer, Dan And many others throughout the day.




Moresee
Everyone was tired, dirty, and aching from the climbs but all agreed the scenery was worth the effort through Washington. Just when we needed an energy boost we came to a cooler- trail magic! We helped ourselves to PB&J on a tortilla and took a well deserved break.




Heart

Fish Stories from Stehekin

We got a hitch from local ranger Randy to the bakery. In route we passed a fly fishing shop and you can probably guess the rest. The owner of the shop, John Wisley is an expert fly fisherman and guide. Randy recommended we contact him and arrange a guided trip on the Stehekin River. This turned out to be a great recommendation as you can see from the pics below.




Gone Fishing with his first catch: Rainbow Trout




The water is very cold but these waiters are like a dry suit, they keep you warm and dry




GF hooked this one and I reeled it in - I'm pretty good at the reeling-in part but need to perfect the hooking part -- maybe on my next 2600 mile hike




GF with a large Cut-throat trout




The salmon were spawning and I saw hundreds swimming upstream to die.
Halfway down the river we saw 3 bear cubs along the river banks trying to feast on the spawning salmon. Their mother was shot just weeks ago by a hunter and they have to fend for themselves
It is hard to make them out in the pic but there is a black and brown cub - (honest).








Another beautiful sunset




In my dry suit taking pics from the river bank
Heart