365 slow

November 1 — day 173
Camped Castle Crags State Park mile 1501.2 hiked 20.6 miles today and in doing so finally finished the whole PCT this calendar year.
My final day on the trail was a perfect warm Fall day. I had camped with a closest yet view of Shasta as I have been heading South. As I descended towards Dunsmuir crunching thru a thick layer of oak and dogwood leaves it got progressively warmer eventually I was wearing shorts. This was by far the least clothing I had worn since heading South from Cascade Locks. After the State Park I passed under the I-5 and connected with my route thru the rest of California. I celebrated with a burger and beer at the Dunsmuir Brewery. Later I was met by Kelly the owner of Crossroads, now closed so that she can go sailing in the Caribbean.

October 31 — day 172
Camped mile 1521.8 hiked 22.4 miles today.
Saw 3 NoBo (northbound) thruhikers again today. I’m getting closer and closer to Shasta. It feels like a giant half circumambulation of the mountain. I missed much of this due to smoke in 2013. I camp with a fantastic view of Shasta.

October 30 — day 171
Camped mile 1544.2 hiked 20.7 miles today.
Saw 3 thruhikers today. It was startling to see so many hikers. The last SoBo (southbounder) I saw was Tinkerbell, more than a week ago in a snowstorm. Today was another sunny day.

October 29 — day 170
Camped mile 1564.9 hiked 19.2 miles today.
It was very cold in the morning with the water in my water bottle freezing before my eyes. At least my shoes weren’t frozen from walking through snow. The wind was blowing like hell and it was cold.

October 28 — day 169
Camped mile 1586.1 hiked 13.6 miles today.
Got up early for a ranchers breakfast at Bob’s Ranch House and then did a resupply at Dollar General. I got a ride to the trailhead with Bob. Before we left he showed me his all original running MGA that he got from the disgruntled brother of the deceased former owner. The last time I passed through this part of the trail it was smokey. I didn’t realize how lovely this area was.

October 27 — day 168
Stayed off-trail at Hiker Hut in Etna mile 1599.7 hiked 18.8 miles today.
The wind picked up last night. It was well below freezing last night in the tent. There was a cold wind blowing. Small ponds and streams were frozen. I got a ride into Etna with a woman who I had met walking her dog. I’m all alone in the Hiker Hut.

October 26 — day 167
Camped mile 1618.5 hiked 18.9 miles today. Continued climbing the weather is still beautiful.

October 25 — day 166
Camped mile 1637.4 hiked 19 miles today.
Made it out of town but not before breakfast at the Seiad Valley Cafe. There is a bit of road walking to do before the trail proper started. Lots of climbing.

October 24 — day 165
Camped mile 1656.4 at the Wildwood Tavern and Lodge hiked 14.4 miles today.
I ate the last of my food in the morning. I arrived in Seiad Valley and the Wildwood. It was “the” last stop in CA on the PCT of the old days. The place is being revived but is pretty rough. Had lunch there and then walked over to the general store to resupply.

October 23 — day 164
Camped mile 1670.8 hiked 20.1 miles today.
Another lovely day of walking.

October 22 — day 163
Stayed mile 1690.9 at the Donomore Cabin hiked 19.1 miles today.
Another day with great views. I made it to the Donomore Cabin which was only recently renovated. No wood stove but nice and dry.

October 21 — day 162
Camped mile 1710.0 hiked about 10 miles today.
I left the hostel around 10:00 then mailed a package and then shopped for resupply at the Shop’n Cart before going over to the I-5 on-ramp to hitchhike. After a while I thought I can take a Lyft to Callahan’s. $25 and a half hour later I was there. I stayed there for an hour topping up my phone battery. The weather is gorgeous with nice views of Pilot Rock and Shasta.

October 20 — day 161
Stayed off-trail mile 1718.7 at the Ashland Hostel hiked 22 miles today.
I really enjoyed the scenery today. The forest is more open with a mixture of deciduous and coniferous trees. I hitched out to Ashland from where the PCT crosses the I-5. I did laundry and picked up things for dinner and breakfast before taking a Lyft to the Hostel. The hostel itself was very uncrowded and I had a large dorm room all to myself which was great for laying out all my stuff to dry.

October 19 — day 160
Camped mile 1739.7 hiked 23.6 miles today.
I was slow in getting started as it was so comfy in the cabin.

October 18 — day 159
Camped mile 1763.3 hiked 31.6 miles today.
It snowed again last night. I decided to try to make it to the Brown Mountain Shelter a cabin with a wood stove. The cabin was a wonderful place to dry everything and warm up. I absolutely love a wood stove.

October 17 — day 158
Camped mile 1794.9 hiked 19.8 miles today.
It snowed 4-5” last night. It continued to snow thru the day making for a challenging day. I was breaking trail through several feet of snow in the higher places.

October 16 — day 157
Camped mile 2814.7 hiked 19.3 miles today.
I hiked the alternate route along the Rim Trail. The views were great but the light was flat so not inspiring to take many pictures. I had coffee and a hot dog while charging up at the Rim Village Cafe. Almost everything else in the park was closed for the season.

October 15 — day 156
Camped mile 1839.2 at the Grouse Hill campsite in Crater Lake NP. Hiked 8.6 PCT + 3 off-trail = 11.6 miles today.
It was a relatively short as the campsite was the last legal one before the Rim Trail. Apparently the rangers use heat–sensing devices to find and fine rim campers. Besides, the mountain lion that we saw stalking us in 2013 continues to be active in the Rim area.

October 14 — day 155
Zero PCT miles today.
Continued camping off-trail at the hiker/biker site in SE Diamond Lake. Had a relaxing day catching up on this that and listening to podcasts.

October 13 — day 154
Camped off-trail at the hiker/biker site in SE Diamond Lake mile 1853.9 hiked 6.1 PCT + 12.1 off-trail = 18.2 miles today.
I hiked out almost to the highway taking a trail eventually to the Lodge. On the way I had a pizza at Shore Pizza on its last day of operation. I showered in the campground on the way. I will need to stay an extra day as it’s Indigenous Peoples Day Monday so the post office will be closed.

October 12 — day 153
Camped PCT mile 1853.9 hiked 24.4 miles today.
It was another nice day that ended in a beautiful campsite at the trail junction for Mt. Thielsen. I realize that I’ll be in Diamond Lake Sunday meaning the PO will be closed. I decided to hike tomorrow to the junction of the PCT and Highway 138.

October 11 — day 152
Camped PCT mile 1878.3 Windigo Pass hiked 20.1 miles today.
Another day with great weather. I camped near the water catch and was very glad for it.

October 10 — day 151
Camped PCT mile 1898.4 hiked 16 miles today.
The cabin was cold in the morning and surprisingly difficult to get going. Usually I’m in my sleeping bag and do the cooking and packing from there. I walked into Shelter Cove and charged devices and got a chelada and chips for lunch. Walked till late but the late start and lunch stop hurt the miles.

October 9 — day 150
Camped mile 1914.4 Maiden Peak Cabin
Hiked 21.4 miles today.
It was a hard day hiking. It was wonderful to have a cabin to myself. I didn’t light the wood stove otherwise I really would have wanted to linger.

October 8 — day 149
Camped mile 1935.8 hiked 27.1 miles today.
I woke to fresh snow and clear skies. It was very cold so the snow was like powder. It was a wonderful day of walking. I found a little campsite on snow that was warm as toast with my new sleeping bag. The night was still.

October 7 — day 148
zero PCT miles today.
Continued staying at the Bunk and Brew Hostel. Went to get some wonderful tacos at El Sancho my favorite in town. Sent out my old sleeping bag and superfluous paperwork. Got the delivery notification so I went over to REI to pick up my giant 0 degree sleeping bag Hillary had sent to me. It easily fills the pack to the brim. Of course it’s down so it will compress more. I spent the rest of the day packing and repacking. I’ll be carrying the tent body in the outside back pocket.

October 6 — day 147
zero PCT miles today.
Continued staying at the Bunk and Brew Hostel. Had a relaxing day at the hostel.

October 5 — day 146
Camped off-trail mile 1952.6 hiked 10.3 PCT + 2.5 off-trail = 12.8 miles today.
It was cold this morning but beautiful. I hiked out to Elk Lake Resort and then hitched to the REI in Bend. I picked up new shoes: Altra Lone Peak 4 8.5. Both 8 and 8.5 seemed a bit tight I went with the larger. I booked a bed at the Bunk and Brew Hostel. On the way over I stopped by Avid Cider. Got the thruhiker special of a free cider and doughnut holes. I got over to the hostel and got a bunk in an otherwise empty room so I had plenty of room to spread out. I did laundry showered and had the last of the ramen for dinner.

October 4 — day 145
Camped mile 1962.9 hiked 19.7 miles today.
I woke to snow all around the tent. It was a beautiful but difficult day walking. It continued to snow throughout the day.

October 3 — day 144
Camped mile 1982.6 hiked 18.3 miles today.
Had a wonderful breakfast of a ham and Swiss delight and blueberry muffin with coffee. I picked up the extra food I needed and freezer bags for my feet. I made a sign which worked remarkably well as I got a ride within minutes. It was a cold day with light rain, sleet, and snow. I forgot how dry this section was. I was dry as I pulled into the Lava Lakes campground in search of water. The weather was closing in so I decided to camp. A few minutes after getting into the tent the rain started. My thrift store double fleece hat is extra warm.

October 2 — day 143
Camped mile 2000.9 hiked 4 miles today.
I got down to Santiam Pass early, but it took quit a while to get a ride. Made it down to Sisters for laundry, a shower, and an excellent chili verde plate at Rancho Viejo Mexican restaurant. Found a nice public shower in a park and took my first shower since Seattle. I camped in another park in town in the $5 hiker/biker section.

October 1 — day 142
Camped mile 2004.9 hiked 15.9 miles today.
I was a bit slow in getting going, what with having to thaw out shoes in order to put them on, etc. I think that it was in the mid–20s at night. I was so happy that the sun has finally come back at least for a visit. I was able to really dry my stuff out at lunch today. I forgot how fluffy my sleeping bag could be. I camped four miles away from Santiam Pass and Hwy 20. I was actually warm this evening for the first time in a while.

September 30 — day 141
Camped mile 2020.8 hiked 16.4 miles today.
The push over the 7000 foot height point was difficult. I had to navigate almost entirely via GPS. There wasn’t even a hint of trail up high. I was breaking trail in drifts up to three feet. I was moving pretty slowly but working hard to make that progress. I again camped in snow, but I scraped it off to dirt to be a little warmer. I camped short of where I wanted to in order to find a protected site. I’m at the limit of my gear temperature-wise. I’m wearing everything including a stuff sack I turned into a cap. (3 hats: a cap, stuff sack, jacket hood and rain hat.)

September 29 — day 140
Camped mile 2037.2 hiked 21.5 miles today.
It was surprising to see the store open at Olallie Lake. I was glad for a few minutes of sun to attempt to dry out my gear. I got into more snow and weather as I ascended toward camp. I was planning on pushing over the 7000 foot high point today but the weather, visibility and dark quickly approaching made an early camp a better option.

September 28 — day 139
Camped mile 2058.7 hiked 24.6 miles today.
I woke to snow. It was another wet day of walking. I camped a little earlier today at Pinhead Saddle.

September 27 — day 138
Camped mile 2083.3 hiked 26.3 miles today.
Another long wet day. I made it to Timberline Lodge around noon. I picked up my package, sorted stuff and charged my devices. As I was heading out it was beginning to snow. I was descending from the Lodge so eventually I was back to rain. I again walked into the dark.

September 26 — day 137
Camped mile 2109.5 hiked 29.6 miles today.
It was an unpleasant rainy day. The terrain was easy. I hiked into the dark.

September 25 — day 136
Camped mile 2139.1 hiked 8.2 miles today.
Back on the trail at Cascade Locks. Made it here from Seattle today by bus. Had lunch and then started up the steep climb going South from the river. Had a beautiful campsite with a sunset view.

September 14th – 24th
Zero PCT miles. I left Canada stopping in Vancouver to pick up some delicious chocolate for Hillary and houseboat neighbors. It was lovely being off-trail and spending time with Hillary my partner. I hadn’t seen her since she dropped me off at the trailhead in Campo, California.

September 12 — day 134
Camped at mile 2641.7 hiked 24.9 miles today.
It started off as a sunny morning but quickly devolved into overcast with high clouds. The landscape is unique here with steep talus and scree slopes and nearly as steep meadows interspersed with mixed Pine Fir and Larches. It’s stunning. I picked up a couple of packages of Mountain House Teriyaki Chicken dinners left in a hiker bag. They are very good after a diet of almost exclusively Top Ramen.

September 11 — day 133
Camped at mile 2616.8 hiked 24.9 miles today.
It was another gorgeous day of hiking. There were dramatic revealed and hidden by the swirling clouds. Starting to see the turning of the Larches. I was slow today taking pictures and eating berries including thimbleberries, huckleberries, blueberries, and even a raspberry. The highlight of the evening was a herd of Elk I think using a mineral seep. I camped below the girls from Santa Cruz and Pops so got the show all to myself.

September 10 — day 132
Camped at Rainy Pass PCT trailhead mile 2591.9 hiked 19.4 miles today.
I woke up to pee at 5:45. I thought it was the middle of the night it was so dark. Soon after I got back in the tent it started to rain. It feels dreadful waking to rain like that. I got coffee at the restaurant before boarding the 8:00 bus to the trailhead. We stopped at the bakery and I got a wonderful cinnamon roll and a ham-and-cheese-filled croissant. It was only drizzling as I headed north along with some other thruhikers. It was an easy day out to Rainy Pass where Highway 20 crosses the PCT.

September 9 — day 131
Camped off-trail in Stehekin mile 2572.4 hiked zero miles today.
It was finally a lazy day. I had already done the laundry and showered. It was a long line at the post office. I opened my box which I had packed for myself only weeks before and was so happy to see the booty. There was only a tiny section of food in the “General Store” that I was super happy to have the ramen and tuna packets in my box. I did some tent repair on my soon-to-be-discarded Hexamid. It’s getting to be all patch. I have lots of pin holes that I’ll fix when I get to Seattle.

September 8 — day 130
Camped off-trail in Stehekin mile 2572.4 hiked 20.9 miles today.
I would be completely out of food today. I hiked very quickly down from the alpine landscape into the old-growth rainforest along the Agnes Creek. Took the shuttle into Stehekin on Lake Chelan. There were loads of thruhikers there. I showered and did my laundry. Had a huge passable dinner of calamari meatloaf and salad at the restaurant.

September 7 — day 129
Camped mile 2551.5 hiked 25.5 miles today.
Another beautiful day walking around Glacier Peak. I almost stepped on a Grouse. They are surprisingly UNafraid of people. I camped short of where I wanted to due to the pending thunderstorm. I found a nice secure spot surrounded by a grove of trees. I ate dinner as the rain began to fall in earnest. The thunder and lightning were exciting.

September 6 — day 128
Camped mile 2526.1 hiked 24.1 miles today.
It was a rainy cold morning. Saw a bear. Mica lake was gorgeous with incredibly beautiful deep blues in crystal clear waster. Took a much–needed swim. I felt incredible afterwards. I walked into the dark looking for a campsite around Milk Creek.

September 5 — day 127
Camped mile 2502.0 near White Pass hiked 27.7 miles today.
Another gorgeous day of hiking. I found out that I was mistaking blueberries for huckleberries. The blueberries are growing on lower plants typically growing at higher elevations and have a whiteish coating on them and are better tasting. The huckleberries are growing in taller plants and are shiny and darker they and using a wine tasting term have a slightly barnyard taste to them.

September 4 — day 126
Camped mile 2474.3 Lake Janus hiked 17.2 miles today.
Got to the Stevens Pass ski lodge early. Salsa was there picking up a resupply package. I was really surprised and lucky that the hiker box had enough food for my entire resupply. There was plenty of ramen, some Knor sides, an odd assortment of bars, spicy peanuts, hot chocolate, instant coffee, and some instant energy drink packets. I already had about a day’s worth of food in the form of granola bars, a few other bars, nuts, and dates. I had already made a sign in anticipation of hitching the 35 miles to Leavenworth which I was dreading. After the resupply bonanza I found out that there was a cell tower at the ski resort and made some lighting fast downloads of some podcasts. Later I went to the Mountaineers Lodge where I found another hiker box and got more ramen in exchange for the slower cooking Knor pasta sides and a few tuna packs which I normally add to my ramen meals. I only had to pay a $5 day use fee to do a bucket laundry, shower, charge my devices, and cook a few of the rejected pasta sides for lunch. My laundry wasn’t dry when I left so I had drying laundry draped all over my pack. Eventually, I stopped along the trail and got the laundry mostly dry.

September 3 — day 125
Camped mile 2457.1 hiked 27.7 miles today.
It was another animal sighting day. Saw my first bald eagle. I saw a shadow over me and looked up to see a mature eagle in its distinctive plumage, I saw a number of Pika and Marmots. The Pika are so cute oftentimes with a bit of grass or other shrubbery in their mouth destined for their winter larder. The Marmots are much larger than those in the Sierra. Again today I saw Grouse. The highlight was another large actually black in color black bear. On a much smaller scale, I saw what I think was a Vole. The Bear and Vole reminded me of Totoro and the dust sprites from “My Neighbor Totoro” overall it was an excellent day of walking. It was also a berry good day with salmon, thimble, and huckleberries in abundance.

September 2 — day 124
Camped mile 2429.5 hiked 26.2 miles today.
It was absolutely gorgeous day hiking. The day was not quite so nice as some guy hiking with his dog charged me three times over the day. Of course like all dog owners he said that this never happens. Dog owners are either delusional or deceitful about their pet’s behavior as his is the standard response about their dog behaving aggressively. Yesterday another very large dog lunged at me and the owner who thankfully had the dog leashed was barely able to restrain the animal. I am very anti-dog on trail. They are a threat to both humans and animals.

September 1 — day 123
Camped mile 2403.3 hiked 15.1 miles today.
I’m glad that I camped where I did as it got much less appealing as I descended the 5 miles to Snoqualamie Pass. I picked up my package from the Summit Inn for the valuable consideration of $15, got my laundry started, got my devices charging and got breakfast at the adjoining Pancake House. The $13 I-90 special of 2 eggs, 2 bacon, 2 sausage, 2 pancakes and hash brown potatoes was just what the Dr ordered. I ate with Salsa, a German thruhiker I have been running into lately. I used the dryer for once rather than wearing my clothes right out of the washer. I was also able to fluff up my limp down jacket and revitalize the DWR on my rain jacket and pants. I did some texting and emailing as well as having a nice long chat with my girlfriend. The climb out of the pass was hard but it was gorgeous getting into the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. There were loads of day hikers to contend with on the way up. I was complimented on my cleanliness by one group. While my clothes were indeed clean, I had not taken a shower and am well in need of a dunk in a lake or river. It’s been too crowded lately to do my usual skinny dip before rolling into town.

August 31 — day 122
Camped mile 2388.2 hiked 23.6 miles today.
Got a bit of a late start today. Saw lots of huckleberries and pickers today. It’s Memorial Day weekend and I’m getting close to Snoqualamie Pass so I saw loads of people. I decided to camp earlier than I wanted to in order to find a decent spot. I’ll get to the pass tomorrow morning and pick up my resupply package.

August 30 — day 121
Camped mile 2364.6 hiked 27.1 miles today.
It was a great day walking. Lots of yummy huckleberries for munching. I stopped by the Mike Urich cabin with some other thruhikers and had a Ranier beer and an orange left by some trail angel. Camped at a pretty decent spot off the Tacoma Pass road.

August 29 — day 120
Camped mile 2337.5 hiked 25.7 miles today.
It was sprinkling rain in the morning. I saw two bears in the morning before Chinook Pass. There was a trail angel Madd at the Pass offering bananas, nectarines, sodas, pumpkin pie, chips, candy and cell phone charging to boot. After I left the pass I spotted two mountain goats up on a scree slope.

August 28 — day 119
Camped mile 2311.8 hiked 18.5 miles today.
I was up early and made it to the Kracker Barrel general store before 8:00 when they opened. I did laundry sharing with Alli a thruhiker I had been running into the last few days, took a shower and picked up my resupply package. I spent a few hours charging up devices loading podcasts and electronic communicating. Camped at Crag Lake.