PCT 2023 Recap

Ranging from Campo to Tehachapi CA (for me - the PCTA defines the North end being at Walker Pass) - the appx. 566 mile Southern California section is a diverse section! This stark range of terrain made it a sneaker favorite of mine, and I am so happy that I forced my heat-weenie self to hike through the "desert". This section ranges from 1,200ft in elevation at San Gorgonio Pass up to 9,000ft in the San Jacinto mountains - it has a huge range in elevation! With wildlife ranging from bearded toads, tarantulas, and so many hummingbirds, there was always something to gawk at. 

For myself, I found this section to be by far the hardest. Not because of the heat and dryness, though this was a factor. Rather it was simply because it was in this section that I realized just how hard it was to walk across the country. And it was in this section where I realized how far... I had to go. So Cal was my mental crux, even when you compare it to the "blahs" of NorCal/Oregon that some hikers feel. Luckily, this is also where I found my tramily, and finding buds was key for me to keep my head up!

Miles Hiked: 566

Days on Section (incl. zeros): 29 days (39 incl. zeros)

Zeros: 10 (5 of those were in the first 150 miles due to an injury!)

Best Town Food: Grizzly Manor Cafe for breakky - Big Bear

Music Jam: "This must be the place" by fanclubwallet

Podcast Addiction: Philosophize This!

"Oh honey," Mary said as she reached down and pressed her thumb against my toes, "your feet are packed like sardines in there". I grimaced in acceptance. My feet had been suffering for the first four days on trail, and I was at the point where I'd be happy to accept any solution to make my feet not ache. I had been gaining about two new blisters a day, and now had 9 in total, with two houdini-ing in between my toes. Before I started the trail I had been told that I'd need at least a full size up from what I usually wear, but my overconfidence in my old shoes led me to ignore that advice. My denial had taught me a hard lesson.

I walked out of 2 Foot Adventures with a new pair of shoes and a handful of blister supplies. "I'll use my zero the next day to address the blister taping." I thought as I accepted the fact that I was needing to fully take a zero. Stopping was hard. I had rolled in to Julian and ran in to so many familiar faces. It felt so fun to see everyone! But my heart sank when I realized they were all going further along the trail today. I couldn't help it, but I felt loss. 

My Northern California experience started in Truckee, CA (Donner Summit) and ended in Ashland, OR which made for a 561 mile section of green trees, running water and lots of old burn zones.  Its high point is Donner Summit at 7,989ft and the low point is when it crosses the Sacramento river at 2,130ft. The wildlife we ran in to ranged from grey foxes to bobcats, mountain quail all the way up to one momma cougar - eek! Luckily, we think she was just watching us to make sure we didn't go near her den. 

I found Nor Cal to be both beautiful and disheartening as we experienced both stunning mountainous life and long long stretches of old dead burn zones. The largest for us being the 963,309 acre Dixie fire between Quincy and Chester which lasted for days of hiking. The fire had burned so hot in 2021 that there was nothing regrowing still two years later. That said, we also experienced lots of beautiful terrain and water was largely abundant which was great for the 2 week heatwave where temps stayed over 100 for many hours of the day. 

Miles Hiked: 561

Days on Section (incl. zeros): 21 days (25 incl. zeros)

Zeros: 4 days

Best Town Food: Art and Tammy's biscuits and gravy! Best trail angels ever <3 

Music Jam: "Trunk Song" by Jelani Aryeh

Podcast Addiction: Ologies with Alie Ward

"There's trail magic under the bridge," a SOBO hiker said as he passed us on trail. He was pointing a bit off trail, where we were planning on taking a mid-day siesta. There had been a heatwave the past week and it was getting to us. Today was the hottest yet hitting 105 Fahrenheit and we had agreed on stopping around noon to find water until the heat waned a bit. Radio and I waddled down to a stunning bridge over a creek. The water was deep and surrounded by cavernous rock on either side. Along the bank of the creek were groups of giant umbrella plants, proudly protecting whatever lay just at the waters' edge and it looked like a fairytale.

We plopped down on the side of the creek, and while Radio and I gobbled down the cookies and sweet tea that were left under the bridge, Nemo quickly fell asleep in the shade. We lay in the dirt, resting our heads on our makeshift pillows that were really just rocks, and before long more hikers came thru. Sage, Chickpea, and ChaCha all wandered in, and in an unspoken agreement, all huffed down with us for a group siesta. After chatting for a bit, and repeatedly denying Sage's cheese that he kept offering (cheese that has sweat in a pack for 5 days during a heat wave is not the most appetizing), I decided to go take a dip to cool off. 

In Oregon I hiked from Ashland to Cascade Locks - and even went back home for my best friend's wedding in the middle! Many people find Oregon to be the "worst" part of the hike, but I found myself really enamored by it - particularly the Central and North parts. My treck through Oregon lasted 456 miles with its high point being an unnamed saddle north of Mt. Theilsen at 7,560ft and low point being the very end at Bridge of the Gods which is at only 180ft. As for wildlife, I saw... mostly mosquitoes and gray jays, but also had a Barred Owl swoop overhead and saw a Kestrel guarding its ground nest! A few deer said hi as well, which is cute at first, however once you realize that they will follow you for miles and eat anything with sweat on it, it becomes a nuisance. 

The middle section of Oregon particularly enchanted me, with little volcanoes poking out of the horizon at all times, marking your route and showing you where you were yesterday... the day before... the day before that... It really felt like a dream. Oh and this is also where I found the most berries on trail so maybe that is why I fell in love - ha! Sure there were death hoards of mosquitoes at the beginning and sparce water sources of murky, scummy ponds, but for the most part I loved Oregon. Maybe because it meant that I was all that much closer to my home.

Miles Hiked: 456

Days on Section (incl. zeros): 16 days (30 days incl. zeros)

Zeros: 7 days for wedding back home, 7 days being sick for a total of 14 days

Best Town Food: The breakfast buffet at the Timberline Lodge is really really hard to beat, but Thai food at Wild Rose in Bend was equally as amazing! 

Music Jam: "Sweatpants" by Childish Gambino

Podcast Addiction: Dissect Podcast - Childish Gambino and Kendrick Lamar Seasons

"Annie's closes at 6pm, so if we hurry... We can make it." Dan said, looking down at his watch, "we'll have to push 4 miles per hour, but I think I can do it". I nodded, and Dan, Hitch and I started marching down the trail. This was the very end of Dan joining me for a few days, and after almost 100 miles, he was cruising! However, he was also finding just how blistered his feet and toes could get. Coming in to Crater Lake, I had been warned by SOBO hikers that the blowdowns were really bad before the park, and bad they were. While 4 miles per hour is usually pretty attainable, the hundreds of trees that had fallen over the trail really hampered our travel. We ducked and weaved and bobbed our way down the trail, sun beating down on us, and with 10 miles left, we had to find a water source. Looking down at the map, we saw that the only place we could find water was a small unnamed pond. It was slightly off trail and we clambered up to it to find a pond about 30ft in diameter. While the surface looked relatively clean, glancing down to the bottom we saw algae, scum, and little tadpoles darting back and forth.

"Oof" Dan said as he eyed what was supposedly the most refreshing thing we'd find all day. We scooped some up in our filter and drank. The water was warm, and had a straw-like aftertaste. We looked at each other with raised eyebrows but unanimously decided to trust our water filters and keep on trekking. Up and under trees we went, the water never really satiating our thirst but doing enough to keep us from dehydrating. Finally up ahead I spotted a sign sitting, battered on the ground that said "Entering Crater Lake National Park".

HOME! After crossing over the Bridge of the Gods, I had finally made it in to my home state. I was beyond excited - smiling as I looked over at the trees, ferns and ivy in adoration. My enamored state made the thousands of feet gain that I had to do to get out of the Columbia River Basin go by in a blink. This section starts at the lowest point of the entire trail - Bridge of the Gods at 180ft, and ends at the Canadian border in Manning Park, spanning 505 miles. The high point is Lakeview Ridge at 7,126ft which is just a couple miles south of the Canadian border. When travelling NOBO, the end of your hike is STEEP as Washington is one of the steeper sections! Although I am biased, I found this section to be my absolute favorite. 

The flora consisted largely of giant pines, firs and cedars, blueberries so distracting that I didn't even realize I was snacking right next to a bear, and lichen coating rocks in green and grey. The fauna I came across varied from tiny pikas and marmots, to black bears and elk, and even a surprise guest which appears in my short story below ;) This section is one that I could and likely easily will repeat again and I'm sure I'll be able to fall in love over and over. 

Miles Hiked: 386 (I got kicked off trail for a fire in the Glacier Peak wilderness, and got back on at Harts Pass)

Days on Section (incl. zeros): 19 days (24 days incl. zeros)

Zeros: 5 days in 2 chunks! When I hit Snoqualmie pass, I was getting dumped on and was 30 minutes from home, so I went home for a weekend (*bliss*) and I also got kicked off of the trail by a fire, and went home for a day so I could re-route around. 

Best Town Food: I really did not spend time in towns in WA asides from the 2 days I spent in my own house, ha! So for this I'd have to say Perihelion Brewery (a neighborhood pub). Though if I had gone through Stehekin, I am sure the bakery would be on here. 

Music Jam: "Don't let it Break your Heart" by Coldplay - big feels wowee

Podcast Addiction: Darknet Diaries

The rain sprinkled down on me as I walked up my last uphill for the day. It had been slightly drizzling all day, and being almost soaked through, I was excited to get in to camp and warm up in my sleeping bag. The section between Snoqualmie and Stevens had indeed proved to be stunningly beautiful, but also with the timing I had, it happened to be damp damp damp with a constant drizzle each day. 

"The older generation gives us so much guidance and wisdom that I don’t know where we’d be without them.

They teach us the dangers of the world and give us the insights that would take us decades to figure out on our own.

But the internet… doesn’t have an older generation still."

Jack Rhysider said through my earbuds as I walked up the hill, podcast blaring. I was in a mode where I was just trying to get to camp. Sometimes I don't listen to things as I hike, and I make sure I am super aware of my surroundings, but not now. Now I needed to just grind it out. 

I walked up and up when suddenly out in front of me I heard a big crash and the sound of a booming yell. I froze. Through the voices of the podcast, I couldn't tell what the sound beyond was... Did someone fall? An elk stampede? A... bear attack? I was in an area where all of these could be plausible. I hastily paused my podcast and ripped my earbuds out of my ear. Ahead of me was silence, and after un-freezing myself, I slowly paced up towards my fate.