Day 24: Old Snowy and the Wind

Thur. July 18th

Miles: 9.7

Total:  ~190.3

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Rain.

It fell through the night with unrelenting patter. A puddle formed in the tent, and we were laying on a slope. The intention to spend twenty hours in the tent was sort of a joke, but as the night progressed, it felt like that might become a reality.

Through the thick splatter of raindrops I heard a curse echo through the campsite followed by the sound of banging pots. We yelled out to V8 to see if he was okay. He was mid battle with an army of mice invading his tent. Actually only two, but they chewed a hole through his tent and were making their presence known. V8 was having none of it, so he hammered away with his cookset, ruining the mouses lofty plans for the tasty food V8 had in his tent.

When morning came, the rain had reached the end of the torrential downpour, and we all had wet clothes to don for today's hike. V8, who now has the better trail name Mousetrap, had to put on wet trail clothes that had dead mouse splatter on it. Apricots and I couldn't hold back laughter last night, but now we felt a little sympathy for him. 

Another hiker who camped nearby had a mouse in his tent, but took the more sympathetic approach of just chasing the mouse out rather than bludgeoning it to death.

The fog was thick and drifted with the wind. Moisture crept into everything, and none of us wanted to get out of our tents and face a repeat of yesterday. Furthermore, today's miles were going to be far more exposed. Mousetrap (V8) checked his Garmin InReach which called for partly cloudy, high humidity, and low temperatures with wind chill. However, the chance for precipitation was low.

I rallied the troops to face the miles, rather than play the wait and see game. That was a good choice. After the first mile the fog lifted to cloud level, and soon the sun started to burn through and we were getting blue patches and direct sun.

It looked like we would be getting good weather for the hefty trek over Old Snowy, the Goat Rocks, the Knifes Edge, and the long exposed ridge walk. Well, not good weather, but much better weather than yesterday. It was still pretty chilly and windy as we made our climb, but the views were stunning, and the drifting clouds and fog really made for more dramatic views.

As we hit the high point of the PCT for today, Apricots and I ate lunch while Mousetrap made the short side summit to the top of Old Snowy, a peak that was about 300 feet higher and a half mile off the main route. Apricots and I watched him climb from the comfort of our wind screen rock wall. We had made the summit a few years ago with Pseudognome and were not feeling it today.

Once he returned, we made the steep descent down the Knifes Edge, where shale cut steeply down on both sides of the trail to glacially carved valleys covered with talus and sweeping snow fields.

Then we covered a two mile ridge walk where the strong cool wind blew on us almost hard enough to support our weight if we leaned into. The views were perpetually stunning, and it is easy to see why this section of the trail rates as one of the best of the whole PCT. The miles are hard, but the scenery is worth it (if the weather cooperates). Although, the wind blew the snot off the tips of our nose. Mousetrap referred to this as "The Snot Excavation Machine."

We descended off the ridge through lush mountain meadows overrun with snowmelt streams before we descended further into the comfort of pine duff trails in a well shaded forest. The feet were tired, but the last couple miles came easy as the wind was no longer beating on us, and the sky was clear.

Tonight we will spend our last night on the trail before finishing this adventure. A trail crew is campong near us, and they dug a large latrine hole near where we put up our tents. This has made for a couple instances of strangers walking past our tents while we dined. Mousetrap accidentally established eye contact with one lady squatting behind the tree while he dined. Awkward at best, I told him that he should have winked. He laments the missed opportunity.

There will be more...but we are uncertain what they will be. As for Mousetrap, I think he just may tackle the whole trail soon.

Today: The Greatest Day which followed The Worst Day

Day 23: A slog through fog

Wed. July 17th

Miles: 9.2

Total:  ~180.6

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Well, we opted to not start up last night because of the anticipated rain on wednesday. We did not want to go over Old Snowy on a rainy day. Who knows what tomorrow will hold, but today was a cold slog through rain.

We started with a PCT onramp trail, the Nannie Ridge trail. This was the same trail we came off of with Mittens when he injured his knee. It was roughly 1800 feet over 2.5 miles, so it was a sweat breaker for sure. Add to the sweat a light misting and then everything was wet. 

By the time we reached the top of the climb the mist had turned into rain, and the rest of the day was a constant toggle between rain, mist, fog, and light cold wind. It really was an attempt at giving us the worst weather of our hike. In the past, it was light rain with sun bursts, or at the very least dryish stretches. This was not the case today.

We reached an early conclusion that we would march the miles rather than stop for lunch. When we stopped to filter water for the afternoon, we were exposed to drafty cold air, glacial fed streams and an all around cold misery. Needless to say, we filtered quickly and moved on to our campsite a short bit further down the trail. Upon reflection this rain and wind might be the coldest and wettest Apricots and I have experienced on the trail. We certainly have been drenched before, but wind chill was dropping thd temps to the lower 30s.

At 3:30 we put up tents and climbed into them to don our dry clothes. V8 had his Garmin InReach do a weather analysis. Looks like rain until 11am tomorrow. We may be doing the 20 hour tent nap. It is a little cold now during the day, but in our bags it is not too bad.

The time will pass slow. Hopefully the clouds pass faster. This time we will bundle Phoenix between our sleeping bags so she will stay warm, and not soak my down jacket.

Day 22: Back to Walupt

Tue. July 16th

Miles: 0

Total:  ~171.4

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Some good sleep was had last night. Today was a day of driving. We decided that we were going to head back to the goat rocks and catch the miles we missed around two weeks ago.

Along the way we stopped in Yakima to let V8 get some laundry done. While we sat in the warm sun of a dry high desert, some stranger gave us 7 gatorades. That was nifty. 

After lunch in a laundromat parking lot, we reloaded into the car and continued on our way to Walupt Lake. We passed over White Pass, our exit for the final leg and it was sunny. There were several thru-hikers hanging at the store. We gave them some of our Gatorade, then ate ice cream and checked the weather. 

The forecast called for rain tomorrow. Since our goal was to hike five miles today and go over goat rocks tomorrow,  we realized that we would be hitting that gem in that rainstorm. As such, we decided to camp at walupt and adjust the leg by a half day to hopefully let the rain pass before we go over Old Snowy.

Another night of cards and campfire. Tomorrow a short steep climb back to the trail.

Day 21: Reunion with V8

Mon July 15th

Miles: 8

Total:  ~171.4

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We woke up this morning with a goal to meet V8 on the trail. He has covered the 70 mile leg between Snoqualmie Pass and Stevens Pass largely without us, traveling solo, despite some foot issues he was having.

The three of us idled away in our vacation from a vacation while he toiled arduous miles through mosquitos and rocky climbs over large talus fields and granite boulders. Downed trees and washed out bridges further hindered his travels, but he made his anticipated pacing and we met him at Lake Susyjane to hike the final four miles out with him.

He arrived, mosquito head net upon his head, yodeling to us, expecting a yodel back. We failed him there, oopse. On the way out I offered up a yodel, which was rather weak. He even said so.

We climbed up under ski lifts and then down under more ski lifts servicing Stevens Pass. When we arrived at the pass we discovered that his resupply box was still down in Skykomish. Fortunately we had Pseudognomes car, so we made the side trek down to the post office and grabbed the box. The attendant stayed in the office after closing hours to wait for us, so that was nice and saved us tine for tomorrows trip.

We then treated V8 to dinner and a milkshale at tye 59er Diner where we contemplated what makes a milkshake "World Famous"

Back to camp, a quick gear dump and then over to the state park for $0.50 showers to wash away some of our grime. Back at camp we had a campfire and played cards before going to our sleeping bags.

Tomorrow we will drive back to Walupt Lake where we will pick up our missed miles at the goat rocks.

Day 20: Little Bavaria and Bygone Byways

Sun July 14th

Miles: 0

Total:  ~163.4

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V8 will be coming out at Stevens Pass tomorrow, so we had a day to kill before we hiked up to meet him.

We woke after a bass music filled night, where the uhnn tse uhnn tse could be heard through the soil 100 yards from the Yahoo Campers. Our plan was to do whatever happened.

After realizing we had sore feet and limited inspiration to do a serious hike, we aettled on being tourists in the town of Leavenworth, WA. This little town has made itself a tourist attraction by making everything bavarian themed. So we wandered in the foothills of the towering mountains of the northern(ish) Cascades through a town that appears to have been pulled from The Sound of Music.

My parents have often told us that we ought to visit the town. Also, Mittens said it was his favorite town. All the buildings have a Bavarian theme, carved balistrades and Olde English Font advertising. Beer Steins, Bratwurst, and other culinary delights one might expect poured out of all stores. Even the Starbucks maintained the theme of the town.

So we wandered the shops and the street art, enjoyed a beer and pretzel, and agreed to come back sometime without the dog so we could explore the shops more together.

After leaving Leavenworth, we went up toward Stevens Pass where we found a short trail called the Bygone Byways Interpretive Trail. All total, it was maybe a half mile loop. The three of us took turna acting like teachers reading from a brochure to a class of field trip students. At times we acted out like children, or authoritative teachers, or learning readers. Silliness, but fun silliness.

The trail had nine stops with information explaining the process and procedures that individuals went through to build a rail line, and eventually a roadway over the mountains to connect to Seattle over a century ago. I have always marveled at highways in mountains, so it was a fun, albeit minimal, look at the engineering feat.

After that, we wandered back to camp, stopping for milkshakes at The Squirrel Tree diner, where the server delivered  milkshakes singing "my milkshakes bring all the squirrels to the yard" with a cheesy grin on his face.

Back at camp, the loud crew had moved out, so we nabbed their superior site right next to the Chimewa River, where we nature cooled our evening beverages while taking a very cold bath. 

The evening wrapped up with some cards and a campfire. Tomorrow we will hike in to meet V8 as he finishes the arduous leg he wanted to tackle on his own.

Day 19: Train to the Rescue (Again)

Sat. July 13th

Miles: 0

Total:  ~163.4

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The day was mellow, amd pleasant, and sunny. We knew that V8 was getting the good weather that was shining upon us. Hopefully the climbs were not too hot.

We checked out of the hotel and spent time in the Lobby as Train was coming to shuttle us from Snoqualmie Pass to Stevens Pass. We were grateful that he good give us the time and energy to help us out in that regard. As always, things tend to work out on the trail in magical ways, and we appreciate Train for helping facilitate that.

Pseudognome and I played Cribbage in the lobby until he arrived and Apricots, already antsy, did a couple short dog walks with Phoenix (Flail or Houdini) and Sheila (Good Sniff or Fierce Little Potato)

When Train drove us from Pass to Pass, he gave us a pseudo living historic guide through all the towns we passed, sharing unique stories of the rise (and fall) of various minor settlements along our route. We stopped in Monroe and had a calorie dense meal, which we feel guilty about since we have done near zero walking yesterday and today. Then we continued up to the Pass.

There is a mountain bike race going on at the pass, so after strolling the property for a while with Train, we said our goodbye and loaded into Pseudognomes car to find a less crowded campsite.

Turns out this is difficult, on a sunny saturday evening... especially when you choose to drive to a very populat destination. All campsites were full, so we drove down some old forest roads, and found our way to an amazing and free site near the Chimewa River.

We will do our best to ignore the weekend campers one hundred yards away with speakers playing loud music in a totalitarian effort to invade our serenity. Meh, it comes with car camping, and it is why we pack ear plugs.

V8 says:

----I'm at 2434.5 and plan to get to 2440. The trail is sometimes overgrown with weeds, and it was hot today----

Day 18: The needed rest

Fri July 12th

Miles: 0

Total:  ~163.4

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Today was a day of needed Rest and Recovery. We took two soaks in the hot tub and dried out our gear. I bought some athletice tape to tape up my heal in hopes that this will hold back any Plantar Fasciitis flare ups in the next leg, and I tried to do some elevation and massage of the foot.

In truth though, just getting a little extra time off the foot should be good.

We were able to call in some trail magic from Train, who will be able to shuttle us from Snoqualmie Pass to Stevens Pass tomorrow. Pseudognome has his car there, and we intend to hike uptrail from the northend of this leg to catch V8 on his way out.

The rest of the journal is a long diatribe on the nature of playing too much cribbage in a 24hr period... and losing too much. Pseudognome is better than me, but don't tell him that.

The sky has cleared enough through the day that I believe V8 is getting some stunning views and I am a little jealous. Everytime I think I made the wrong choice, I remind myself that it wasn't just the rain, but also a couple old dudes with out of shape joints needing a little extra care. (But maybe I am a bit of a wimp)

V8 says:

---Due to blowdowns, creek crossings, and bad trails I can't make it to cs2425 tonight. I'm redirecting to cs2423. I plan to either make up the miles tommorow or the last day ---

Day 17: A day of Indecision

Miles: 9.9

Total:  ~163.4

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Sometimes the best laid plans...

I woke up this morning next to Pheonix (aka Flail) who slept in my down puffy jacket. She rolled over to the edge of the tent, which caused all the tent condensation and rain to be absorbed through the wall and into my down jacket. She was shivering and laying in a puddle of water. We dried her off as best we could, and slowly started packing.

The rain fell all night, and it was still spitting off and on heavy spurts of rain. We roused Pseudognome and V8 around 7:30. Pseudognome packed up his tent and then came to check on us hiding from the rain in the tent. Eventually V8 made his way to our tent and the four of us sat in the shelter listening to rain falling until 11am. All the while, we were debating our choice to go ahead.

Being wet is pretty demoralizing. It is not too bad when you are moving, but the constant state of moisture seeped into everything you have makes it hard to motivate to face the rain. We laid out the Pros and Cons of going forward. My feet were starting to show plantar pain. Pseudognome was experiencing ankle pain due to a changed gait from a blister. None of us wanted to be wet for another 4 days of rough miles.

V8 accidently poured soup water in one shoe, and left the other out in the rain. His air mattress popped and his pillow popped. Yet despite these, he still felt compelled to go forward. Apricots and I came back to this section to see it not enshrouded in fog, and yet we sat in the middle of a big wet cloud. A difficult decision was before us and we had to weigh the mathematics of desire. What did we want most? Comfort? Experience? Hot tub? Perseverence? We were pretty divided.

We put fate to a coin, and the coin said move ahead 4 out of 5 times. So we finished packing and started our trek forward. I noticed that Pseudognome was moving at a slower pace, and so we offered to him to head back. As he mulled it over, I started to reflect on my own foot pain and wonder whether I was making a bad choice to move forward. Sixty three miles forward in questionable weather, or seven back to a foot rest and the comforts of dry sleep, and shelter from the weather.

We debated this for far too long, and eventually turned back. V8 said he was moving forward, but I wanted to make sure his parents would sign off on him solo trekking the leg. As soon as we reached a place with cell reception we called his father who encouraged him to take the challenge, and understood the need for me to rest my foot. We sent V8 on his way North with a backup GPS, an extra bit of food, a spare battery for his devices, and full confidence in his strength to pull through.

After the 150 miles of trail, we have watched V8 be strong, be self-confident, and demonstrate the qualities a thru-hiker needs. Apricots and I feel like we have planted the seed of long distance backpacking desire in him, and he has beem exposed to several "unexpected trail choices" that come with the trail experience. "Hike Your Own Hike" is the trail mantra we try to live by, and we see that he is embracing this to its fullest.

It is a little nerve racking to part ways with him, and I now better understand what my parents may feel while I am out, maybe not to the same level, but I feel confident he will be fine.

We descended through mist and cloud back to Snoqualmie Pass where we decided to dry out and rest up in the hotel again. We will find our way to Steven's Pass to meet V8 at the end of this leg. From there, we will likely return to the Goat Rocks to catch the ~30 miles we missed.

Tonight we got a Garmin In Reach message from V8:

-----All is good. Very rocky trail but clear weather. Glad I continued------

Day 16: V8 B-Day

Miles:  6.9

Total:  ~153.5

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Today is V8's birthday, so we sang him happy birthday (quite off key and out of tune), and gave him a can of V8 and tea, then we went to breakfast.

After breakfast we packed up, endulging in the delicious fudge my mom sent as a care package. (Thanks Mom). It is quite an interesting display to watch a room that was a chaotic mess of camping gear exploded haphazardly everywhere slowly get absorbed back into backpacks, but we did it, and we even prepared some boxes of stuff to mail home. Every leg seems to consist of a little more awareness of unnecessary gear.

I am sending my shoes home, and we waited for boots to arrive before we set out on the hike. They arrived at 2:45, and I promptly threw my feet into more spacious, more rugged boots. I know that they will help with rough terrain and bruised toenails... the only thing I wonder about is my Plantas Fasciitis acting up. So far it has been no problem, but today I noticed some familiar pains, hopefully they won't last.

Then we made the 2500 foot climb out of Snoqualmie Pass... in the misting rain. We were not too upset about the rain, it was expected, and it was light and intermittent. Besides, after 1500 feet, the view opened up and we had a stunning interplay of light, clouds, rugged mountains, and misty glitter across all the plants. I would happily share a picture, but my phone was acting up. I suspect it has spent too much time in the moist air. Better work something out or I will kill my music/audiobook device which also doubles as a GPS and camera. (Though I do have a backup GPS).

Nearing camp, we hit a knife edge that was unnerving to walkalong. To our right was nothing but fog, and if you looked down, the mountain dropped away at a near vertical descent. I am sure the view would have been stunning. It is really unfortunate that we decided to rehike Washington to see what was missed in fog and rain, and all we get is more fog and rain.

Admittedly, we have seen more, and had less rain, but moral is low in me and Pseudognome. We both have minor injuries that make steps mighty discomforting at times, and the views just aren't doing their healing because they are few and far between.

"The beatings will continue until moral improves."

Many people use that statement out of context saying that it means "we will keep hitting you until you lift your spirits", but in truth it was said as "if we don't lift our spirits, we will keep losing." Paeudognome and I need some sunny weather and easy tread or the next four days will be agonizing for us.

On the bright side, V8 is in great spirits. He was amped about today's hike, and even packed a small cheesecake up the climb to celebrate his birthday.

When we arrived at camp, we all dove into our respective tents to avoid mosquitos. Then the rain started to fall hard. I changed into dry clothea and ate some food which lifted my spirits. Also, Phoenix is so cute bundled in my down jacket.

Tomorrow should be better. Weather says so. We will see.

Day 15: Zero in Snoqualmie

Miles: 0

Total:  ~146.6

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Rest days are the best days.

We processed our plans for moving forward and ate too much town food, but most importantly we let our feet rest.

I have ordered new boots, and they are due to arrive midday Wednesday, so we have adjusted our itinerary accordingly and are making the most of our time here. In 2010, Apricots and I hiked the PCT and met another thru-hiker named Train. He was a genuinely good dude that made hiking easier for us at times. He messaged us saying that we should meet up, so in the afternoon he hopped in his car and drove the hour up the mountain to have dinner with us.

We went to the Aardvark food cart and had some awesome burgers. The owner offers all hikers free Rainier Beer, and even offered one to Train because he was a hiker. We sat there catching up, enjoying a beer, with about 10 other hikers, huddled under a large tent. A storm had rolled in and the rain was falling heavy. We all felt relief that we had solid shelter for the night. The owner of the Aardvark came out and offered me some brandy when he saw me eyeing the bottle. I think this guy is super happy doing what he does, running a foodcart and catering to the thruhikers. He seemes quite happy, and his food was amazing.

After the Aardvark, we wandered elsewhere with Train and spent time reminiscing over our 2010 hike, and sharing stories from other adventures. V8 asked Train several questions to help guide him on how to best prepare for hikes like the Continental Divide Trail. As we were saying our goodbyes, Train suggested we zero at his place after the next leg, and before we go back and grab the missed miles in the Goat Rocks. If we time things well, it just might work out well.

Tomorrow we pack up, and hope for an early UPS shipment.

Despite the trail hardships, all of us are starting to feel the call of the hike and ready to move on. But in tue meantime, lets hope that tonights rain storm dumps all the water so we have a clear hike.

Day 14: Rocks, Roots, and Riverbeds

Miles: 11.3

Total:  ~146.6

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Rain on our tents last night. We laid falling asleep hoping it would all fall before we woke, and were at least happy to find it was not falling when we packed up... but would it hold all day?

Yes, yes it did. Although we had the wet overgrowth making for damp legs. Pseudognome wore his rain pants, whereas Apricots and I donned our trash bag rain skirts. V8 charged through with no protection knowing the almighty wonder of town awaited him.

Two rough climbs done, and we arrived at Mirror Lake, which I would recommend for a camping spot for all travelling in the area, save for the eight grueling miles between Mirror Lake and Snoqualmie Pass.

The expected town pace today was crippled by very rough trail. Typically hikers move faster into town die to lighter packs and the allure of burgers and beer. However, for us, the miles were on rough tread. It was quite scenic, but the trail required constant attention of foot placement due to excessive root exposure and loose large rocks which like to break ankles.

Often times we were walking down dried up riverbeds, or running drainages. Water flowing over rocks makes for slippery tread and more concentration. The constant demand on our concentration would seem to say that we were experiencing "technical backpacking skills" as best as one could say.

I had asked one of the many southbound hikers if the rocks were bad in the coming miles. They said the miles were not too bad, nothing as bad as our next leg. I immediately realized that I needed different footware.

On the bright side, we were out of the fog and the sun was shining as we weaved between pine duff tread and root filled rocky waterless riverbeds.

By the end of the hike out, I had concluded that my shoes were absolutely not cutting it for me. I had tried to change up from boots to shoes for this hike. I have used the shoes on many hikes in the past, but apparently they are not suited for our current demands. I felt like every step I took was like stepping barefoot on a golf ball. Downhill steps served to show me that the shoes were undersized, and now I have three bruised toenails.

Once we arrived in Snoqualmie Pass, I called REI to order the same boots I used on my thru-hike. I really wonder why the shoes worked for me on a tough 40 miler last summer, but failed me now... I think there are a few compounding factors... but none of this makes for an exciting read.

Hopefully boots will show up at the hotel, and will break in quickly. I could be in for a very rough leg if the new boots don't immediately work out for me.

Enough digression.

We got into the hotel and started the shower/laundry rotation. And the critical question is: Shower first and wear dirty clothes, or wash clothes first and wait for the shower?

Either way, we are all clean now, and indulged in Burgers and Pancakes. Now we lounge, feet in the air. Cribbage games being played, and V8 is in his room sleeping off the early rise demands of our longer days.

Day 13: Yesterday Again

Miles: 16.2

Total:  ~135.3

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There was little difference between yesterday and today. Our feet are more beatup, but I spirits are stronger. Our day was a slow grind through fog and cold air, but there was no misting.

The rain fell last night as we slept. Through the warm burrows of our bags we could here the faint patter of rain like a far off applause for our hard work... or maybe it was just plain rain. Either way, Apricots was right to suggest we donn our rain skirts.

As we hiked, no rain fell, but all the shrubs which crowd the trail were ready to caress our legs with wet misery. Fortunately our rain skirts rejected much of their touch, and we only had to contend with the cold air. The best battle for cold air is the warmth of a brisk pace, so we set it, resting but for short breaths before lunch.

And at lunch? Warm blue patches and even direct sun. We took a longer than normal lunch lounged barefoot and in the intermittent sun. It is moments like those that really heal a demoralised spirit. Sure, most of the first half of the day was fogged over, and the second half our feet were tired, but the midday lunch and pseudo nap almost seem to coverup the hardships.

Rest assured, six months to a year from now I will start reminiscing about the great experience I am having. Remind me then that I had sore feet, the weather in Washington is always rainy, and it is high time I try one of those fancy European vacations. 

But really, it is nice... hard but nice.