Day 109: A Kind Invitation and a Walk on Lava Fields

Posted on August 6, 2013 by Wendy

Day 109
August 5
mile 1757.3-1782.5
25.1 miles

“Ahh… Home,” are the words that go through my head as I once again find myself on the thin, familiar strip of dirt, granting me direction and purpose as I take my first few steps of the day. It is a feeling of assurance, knowing, and comfort.
As I walked on, it became apparent that my stomach was in a very different place. It was oddly hurting in the middle of a stretch, days after having eaten any town food. My energy started to diminish as the pain increased. How could my spirit and my insides be in such disparate places? Why wasn’t my body able to overcome the invasion that had been forced upon it and re-find balance?
I struggled as I made my way up the next 1,500 foot climb. Oregon was supposed to be the easiest part of the trail. I had heard that this was where we could do 30 miles a day, but so far, I was finding nothing easy about it.

In just over 5 miles, I reached a sign pointing to a spring. Someone’s shirt was draped over it, airing out. There was a couple bent over, adjusting their packs just ahead of me on the trail. I didn’t recognize them. The woman directed me toward the spring. “You’ll cross a paved road, pass through a gate, then keep following the boardwalk.” This seemed like much father than the 100 yards that my guidebook had indicated! I headed down the path, through tall weeds and across the road, ticking off the landmarks I was supposed to pass through as I walked. At the end of the boardwalk, I found a small black pipe out of which the water was running. I took off my pack, pulled out my filter and collecting bag and balanced on a rock as I waited for the bag to fill. The air was noticeably chillier here in this tree-filled area than it had been on the exposed trail.
As I made my way back up to the trail, another hiker that I did recognize walked by me on his way to collect water. I resumed the climb and then headed downhill, through trees and scrub that offered no views. Before starting the PCT, I had read only one previous hiker’s journal the whole way through (partly due to a lack of time, and partly because I wanted to be surprised by my experience). She often talked about how boring Northern California was and asked her readers to send her e-books to help keep her mind occupied. I was happy that I never found any part of the trail in California to be boring. The wooded sections provided space for me to become introspective and quiet within myself, while noticing the smaller details around me, while the open vistas made me happy and gave me energy.
However, I was finding the Oregon forests to be different and actually felt bored for the first time on the hike, which I felt disappointed about. I had my goal set for the day in terms of where I wanted to get to, mileage-wise, but my progress was not as strong as I had hoped. I kept looking at my watch and calculating the miles I had left to hike, feeling incredibly stressed.
Just before noon, I came across a couple walking their dog. The woman asked me if I was hiking the PCT and asked me about my journey. Unfortunately, my stomach issues and pain were always at the forefront of my mind, and that is what I always mentioned about my journey. After several minutes of chatting, she told me that they were renting a cabin nearby and asked if I wanted to go back with them for a cup of tea. I hesitated, feeling the stress of my schedule. I still wanted to get in 17 more miles today and barely had time to do that. I asked how far off the trail it was and they said it was close by. They thought a little rest and snack might help, but left it up to me. I told them I would think about it as we walked. The man said I could set the pace. It was too fast for the woman, so they told me to go on and wait for them at their truck if I decided I wanted to go to their cabin.
I decided I might as well let go of my expectations for the day and take them up on their kind offer.
We all climbed into the truck and headed down the road for half a mile. I was surprised that their cabin was actually half of a real house! Keith’s brother was watching TV inside and was surprised to find a stranger being welcomed into the space. Evelyn offered me the use of their shower, as well as any food that they had. I opted to shower before I ate. It was the nicest shower I had had on the entire trail! No one was waiting for me to hurry and get out, there were several shampoos and conditioners for me to choose from, and it was a nice, big, luxurious shower! I was given a fluffy towel to dry off with and then Keith cooked me up some scrambled eggs, as Evelyn put out a bowl of yogurt and cup of tea for me. They were watching some old home movies, and I learned a great deal about their family in the small amount of time I was there! They said that it was completely up to me as to when I wanted to get back to the trail. They only had to get ready for some guests coming over for dinner. Evelyn offered me a couple of slices of watermelon after I finished eating and then I knew I would have to get going again.
She drove me back to the trail and gave me a hug before she got back in the truck. This was the first time on any of my three long hikes that someone had invited me into their home and I felt so grateful. I was so glad that I abandoned my stressful plan and allowed for this opportunity to be pampered and recharged.
I headed back into the woods, bypassing the next water source, off the trail, as I had just filled up my bottles with tap water. When I became tired, I sat down on a fallen tree and made myself an ice coffee as a treat. My mood had drastically improved, thanks to the kind offering I had just experienced.

I then entered the rocky lava bed section of trail. My guidebook had listed the comments of many previous hikers warning about how our pace would be drastically slowed through this section and how hard it would be on our feet. I was not looking forward to it! However, I soon came to find out that their warnings were not to be believed! Through the middle of the rock field was a narrow strip of red clay that was perfectly easy to walk on! Sometimes, I really can’t understand people!

My energy did wane, however, and I stopped several times to rest my shoulders and try to refuel. As evening approached, I reached the state highway and crossed it to find a fast-moving creek on the other side. I could have camped there, but it was too noisy, and too unprotected. Instead, I collected and filtered water and then started the next climb.
About halfway up, I saw a small patch of dirt along the right of the trail. Night was falling and I was thankful that I didn’t need to continue climbing. I spread out my groundsheet and sleeping bag, bundled up, and cooked dinner. Ole and Track Meat walked by and seemed envious about my spot. They were still trying to catch up to Veggie!
We could smell the smoke of a forest fire in the distance, but it didn’t concern me.

Day 108: Stories

Posted on August 5, 2013 by Wendy

Day 108
August 4
mile 1732-1757.3
25.5 miles

The pain in my stomach finally started to subside after midnight and I was able to get a couple hours of rest.
I made my way back up to the trail and resumed my walk on the sliver of dirt that had been cut through the evergreen trees. Before long, I came across two cute deer who were not immediately frightened off.

After my first couple of miles, when I needed to take my first pack break along the edge of the trail, Veggie approached. He, Ole, and Track Meat had gone into the town of Ashland and then attempted to get back on the trail in the evening. At the trailhead, they ran into Legend and Viking, who had been drinking, and was now in the mood to go dancing. He convinced Ole and Track Meat to head back into town to go clubbing. Veggie did not want to go and carried all three of their packs a little way up the trail to a camping spot. They returned in the early morning hours and hadn’t woken up by the time Veggie started hiking. As he relayed the story, a crazy squirrel kept running towards us without fear! It kept scaring me and we had to continually shoo it away!
In a couple more miles, I found Veggie and another hiker sitting around chatting. We were now in a very dry stretch of trail, without much shade. I hadn’t noticed the faucet nearby until I asked where the water was. Apparently, a big group of hikers had camped here last night and there was an unusually high level of animal activity, as well, including a bear! I listened to the stories from the guy I didn’t know as I sat on a rock, filtering my water. He talked about some crazy birds in New Zealand (or Australia?) that would dive bomb people and peck their heads! This guy had camped here last night as well and had spent the morning journalling. Both of them decided to carry very little water, banking on a source not far ahead.
I carried a lot, as usual, and was very happy that I did when I saw the tiny puddle of muck ahead…
A little after noon, I ran into a hiker heading south. I had met the first southbounder of the year, Bobcat, on the day I hiked into Ashland. He was very skinny and it was easy to tell that he was a thru-hiker. He was also very calm and polite and told me about all the smoke in Ashland from the forest fires. Fortunately, it seemed to have started clearing. I asked the guy sitting on the log on the side of the trail if he was also a southbounder. He said his name was Forrest Man and I asked him what Washington was like, as I had asked Bobcat. I was worried about the tough terrain and my ability to hike 25 miles a day, which I would need to do in order to finish the trail by the 17th of September! They both talked about how much snow there was and how extraordinarily slow going it was for the first 200 miles. Forrest Man decided to skip 200 miles of the trail because of the conditions. He told me about spotting a dry branch in the middle of the several feet of snow he was walking on and stepped on it for a break. An entire tree sprung out of the snow when he did so! He also talked about how lonely it was. He said he enjoyed talking to all of the northbounders he met now. I asked him if that was taking up a lot of his time, to which he answered that he has now reduced his miles in order to chat. He didn’t seem to want to stop the conversation with me, so I had to slowly pull myself away. I had a lot of miles planned for today and needed to get a move on it! Before I left, he mentioned that I had a huge dry section of trail coming up (who would have thought Oregon would be so dry?) but that I could stop at Hyatt Lake resort, about 1.4 miles off trail, where I could get a shower. Since I had just showered a couple of days ago, and couldn’t eat real food, I had no desire to hike off trail. He did say there was a pump after the resort.
Ever since I reached the half-way point of the trail, and especially with less than 1,000 miles remaining, I kept my mind occupied by trying to remember where I was and what was happening to me at that same mile into my hike. I was surprised at how much I could remember.

In the late afternoon, I was surprised to reach a bridge spanning a wide, fast-flowing creek! Forrest had not mentioned this as a water source! I was a little perplexed, but happy to be able to replenish my water and make myself an ice coffee! As I sat on the edge of the bridge, Track Meat came along and told me his version of the night’s happening at the dance club and their scary ride back to the trail with a man who was high and who decided to follow them back to their campsite. Without a headlamp, and in the state he was in, he kept stumbling, losing the trail, and shouting out for help. He kept the guys up with his talking until they told them they didn’t mean to be rude, but that they needed to get some sleep. Track Meat took out an entire package of Newman’s mint oreo cookies and offered me one. It was such a treat with my ice coffee! He, too, was surprised about this river. “The southbounder failed to mention this raging river!” I said.
As I sat there snacking, a mother, daughter, and their dog came off a side trail and then picked some blackberries nearby. Soon, Ole came along. I got to hear the same story from his perspective, which was amusing. He had been having a tough time staying awake as he walked today and I asked him why he couldn’t just lie down and take a nap. He wanted to keep up with Veggie. He was also stopped by Forrest and had to excuse himself when he couldn’t keep his eyes open anymore. He headed on as I finished my break.
I crossed the road leading to the Hyatt Resort and as I was about to reenter the woods, I looked back at the road as a car turned off. I recognized the shirt on the arm hanging out the window as that of Beer. Hmmm… It had been quite apparent to me that he and Ranch had been hitchhiking and skipping parts of the trail, but now I knew for sure.
I came upon the faucet and the multitude of bees swarming around it and topped off my water supply before heading back out.
It was now late in the day and I was growing tired. I took frequent pack breaks and tried to muster up all of my remaining energy.

Eventually, I came out to a flat area with an intersection of dirt roads. I wasn’t sure where the trail was. There were several fire rings around, but the area was too eerie to camp in. I walked by a tree with a no camping sign and was amused to see a fire ring right beside it!

I found the trail as it lead back into the forest and caught a glimpse of the huge orb of red sun sinking through the trees. It was casting a magnificent shade of color on a section of trees on the other side of the trail.

Before long, I spotted an area off to the side of the trail that was suitable to stop at, even though I was surrounded by charred chunks of trees. I set up my cowboy camp and cooked dinner and then watched a man hike south along the trail into the darkening night. I felt slightly vulnerable. Fortunately, he offered a slight wave and kept walking.

Day 107: So much pain!

Posted on August 4, 2013 by Wendy

Day 107
August 3
mile 1726.6-about 1732
5.4 miles

I had a very tough time getting any sleep due to the pain in my stomach from the spaghetti. It was awful!
When the sun came up, I walked across the wet lawn and went inside to use the bathroom. Breakfast was not served until 8:00, so this was one day I could have actually slept in a little, but I was not able to sleep. When I returned to the lawn, I saw a curious deer checking out our tents! My sleeping bag was extremely wet from condensation. I pulled out my iphone and kept it close to me in case anyone happened to feel like texting me now that I had reception and access to electricity. Of course, they did not…
All of a sudden I heard a loud song blasting from somewhere. I recognized the voice as Christina Aguilera and then thought, “That’s one of my songs.” Only then did I realize that it was coming from my iphone! I shoved it further into my sleeping bag try to quiet the sound as I tried to mute it or turn it off, none of which was happening… How embarrassing! I hoped my neighbor Phil was able to sleep through it, or if not, that maybe he thought it was coming from a car on the road.

I tried to lie back down for a few minutes and then got up and started gathering my dirty clothes into a pile to take to the hiker bathroom. Phil beat me to it, however, so I ended up waiting. I looked through the register in the lobby and had a cup of coffee with Phil while we waited for breakfast to open. His wife was on her way from Bend to deliver his hiking poles to him, which he had forgotten. As we waited in line, a section hiker that had invited himself over to our table the night before, and who we both had a very hard time with, asked us if he could join us for breakfast. We didn’t feel like we could say no. My mood shifted. We gave the waitress our tickets for the pancake breakfast for which coffee was not included. We were supposed to get a fruit cup with it, but somehow our waitress did not know about this. Wight arrived straight from the woods and sat down next to me. As I ate, my stomach hurt more and more. I had to excuse myself for the bathroom a couple of times. Wight said that it was probably from overeating, but I had eaten a very ordinary amount- both at dinner and breakfast, and the pain I was experiencing was something very different.
I now how to attend to the chores of laundry, drying out my sleeping bag and groundcloth, and sorting through my resupply. I had a mountain of food in front of me and thought I was going to have to leave a great deal of it behind until the owner said I could mail some of it ahead. He said they could take the box to the post office for me! Wight asked to borrow my phone to call his son and then wanted me to join him for lunch. My stomach was still feeling awful and I needed to finish sorting.
Phil’s wife had arrived in the meantime and he had finished his own sorting and was now heading back to the trail. His wife asked me if I wanted a ride, but I was not yet ready. He thought he would see me soon.
I wrote a short blog update, a few postcards, and finished all of my sorting and packing. The woman at the front desk knew nothing about shipping a box out, so she went to find the owner’s wife who told her she would take my box to the post office for the amount of postage plus a $5 fee. I asked if I could include my stamped postcards and she hesitated and told me there would be another service charge for those. Are you kidding me? This place was all about making money!
Although I was still making trip after trip to the bathroom and the pain was not subsiding, I decided to have lunch anyway, since that seemed like a normal thing to do.

Hiker after hiker was streaming in. The Germans arrived and happily toasted each other at the bar. StoryTime arrived and called my name. I told him I was not feeling well.
Finally, after 5:00, I was ready to head out. Most of the hikers had gotten a ride to the trail head, bypassing a couple mile section of trail. I decided to hike back the same way I had come in- up the hill of the side trail and then through the forest. I hoped I could hike off the pain.

I passed a couple of day hikers and then ran into a couple more on the trail across the road who asked me how far I planned on going tonight. I told them that I didn’t know. I was just going to hike until it got dark.

When the light started to fade, I saw no apparent places to camp. I was in the middle of woods with sloped terrain filled with brush on both sides of the trail. I looked below and thought I saw a flattish looking place so I decided to head off the trail. I could hear what sounded like a loudspeaker in the distance and a voice that was saying, “Down with hikers. Hikers get off the trail.” It was a bit eerie. I searched the area for a place to lie down and finally picked a spot. Instead of making pasta, I made a cup of ginger tea and ate a few snacks. My stomach was still in great pain. The words on my teabag read, “Travel light, Live light, Spread the light, Be the light.” I found them to be very appropriate.

Oregon!

Posted on August 3, 2013 by Wendy

I made it to the border of Oregon on the evening of August 1st! I had so much energy all day and easily hiked the 28.4 miles (except for the last mile) to the border. And I was happy that I kept up with Bandleader and Sky Eyes, so I would have someone to take my picture at this meaningful place!
All day, we couldn’t see any views because of all of the forest fires around us, and we smelled and breathed in the smoke. The air had turned cool the night before (after 2 weeks of very hot and surprisingly humid weather!). By the time we reached the border, it was cold and misty (just what you might picture Oregon to look like!).
I found a cozy place to camp right next to a dirt road less than half a mile after the border, washed some of the dirt off me, put on warmer layers, and cooked my dinner. (I’m a little worried about how cold I will be in Washington because I am often still cold now in all my layers!).
I’m still having a lot of stomach/intestinal problems, but my spirit is strong and I can still hike, so that is all that matters to me.

The next morning, the air cleared and I cried thinking about this trip being over. I feel like I am leaving my soul out here. This is where I am the most happy and the most strong. I slept on a bridge the other night. Since mile 300-something, I have set up my tent only twice. I almost always sleep (and hike alone), but if I am in the vicinity of others, I am always amused when I am the only one who hasn’t set up a tent. I’ve become a cowgirl camper!
I endured a lot of hardship in California- giardia, repercussions of some awful antibiotics (10 weeks now!), two resupply boxes that did not get to me (very stressful!), personal heartbreak, storms, etc, but I accept it all. This journey has been a lot about letting go (letting go of being in control, letting go of attachment), and also about opening up.
One of the best things about this hike is what other people are reflecting back to me about who I am. Although I have been alone a lot, at certain times, people drop in to my life, seemingly to remind me of my own self- worth (the thing I have always struggled the most with). People like Fun Size and Bandleader and Muk Muk and Dust Bunny. They don’t know much about me- only what they see in this very moment, and I can’t believe the compliments they have given me. And many people from home have sent me care packages (several of whom also don’t know me very well), which is extraordinarily meaningful to me.
I think I am starting to like myself out here and I wish I could just keep hiking this trail…
But winter is coming and I have to hike fast to be able to finish and avoid the bad weather.
It’s a catch 22. So all I can do is stay in the present as much as possible and be grateful for the opportunity to be out here. And then pick a place out here to live and begin a different, better life.

Day 106: To Ashland

Posted on August 3, 2013 by Wendy

Day 106
August 2
mile 1699.2-1726.6
27.4 miles

I got up and ate some breakfast as a couple of birds flitted around me, hoping for some crumbs. Wight walked by before I packed up. As I headed out of the woods and climbed 1,000 feet onto a ridge, clouds once again hung in the air below the tips of the mountains in the distance. It was an incredibly peaceful scene and a nice way to start my journey into the state of Oregon.

I passed Wight as he took a break near Sheep Camp Spring and continued on my way. I saw no traces of Sky Eyes or Band Leader. They get up much earlier than I do!
When I began to tire, I sat along the edge of the trail and found the “Energy Bomb” bar that Tanya had sent me. It tasted much better than I imagined it would and really did seem to boost my energy! I decided to eat the Kind bar she had also given me. I heard a loud insect buzz close to me and wanted to shoo it away before I realized it was a humming bird! It was curious about me and flew near me a couple of times before landing in a tree. I hoped it was a sign of good luck!

The trail descended and then climbed another thousand feet.

I decided to take my next break on a rock on which I had a view of the winding trail ahead of me and flowers in the grass in between. Oregon was a pretty state so far! I had reception here and received a text from my friend, Amanda, asking me where I now was. I got to send her my Oregon border photo! She had just written a post on facebook about all of the wonderful things that had happened in her life over the past 8 or 9 months- things she had never imagined possible, and this both made me happy for her, and gave me hope for myself. For now, I was content walking the path in front of me.

I encountered a couple of day hikers ahead. One man asked me where I was headed. “Canada!” I said. He sated at me dumbfoundedly. “Canada is that way” he said pointing in the direction I had come from.
“No it’s not. It’s that way,” I confidently stated.

Later, I encountered two women who were excited about what I was doing and wanted to ask me some questions. The first was if I was carrying all six pairs of shoes that I would go through on me! They wished me well and we headed on our separate ways.
When I arrived at a beautiful cascade of water, I had to take a break. It was too good of a source to pass up. All around it were beautiful wildflowers. A man came jogging past on the trail.

The trail descended to the Mt. Ashland Inn, where two excited dogs greeted me. A nice man pointed out a water spicket and picnic table that he had set out for the hikers. He and his grandson were working on a wood project and were both very welcoming! I hadn’t planned on taking a break here, but decided to take advantage of the table. One of the nice dogs came over to keep me company.

As I headed out again, I saw an older man with a huge backpack ahead of me. He didn’t seem to hear me approaching and I think I ended up startling him when I said hello. We chatted for a few minutes and I learned that he had just started his section hike of Oregon and had camped near Slack last night. He wanted to know if I knew him. I asked him if he was planning on hiking to Callahan’s and he said he thought it was too far to get to tonight. I encouraged him to try if he felt like it. There was a side path that lead down to it and he asked how he would know where it was. I told him he would see a sign. I got moving, feeling strong and energetic.
I found the side trail which emptied out onto some railroad tracks and then got totally confused. I wished I hadn’t packed my guidebook pages away! I decided to head across them and after checking out the area, only saw a wide dirt road to take. It kept going and going. I could see the highway below me, and then the Callahan’s sign, but this path was taking me further down the highway. I finally gave up, realizing this was the wrong way. Now, I was tired and had just lost a lot of time! I was hoping to make it there by 6 or so, not knowing when dinner was served.
As I neared the railroad tracks again, I saw my new friend, Phil! He had made it after all! We looked around for the path leading down to the highway, but neither of us saw anything! He finally got out his phone and I found the number for Callahan’s. The staff didn’t seem to offer any help, however. I went to look again and waved Phil over after I realized where it was. I walked ahead of him, but didn’t want to walk too fast… Then, I crossed the highway, headed under the overpass and finally reached our destination! I was tired!
We had to pay $50 for a shower, dinner, breakfast (excluding tips), and camping out in the backyard. I also had to pay $3 for each of my boxes that were shipped there. (Last year, it was free).
The lady took us out to a garage-like building with a single shower and said we could have dinner after we washed up. Phil said I could go first while he set up his tent.
I decided to cowboy camp on the lawn and after I set up my sleeping bag, went up to the deck and found a table. Phil joined me after his shower. It was nice to have company. I wasn’t able to eat much of my spaghetti because my stomach started hurting. How frustrating! It got pretty cold out so we ended up taking our meal inside to finish.
A couple seated by the door asked me about my hike when I couldn’t figure out how to open the door! They invited me to sit down with them and before I went back outside, gave me their contact info in case I ran into trouble along the way, as they knew several people in Washington that might be able to help me out if I needed it. I thought that was very kind of them!
I headed down to my spot in the grass while the patrons returned to their rooms and hunkered down for the night.

Day 105: Oregon!!

Posted on August 2, 2013 by Wendy

Day 105
August 1
mile 1670 – about 1699.2
29.2 miles

When I awoke, I looked out on a completely new landscape- one that looked more like the sea than the sky! White clouds hung below the tops of the mountains, making them appear to be floating. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing!

After I ate my breakfast and shifted around, I noticed a huge squished bug that looked like a giant tick on my groundcloth that I had apparently rolled over on during the night. Sometimes, it’s best not to wonder about what is crawling around your head while you try to sleep…

I headed out, continually looking at the horizon and the unbelievable views that the low clouds were creating. It was stunning!

After a mile or so, I came upon Rabbit Stix staring at his map at an intersection. The trail was actually marked here, but I waited for him to confirm our direction and then headed on. As I climbed, I looked back to see another hiker approaching. I couldn’t tell who it was. I began to heat up in my layers and decided it was time to strip. While I was doing so, the other hiker caught up. It was Band Leader, who I hadn’t seen since Echo Lake! He said that I had caught him going to the bathroom, but I didn’t know what he was talking about. Apparently, he was up on the ridge and saw me coming. He said that I was keeping my eyes on the trail and he thought he was going to go unseen, but at the last second, my eyes turned up to where he was! I told him that I didn’t see him at all! I was just looking at the amazing views!

The next water source was a questionable one in a marshy area. Rabbit Stix decided to check it out and I turned off the trail to follow. I wished I hadn’t because only a pump would work with the small puddle that existed. Another hiker left the area shouting. Something had clearly gotten him worked up!
I headed back to the trail and ended up stopping to take a pack break right before the next potential water source. The frustrated hiker came along and asked if there was any water here. I had no idea! It turned out to be only a faint dribble. We headed on through the woods and then coming back out to a ridge. The air was extremely smoky and all of the views had now disappeared. I wondered how close we were to a fire and if we were safe.
As we descended to a dirt road that lead to a spring, I saw a large tent set up, along with a grill and some gallons of water. I wondered if someone was offering trail magic. A woman with a stern face then emerged from the tent and glared at me. I guess not… I asked her if the spring was that way and she answered in an unfriendly manner. I started down the path and then decided to wait instead and hope for water at the next spring that was closer to the trail.
No officials were waiting at this road to tell us to get off the trail, so I assumed it was safe to keep walking. I passed by Band Leader taking a break. He wanted to know where his friend Sky Eyes was. I told him that he needed to stop to get water at the last spring and would be along shortly.
I ended up taking a break further ahead and Band Leader said he wished he had waited to take his break there when he passed by.
Several miles later, when I reached Bear Dog spring, I found Band Leader and a hiker I did not know, named Wight sitting on a log, eating their lunch. Runs with Elk was sitting above them in a grove of trees. The guys told me the spring was dried up and then, when they admitted they were kidding, said it was a quarter mile downhill. “No, it’s not!”. Unfortunately, it was only a puddle, so they said I needed to scoop out the water with. I told them that, luckily, I had a wide-mouthed smart water bottle for that purpose. Wight said that wouldn’t be good enough and lent me his mug.
I joined them to eat my own lunch and filter my water. Wight had only eaten a Cliff bar and was ready to head out again. Band Leader complained about having too much food on him and asked me if I wanted anything. I also had too much! Runs With Elk was interested, however, and came down to look through the offerings. The only thing that had looked good to me was some pastel colored eggs. Finally, Band Leader asked if I wanted any. “Yes, please!” I felt so happy just staring at them in my hand!

Runs with Elk asked me if I had ever made a nest on a hike to leave some chocolate eggs in. She said she had done that a couple of times. Band Leader thought that sounded like a fun idea and asked if they could build a nest now! He went off and started gathering pretty leaves and flowers and quickly turned them into a beautiful nest and placed it on a log with some of the candies in the center.

Sky Eyes came along and when the nest was pointed out to him, first thought it was real, and then that it had taken someone a long time to make!
I headed out into the hot afternoon and after about twenty minutes, decided that an ice coffee sounded good. I figured I had better make it now before my water got too hot. The boys passed by and made fun of me for stopping so soon after my last break. We were all excited about reaching the Oregon border, which we were shooting for tonight “Remember when it used to take us all day to hike 20 miles?” I asked Band Leader. “Yeah. And now we can easily hike 30. I think we’re getting the hang of this thing, Wendy!”.
I was excited to have people in my vicinity and hoped I could keep up so that someone could take my picture at this monumental point!
I hiked at a strong pace by myself for the next several miles and was glad to come across Band Leader and Sky Eyes sitting down taking a break. “We only have ten miles until the border!”. We talked about the wedding I was trying to make it to and Band Leader joked that I should wear my current outfit to it. He said I should arrive late, apologizing profusely, and then ask, “Is there any food around here?”. In a normal thru-hiker state, that would make sense, but I was worried that I wouldn’t even be able to eat at the wedding!
I continued on, watching hawks fly overhead, and then had to sit down to take my break as the boys pressed on. I soon caught up to Band Leader and Wight and hiked with them to the last water source of the day.
Our guidebook made it seem like it would be difficult to find and easy to miss, but that was actually far from the case! We found Cookie leaving the source and could hear it from a distance! The water was so cold that my hands hurt trying to filter it. Wight spread out his groundcloth and decided to make some hot chocolate and perhaps stay there for the night. I headed on. I soon caught up to Cookie, who said she didn’t know if she was going to try for the border tonight. (How could you not know that?). I hiked as hard as I could, wanting to stay ahead of everyone to make sure there was someone to take my picture. Still, I had to take my little pack breaks.
My energy remained fairly strong until I hit the last mile. Cookie had caught back up to me and was obviously going to reach the border, as well. I struggled to keep my pace and kept looking at my GPS as I walked. Where was this thing? As I got closer and closer, I wanted to stay in the lead, even though I knew it didn’t matter who got there first. I felt like I had worked really hard and wanted to see the sign appear in front of me, rather than another person reaching the sign.
At last, there it was. Cookie let out a yelp behind me and I let out nothing. No emotions arose within me. I was just there.

I asked Cookie if she would take a couple of pictures of me and then I did the same for her.

As we read through the register, the boys came along with much more excitement. Sky Eyes fell to the ground, so happy to be in his home state of Oregon, and Band Leader tumbled on top of him. Sky Eyes said that he had been waiting for this moment for an entire week- and that his reason had to do with Band Leader. Cookie and I looked at each other. Then, Sky Eyes pulled out a joint. Band Leader promised he would smoke with him when they arrived at the border and now it was time to make due on his promise. I was offered some but said no. Sky Eyes understood. He said that for people who naturally laugh a lot, marijuana just makes them very sleepy. It was now very cold out and the haze from the smoke of the forest fires caused our surroundings to look a lot like one would expect Oregon to look like.
I thought the boys were planning to sleep at the border, but we all ended up putting our packs on and heading out. Cookie lead and pulled over when she saw a spot without saying anything. I continued walking and once I crossed a dirt road, noticed a patch of dirt beside a tree. I decided I would stop right there. There were a couple of beer cans around, and sleeping by a road is never the most comfortable thing, but I was dead tired and this place offered me my own little space. I set up my cowboy camp, cooked dinner, washed up, layered up, and went to sleep.

Day 104: Seiad Valley

Posted on August 1, 2013 by Wendy

Day 104
July 31
mile 1651.4-appr. 1670
18.6 miles

Somehow, I was able to get up early. I boiled water for my coffee, ate breakfast, and packed up, all before Elk got up! Miraculously, I didn’t even need to find a place to run off to!

I had about four miles to walk before I reached a campground and saw nowhere to camp within that part of the trail. Cookie must have done a lot of walking in the dark last night! When I reached the campground, I saw the three Germans (Ranch, Beer, and Viking) sitting at a picnic table, smoking. They had slept there the night before and said someone had arrived late last night and got up very early this morning, but didn’t know who it was. They pointed out the way to the road and said they would see me in Seiad Valley.
I turned onto the road and as I rounded the corner, saw a disturbing stuffed animal rabbit on a log. I have no idea what that was about!

I began to lose energy as I walked along the dusty dirt road and decided to sit down for a snack break. Several minutes later, a huge logging truck came towards me, kicking up great amounts of dust! Perhaps that wasn’t the best place to sit down… Later, a big truck that was dripping water onto the road came by and passed me twice. Eventually, I turned onto a paved road and began the walk into the tiny community of Seiad Valley.

I listened to some music to help me along. A lot of people complain about road-walking, but I didn’t think it was too awful. There had been less of it on this hike than I had originally expected.
I walked by a few farms and then came to the center of town. Everything that was of interest to us was essentially in the same building. Next door, was an RV park with a shower. My first order of business was getting breakfast! I entered the cafe and sat down next to Cookie at the counter. She was engaged in conversation with some locals and didn’t even notice me for awhile! Immediately after she finished her eggs, she headed out, wanting to start the big climb before it got too hot out. Last year, a huge fire had burned this section of trail, making the climb even hotter than it had typically been. This section of trail is notorious for the heat, but after the untypically hot and humid past couple of weeks, it was nothing to new to us.
I ordered an omelet and while I ate, learned that Shyshinka had been brought to the doctor yesterday and given antibiotics for giardia! I felt so bad for him! And now his whole plan of getting to Ashland had been thrown off. Just as they were switching from breakfast to lunch, I got in the last order for french toast. Several hikers had come in to eat in the back room in the meantime, including Slack and his group. SunDog and Giggles did not arrive in time for breakfast.

After I ate, I went to the post office to pick up my packages and then sat outside to sort through my things in the hot sun. The Germans were hovering around, wanting my extras, but I let Slack take what he wanted first. I had given him my extras in Etna and he had been really appreciative.
Then, I headed over to the RV park to take a coin shower. I made it back to the cafe just before they were about to close and got a chicken sandwich, which didn’t turn out to be at all what I was expecting. I should have just stopped with breakfast. My stomach was hurting anyway and I wasn’t able to eat much of it. However, Shyshinka came in while I was there and I got to catch up with him about what had happened! The hikers gathered around the shaded picnic tables outside to sort and then head out or hang around until the sun started to go down to avoid the heat of the day. I headed out around 3, wanting to get in a decent number of miles. I walked along the paved road, not knowing where the PCT branched of. Re-finding the trail always took so much energy for me! Finally, I found the path and started the climb.
In a couple of miles, I came to a piped spring and trough and decided to stop and re-fill my water bottles. I spotted a deer and then saw two fawns and a second adult! They were so cute!

I took the climb slowly and didn’t find it as tough as I had heard. I felt happy with the progress I was making and the higher I climbed, the more beautiful the terrain got.

As night approached, I found myself on an open ridge with no obvious place to set up. I checked out a couple of places, but nothing seemed suitable. Above me, I saw what might look to have a semi-flat space, but the wind had really picked up and I felt that it was too unprotected and cold in that gravelly area. I headed back down to the trail and walked on.
A little later, I decided to stop just above the trail in a very sooty area. What remained of the trees were blackened stumps. The ash was still dark and fresh. It probably wasn’t the healthiest decision to sleep here, but I did not have much of a choice. Because I had eaten so much regular food in Seiad Valley, I didn’t feel like I needed to cook a pasta dinner. Instead, I enjoyed a chocolate feast! I bundled up as the temperatures quickly dropped and the wind swirled around me.

The sunset was gorgeous, and overnight, the most unbelievable stars appeared over my head, revealing the Milky Way. What an incredible place I had found myself in!

Day 103: Sleeping on a Bridge

Posted on August 1, 2013 by Wendy

Day 103
July 30
mile 1625-1651.4
26.4 miles

I heard someone walk by at 6:00 and wondered who it was as I closed my eyes again. I was too tired and didn’t get up until 6:38. While I ate my breakfast, the section hiker who started at the Etna trail head with us walked by. I was now the last of this group!

At 7:50, I started walking. It didn’t take me long to overtake the section hiker.

By 11:00, I came across Rabbit Stix sitting in the middle of the trail, eating a snack. I had to step around him to get by.
I later found a spot to sit along the trail for my ice coffee, snickers, and almond butter break. All of a sudden, I heard some extremely loud voices that startled me! I had no idea where they were coming from. After a couple of minutes, I finally saw a couple of men headed toward me, but they barely acknowledged me. It was so jarring to hear people speaking so loudly out here!
Nearly two hours later, I noticed SunDog, Giggles, and Elk sitting just above the trail, enjoying their lunch. They invited me to join them, but I had already eaten and wanted to keep moving. Giggles mentioned the long descent into Seiad Valley coming up, and I told her I was not looking forward to that! Fred had told me that it was a killer on the shins!

I grew more and more tired as the day wore on and had to stop often to take little breaks. Fortunately, the afternoon miles still seemed to pass by more quickly than the slower morning ones! And the downhill turned out to be not nearly as bad as I was expecting! There were lots of little uphills within the well-graded descent.

I caught up to Cookie and we hiked a similar pace for awhile. Soon after, Giggles and SunDog caught up and passed us. SunDog kept stopping to pick thimbleberries. I had never seen or tasted this kind of berry before, so I tried to stop at the same places that he had to look for them. Cookie and I both found some and stopped a couple of times to taste these red berries.
There was very little possibility for camping along this stretch and my goal was to make it to the third bridge, where Yogi had written that she had slept on both of her hikes. Cookie peeled off the trail to cook dinner and I continued alone, growing more and more tired. By the time I reached the second bridge, I had to stop, sit down and eat a snack. I felt exhausted! SunDog and Giggles came along and asked about the camping situation. They decided to check out the woods by the bridge to see if there were any possibilities there. They came back, still unsure. SunDog opened up a bag of Fritos and offered some to me. They were the first ones I had tasted on this hike and were so good! I told them I wanted to move on in order of having a chance of making it the Seiad Valley Cafe for breakfast, even though I didn’t know how early I was going to be able to get up. They decided to set up camp there. Before I left, I asked them which places in Oregon and Washington were good places for zero days, as they had hiked the trail before. It was interesting to hear their impressions of what was coming up.
It was now starting to grow dark, so I headed out and let them set up their camp. The taste of the Fritos lingered in my mouth and helped me get through the next couple of miles. At last, I arrived at the bridge, dropped my pack, and walked down the bank to collect water. I cooked my dinner and took out the toffee that Tanya had given to me to enjoy for dessert. I felt extremely grateful for these special treats. I almost felt undeserving of them, but as I thought about my life and lack of love, I started to change my mind. Above me, dark clouds covered the sky. It was an unusual sight.

While, I ate, Cookie walked by. I had told her about my plan to sleep on the bridge and she seemed to want to do the same thing, but I guess she had changed her mind. The next section supposedly contained a lot of poison oak and it didn’t seem like there were any camping options. As darkness descended, I hoped no one else would cross the bridge. It wasn’t the most comfortable of places to stay, but I told myself that everything would be okay.

Before I got into my sleeping bag, I heard thumping at the other end of the bridge. It was Runs with Elk, arriving here at 9. I told her I didn’t think there was anyplace to camp ahead. She asked if she could could join me on the bridge and set up at the opposite end. It didn’t feel as scary with someone else now around.

Day 102: I love the PCT!

Posted on July 30, 2013 by Wendy

Day 102
July 29
mile 1606.4-1625
18.5 miles

My spot on the back lawn of Alderbrook Manor was probably the most peaceful and beautiful place that I had camped on the PCT. It would have been nice to sleep in a bit, but I had to go the bathroom, and I didn’t know what time FunSize was getting up and wanted to go to breakfast. I headed over to the bunkhouse, past all of the sleeping hikers, and was surprised to find Braveheart still in bed and FunSize asleep! Why was I the other person up? I sat down in a chair inside the bunkhouse and started to compose a small update to post while I waited. When FunSize woke up, he looked down at me and said, “Good morning, Wendy!” with a big smile. After he showered, the three of us got on bikes to head downtown. Two mountain biking guests were getting ready for their long ride. We all started out around the same time and I soon found myself trying to match their pace! My competitive spirit was already coming back on my second attempt at riding a bike! I was the first to arrive at the diner, where I had another omelet, toast, and fruit.
On the way back, I saw Veggie relaxing outside a coffee shop, reading the newspaper. I wished I could have stayed another day here, but my schedule was too tight to do so. Having arrived on a Sunday, I did not get to visit the old fashioned soda counter or swim in the pool, as they were both closed. Back at the Manor, I was enlisted to find out about a ride back to the trail. Dave wanted to give Fred some time, so we agreed on 10:00. I went to pack up my things and took two minutes to lie in the hammock, which felt amazing! I decided that I want one of my own some day.

Lots of hikers congregated in the front yard, anxious to get back to the trail. I filled my water bottles as Cookie and Braveheart played with the dog, and Shyshinka took photographs of everyone. Braveheart then decided he might as well make use of the waiting time by eating a giant bowl of Lucky Charms. When Fred’s truck pulled up, FunSize started feeling sad about us all leaving. He told Shyshinka and I that seeing us makes him feel happy! Shyshinka was planning on doing 30 miles today in order to make it to Ashland before the post office closed on Friday, and FunSize worried that he would never see him again. “Don’t say that!” I said. I knew that would not be the case. (And if it were, it would be too sad!).

We threw our packs in the back, found a spot in the truck, and waved goodbye to FunSize.
When we arrived back at the Etna Summit trailhead, there was a feeling of excitement and happiness in the air. No one was in a rush to get hiking. I kept thinking, “This is so much fun!”. Sometimes, the right mix of people come together and the energy of a place is really positive. Etna turned out to be one such stop.

I took the lead until I had to pee. Since everyone was fairly close together, I had to wait for them all to pass by.

I kept my mind amused with things that happened in Etna, such as Shyshinka’s story about taping up his ripped shorts, which led FunSize to stand up on the couch and impersonate Michael Jackson and me to start screaming with laughter. In a couple of miles, there was a trail register and I waited for Cookie and Elk to sign it before sitting down to read through it.

I later collected water at a cow-infested stream to make myself an ice coffee and chat with Elk. The water was not cold enough for it, though. My intestines were still problematic, but my mood was good. Elk started hiking before me.

I later caught up to her at a pond. I took the lead and, towards evening, when I reached the last stream of the day, sat down to collect and filter water and eat a snack.

Elk came along, hoping to get in five more miles to camp where Cookie was planning on getting to. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to hike that far before dark.
The trail climbed and I met two section hikers headed south. They planned on hiking to Sierra City.

As the sun went down, I found a nice flat spot that was perfect for one person alongside the trail. Everything was well. Today, I loved the PCT and didn’t want this hike to end!

In Etna, CA!

Posted on July 29, 2013 by Wendy

I’m now in Etna, CA- mile 1606. Less than 100 miles of California left! Wow!! Got caught in a huge hailstorm (marble sized!) for an hour and a half a few days ago. Soaking wet, cold, and nowhere to hide. It’s been extremely hot (and surprisingly humid!) these past 2 weeks. The locals haven’t seen anything like it. It’s a big fire year, too. There is one currently happening around Crater Lake where I am headed.
Yesterday, I saw my friend Fun Size again. I didn’t know where he was since about mile 1380. (He hikes really big miles, really quickly- his pack is twice as light as mine- but when he stops in town, he takes a lot more rest than I do). Anyway, we rode bikes down to the other end of town to get some food. That was a huge deal for me. I hadn’t been on a bike since I flew over the handlebars of mine when I was about 12. I really wanted to walk, but he said he would be finished with his milkshake by the time I got there! So, I mustered up enough courage and got on. It was terrifying, but so fun!!
I wanted to do some writing while I was here, but the time just flies by and there is not enough time to do everything!! It is 7am and I can’t believe that all of the thruhikers are still sleeping! I want to be sleeping, too, and I really wish I could have some rest today, but I have to keep going. This is a lovely place.

Oh- a bear and I almost ran into each other at 7:50 pm two nights ago! It was so cute! I bypassed the last sure campspot because I wanted to hike until 8. Things were not looking good… There were boulders everywhere and no possible places. I bushwhacked down off the trail, but still couldn’t find anything, so I headed back to the trail and thought I might have to night hike up and over the mountain. However, at 8:20, I reached an opening in the climb, found a flat sandy spot, and was able to watch a beautiful sunset! I couldn’t believe how one minute, my night was going to be a really bad one, and 25 minutes later, everything was wonderful!

Moving Towards Freedom

A path to healing through narrative, nutrition, and movement (yoga and long distance hiking)

Tag Archives: Pacific Crest Trail