Hey from Portland

After pulling myself out of the comfort of the motel in Sisters, I successfully hitched backed to the trail.   Just as I was passing the trail to the parking area, a guy introduces himself to me and says he is doing trail magic and asks if I need anything.  I say, “No, I have lots of everything.”   Then he says, “Did you see the sign warning about conditions ahead?”  I follow him down to the parking lot and there is a laminated sign that says something like,

“ATTENTION HIKERS–the trail past Santiam Pass is treacherous and should not be attempted without crampons! PCT thru-hikers should hitch to Lolo Pass.”

There was no date, no phone and no indication of who posted the sign

Just then a section hiker who was finishing up his hike appears and says, “I’m going that way.  I can take you to Lolo Pass if you want.”      So, I took the ride and skipped 100 some miles of trail.

Back on the trail at Lolo Pass I meet other hikers who hiked through and they said it was snowy but definitely doable.   I felt duped.

Skipping took the fire out of my hike.  Which isn’t a totally bad thing..there may have been a little to much fire in my hike any way.    After I got back to the trail, I just hiked a little bit and then sat down and watched Mt. Hood and ate away at my now overly supplied food bag.

The next day I slept in till 10:30 am   I took long breaks during the day,  laying in the woods looking at the sun shine through the vine maples for hours.

Now, I’m in Portland hanging out at my son’s and future daughter-in-laws place.   They live in a swanky downtown apartment building that serves free good coffee all day long in the lobby.   I met a guy in the elevator with a carbon fiber bike that says it is so light they had to put weights on it.

There is a North Face shop in the building and an REI a few blocks away.  Might check out some gear while I’m here.   My Mountainsmith Ghost got here yesterday and is now repaired.  I’m going to see if REI sewers can repair my Mountainsmith CDT.

Be back on the trail soon.

Trail Twitter

  • Standing on the top of the observatory at McKenzie Pass. Mile 1990 #
  • There was lots of snow today. I lost the trail a couple of times. #
  • It rained last night and was foggy most of the day. It didn’t feel like August. #
  • Onward now. #
  • Sitting along side the highway, hoping some one will stop and give me a ride to Sisters. #
  • But no one will 🙁 #
  • Damn humanity. #
  • Probably better to start walking than to lay curses on every one that passes me by. #
  • These people are lucky I’m not an avenging god. #
  • Okay, humanity has redeemed its self and I’m at the McDonalds in Sisters. #
  • I’m sleepy and dirty. I’m tempted to get a room. A room cost 100 dollars in this town. #
  • Man am I styling. I got a great room at the Best Western. #
  • Had my first bath since Lone Pine, 1200 miles ago. So nice. #

Trail Twitter

  • Goodnight from some where around mile 1917. Tonight’s camp site is not great–a hole again. #
  • One thing for sure, this is not an established camp site. Probably, I’m the first hiker to recognize it’s potential. #
  • I met Mother Goose, today. She was on the trail last year too. We may hike the Grand Enchantment Trail together. #
  • A deer saw me today and came trotting down the trail towards me. The wildlife out here is far to comfortable with humans. #
  • All this sleeping in has revealed many pin holes in my shelter. I patch them with duct tape but I hope it doesn’t rain. #
  • With the help of lots of duct tape I have the collar of my pack reattached. There are also many duct tape patches on my bag. #
  • This may be the last thru-hike for this gear. I need to learn to make my own gear. I’m always thinking of designs. #
  • One thing for sure, if I don’t get up I won’t get anywhere. Time to hike! #
  • As of last night, I’m 103 miles ahead of schedule. Whoo Hoo! #

Trail Twitter

  • I think I’m close to mile 1882. I passed up some great campsites with a views for this dark hole in the woods. #
  • I hiked with a section hiker named Ism, today. He said he was a bilble thumper. #
  • I haven’t seen any of those thru-hikers I saw in Crater Lake. #
  • It’s weird the way I can see lots of hikers in town and no one on the trail. #
  • Goodnight. #
  • You know where I figure I will end up tomorrow night? Right where that bear came after me last year. #
  • It’s late but I’m still lying in the hole I went to sleep in. #
  • It’s hard for my to get moving, lately, in the mornings. #
  • Someday I might take a zero day and sleep all day. #
  • Okay, no more fooling around. Time to hike. #

Trail Twitter

  • Goodnight from mile 1763. #
  • At 4am I woke up and ate breakfast. It’s now 6:30 and I’m still in my bag. #
  • The leapfroggers just went by. Maybe I can avoid them if I stay in my bag a little longer. #
  • That’s the problem with Oregon. Everyone is doing 30s now so it’s harder to lose people. #
  • I lost the last leapfroggers when they went in to Ashland and I didn’t. There aren’t many towns in Oregon along the trail. #
  • Laying in a meadow surrounded by big trees. I’m going hiking now. Bye! #
  • Sitting in an andorak chair on the edge of Lake of the Woods, drinking OJ. #
  • I couldn’t stand another day of leapfrogging. #
  • So I took an alternate route. This route is 2 miles shorter and includes a restaurant. #
  • After this I head up to the Sky Lakes Wilderness before rejoining the PCT. #
  • This place is like visiting a people zoo. #
  • Whoa, there is a 9 year old with a big knife. #
  • Now he’s sucking his thumb. I think he cut it. #
  • Time to get walking. #

Trail Twitter

  • This is backpack number 2 that has failed this trip. #
  • Resting again. I don’t feel like hiking. It’s too hot. #
  • Next time, I may hike the road. #
  • Well I guess I better get hiking. I’d like to do 33 mile days through Oregon. #
  • They both go the same place. #
  • My feet are in bad shape; they look like big black bear paws. #
  • Having some motivational problems today. I think it’s because of Ashland. Once I get pass it, I bet I feel better. #
  • Goodnight from a top a windy crest. #
  • Someone told me to always pitch my tent so my feet face the wind. It works but the view isn’t always the best, that way. #
  • My feet are greased up and in plastic bags in hopes that in the morning the will be better. #
  • Hey from Hyatt Lake (1750). Stopping in for pizza. #
  • There are hikers on the trail that I keep leap frogging with. That is so annoying #

Trail Twitter

  • Hey from mile 1690 minus 155 miles for fire closures. #
  • Oregon! #
  • Goodnight. #
  • Hey.from mile 1705, minus 150 miles of trail closures because of different fires. #
  • It was hot and smoky in Seiad Valley. It was hard to breathe but 6 miles out and up, the air became clear and cool. . #
  • Sitting on the crest drinking a Mountain Dew that was left in an ice chest along the trail. #
  • Lunch time–peanut butter, red onion, cheese, and potato chips burrito. . Highly recommended. #
  • The collar on my backpack is almost completely ripped off. I have lots of duct tape and safety pins holding it on. #
  • If it rains, my backpack will fill with water. #
  • This little section follows a road. But the trail goes up and down and around and then back down to the same road. #
  • It’s a little fustrating. The road is flat the trail is a roller coaster. #

Trail Twitter

  • I made it to Etna Summit(mile 1606) where the trail is yet again closed. #
  • A woman picked me up right away, bought me lunch and got her friend to take me to Yreka where I’m waiting for the bus. #
  • to Siead Valley. #
  • I went crazy in the good grocery store and now have a resupply that won’t fit in my pack. #
  • I also have three trays of sushi, frozen berries and yogurt. #
  • I am so dirty and smelly but everyone pretends that I’m normal. #
  • The last 100 miles have been really beautiful. #
  • I saw a helicopter carrying what I believe was a bag of water. It gets really smoky at night #

Trail Twitter

  • Made it! #
  • I resuppied last night but I think I will wait around for the store to open so I can have a cup of coffee. #
  • Waking up in Castle Crags campground. If you plan to stay here, I suggest you bring ear plugs and benedyl. Very loud. #
  • I’m at mile 1506.5 #
  • 100 miles ahead, there is another closure because of fires. It’s the 50 miles from Etna Summit to Seiad Valley. #
  • If you had to walk the 2.8 miles from the trail to Castela, you can take the Flume Trail back to the PCT. Take note. #
  • I wish I could lay here in my bag and drink coffee, but the coffee is about a quarter of a mile away. #
  • Guess I should get of my bag, pack up, get my coffee and hit the trail. #
  • waiting for them to brew the coffee. #
  • I probally shouldn’t have passed up another .50 cent shower. #
  • But Hops took a shower and he said it made him want to go back to sleep. #
  • I’ve moved my coffee drinking down the road and beside the river. It was too loud and unpleasant at the store. #
  • Ok, me go hiking now. Bye. #