PCT Days 76-82

On the morning of day 76, we got a ride from the trail angel in Bellingham to Sedro-Woolley, one of the first towns along State Route 20 heading east in northern Washington. From there, we were assured it was an easy hitch for the last 2.5 hours to Mazama. We put our thumbs out and after a short while, a nice elderly lady gave us a ride to Concrete, about 30 minutes down the road. It took about 15 minutes to get another ride out of the small gas station in Concrete, from a young mother who was picking up her daughter at Diablo Lookout, another hour or so down the road. After getting to Diablo Lookout and enjoying the view, we started trying to hitch again, but this last one was more difficult. As time passed, storms moved in, and it began to pour. Lightning crashed around, and a bolt hit a tree on the mountainside, bursting into a fireball. It was pretty spectacular to witness, despite being outdoors in those same conditions. Finally, after 2.5 hours attempting to hitch, a young couple, both middle school teachers, took pity and gave us a ride to Mazama. We spent the night at Ravensong’s Roost, and prepared to head up to Hart’s Pass the next day. Rain was in the forecast for the next few days, but we were too antsy to start to wait any longer.

We walked to the cute general store in town before 8 AM on day 77, grabbing breakfast. We then stood roadside and put our thumbs out, one last hitch to get to Hart’s Pass. After a half hour or so, a former thru-hiker named Ironman and his wife gave us a ride up. It was a rough, at times nerve-wracking 45 minute drive up to the pass, but we made it in one piece, and for the time being, the skies were clearing. I spoke briefly with Broken Toe, a former thru-hiker who was doing trail magic for SOBOs. I then finally hit the trail again, heading north towards the border from Hart’s Pass. The view was partially obscured by clouds as I made my way, but what scenery was visible was fantastic. The miles passed easily and enjoyably, though it began raining after awhile. By 3 PM, the rain was really coming down, and as I made my way up Rock Pass, thunder sounded nearby. I reached a campsite with some trees and took some shelter, waiting to see if the storm passed. After not hearing any thunder for maybe fifteen minutes, I started heading up, when after a quarter mile a bolt of lightning struck rather close, only a 4 second count before the thunder came. I hightailed it back to the campsite with trees, and as the thunder continued and the rain turned to sleet, it became clear that setting up camp was the only smart option. I made it 15.9 miles from Hart’s Pass, 14.7 miles to go until the border.

The morning of day 78 was chilly and mostly cloudy, the sort of clouds that linger after a day of storms, like a hangover. I made my way over Rock Pass and up to Woody Pass. From Woody Pass, it’s a nearly 3000 foot descent to the border over 11 miles. I stopped at the gorgeous Hopkins Lake for lunch before trudging through four miles of overgrown trail and blowdowns. I tagged the border just after noon by myself, dramatic peaks surrounding the clearcut path that defines the border. After enjoying some sunshine, I began heading south, back up the same way I came down. Of course, it started raining again, though by the time I got back to the lake, the rain had stopped and the sun was peaking through occasionally. I was soaked from the rain and wet undergrowth, so I took another rest at the lake and dried out a bit. I headed up the last five or so miles back to Woody Pass, enjoying unbelievable views that had been obscured by clouds in the morning. I camped just south of the pass with Dreamwalker and a new friend from Canada, Inga. I had hiked 26 miles total, 11.3 south from the border. I’ll likely just be using Southbound mile totals going forward; to know my total PCT mileage, just add 745.3 to whatever the SOBO mileage is.

I got going a little late on day 79, just after 7 AM. In northern Washington right now, the sun rises at 5 AM and sets after 9, so there’s very little darkness each day. I continued to retrace my steps back to Hart’s Pass, taking in all the views I missed on the first day from clouds. The morning was clear and warm, and the miles went by in a flash. Rain rolled in again around 3 PM, so when I got back to Hart’s Pass and Broken Toe’s trail magic, complete with bonfire and tarps covering the area, I relaxed for awhile. I chatted with some SOBO hikers just starting their journey, and enjoyed a cup of mint tea. Finally, just after 5:30, I left to do the day’s remaining 6 miles. A pass along the way gave a tremendous panaromic view of the Cascades. I sat for a bit, the evening sun warming me as I took in the view. I finally got to camp around 8 PM, but still had ample time to set up camp and have dinner before it was dark. I hiked 25 miles to mile 36.3.

On day 80, my right knee started giving me some pain, which slowed me down a bit. I decided to do a few less miles, so the goal was at mile 57.7, 21.4 miles away. The morning was clear, though chilly as the first chunk of miles was in the shadow of the mountains. After getting down to and past Glacier Pass, we went up to Methow Pass. The view was fantastic, though dark clouds loomed in the far distance. The trail skirted the mountainside as it went toward Cutthroat Pass, a steep drop on the right of the trail for miles. As we reached Granite Pass, at the base of the sharp ascent up to Cutthroat, thunder sounded from just over the pass ahead. I decided to wait it out and take cover under some smaller pines, knowing the pass and ridge ahead were very exposed. Inga joined me as we hid in a cluster of pines, trying to gauge the storm’s progress. After an hour and a half or so, the storm had passed, so we began to climb the steep, sharp switchbacks that lead to Cutthroat Pass. The weather held off thankfully and we were able to cross the pass uneventfully, though the views were outstanding yet again. We set up camp before 6, and with so much daylight left and some pesky mosquitoes, we collected some wood for a fire. It was a nice night, and the first time on the PCT that I had a fire. We had 23 miles to hike the next day to get to Stehekin.

The first miles of day 81 were pretty cold, as the sun hid behind the mountains in the early morning. My knee was still giving me trouble, especially going downhill, which was unfortunate, as the 23 miles to Stehekin involved over 6000 feet of descent. After crossing route 20 and Rainy Pass, the trail passed through thick woods and deep brush. The sun rose above the mountains and heated the valley, and temperatures were much hotter than the previous days. The sun baked the condensation off of the heavy underbrush, making it so humid in places that it was difficult to breathe and truly felt like a sauna. The day went fairly slow for me as I struggled with my knee. I caught up to Inga with about 5 miles to go, so we hiked the rest of the way down, chatting about typical hiker topics: weather, gear, snakes. I mentioned that I had heard about a hiker seeing a rattlesnake in northern Washington, and not ten minutes later, a rattlesnake crossed the trail in front of me. It was very docile and gave only a cursory rattle as I approached. After it slithered off the trail, we finished the hike down to the High Bridge Ranger Station, where we would have to wait for the bus to town. Having arrived around 4 and therefore missed the 3 o’clock bus, we had to wait until 6:15 or try to hitch. After just a few minutes, an older couple walked up to a parked truck nearby and kindly gave us a ride to town. Stehekin is a tiny resort town, owned by the federal government as part of North Cascades National Park. There are no roads into town; the only way in and out is by ferry, seaplane, or trail. There are a few roads in town and a few cars. We got some beer at the general store and set up camp at the free campground in town, ready for a zero.

Today is day 82, and I’m enjoying a day off in Stehekin. I had a nice omelette this morning at the restaurant, and then did laundry and picked up my resupply box from the post office. Now I’m just relaxing as it rains yet again, thunder sounding in the mountains surrounding Stehekin and Lake Chelan. Thankfully the weather looks much better tomorrow and for the next week. We’ll be entering Glacier Peak Wilderness tomorrow, likely to be the last snowy section that I’ll have to hike on this trail. The elevation profile looks challenging for the coming days, but the scenery is supposed to be spectacular.