PCT Days 106-111; The end for now.

We left Stevenson and Cascade Locks on day 106. I had a slower start than Sunny and Inge, as I wanted to get an early lunch before leaving town. I hitched to the Bridge of the Gods and walked over officially this time, pack and all. I stopped at Locks of Dogs and Treats, an ice cream and hot dog shop in Cascade Locks. I had an awesome chili dog here, although it made the climb afterward tough as all I wanted was a nap. But the trail had other plans for me, as the climb out of Cascade Locks is brutal, well over 3000 feet and steep. I made slow progress, both owing to the heavy lunch I had, but also a sharp pain in my right toes. I hadn’t had this pain before, so it was slightly concerning and irritating. The day consisted of dense forest, both burned and not, with some decent views of Mt. Hood. We finished the day at Wahtum Lake, a popular destination for locals. It was a fairly short day, right around 17 miles, ending at mile 522.3, but the climbs made it a hard day.

On day 107, our goal was Lost Creek at mile 550.6, 28.3 miles ahead. We were trying to set ourselves up for a short few miles the following morning into Timberline Lodge, where their famous breakfast buffet awaited us. The early part of the day was spent hiking through fog and light rain, mostly in dense forest. Eventually, the day cleared up, and as we approached Mt. Hood we had some fantastic views. The pain in my right foot persisted on this day as well, and while I had thought it to be in my toes the day prior, I was now sure that the pain was in a specific metatarsal. I reflected on what may have caused this pain, and I’m fairly certain it was from just a few miles prior to getting into Stevenson, when I stubbed my foot very hard on a stubborn rock. The acute pain that day had been in my right big toe, but that subsided by the time I was in town. It wasn’t until hiking on it a couple days later that the real injury made itself clear. I pushed through the pain and made the miles regardless. Mosquitoes were occasionally annoying throughout the day as well, including where we were camped.

We set out in high spirits on day 108, ready for the breakfast buffet at Timberline Lodge. I made the miles fairly quickly, despite my foot aching and my headphones finally dying (one of the earbuds had died weeks ago). The scenery just prior to the lodge was fantastic, the trail wrapping around Mt. Hood and providing awesome views. I was surprised to see skiers and snowboarders cruising down the mountain in the late July morning heat, but as I made my way down to the lodge, it was clear that the ski season was still in full effect up here. Dozens of folks decked out in full snow gear made their way to the lifts past hikers in short shorts and t-shirts. The buffet was delicious, and I stuffed myself. After relaxing and charging electronics for awhile, we continued hiking. I hiked another 21.3 miles to make it a 26.4 mile day, ending at mile 577 at Timothy Lake. Sunny and Inge weren’t here – I assumed they hiked another few miles to the trail magic that was supposedly ahead. However, it was after 8 PM when I reached the southernmost campsite around Timothy Lake, and I decided to call it quits for the day there and camp by myself. I had a lovely evening by the placid lake, enjoying a small fire and some bourbon before calling it a night.

The goal for day 109 was to make it to Olallie Lake at mile 607.1, where a small general store allows hikers to camp nearby. I set out a little late despite the 30 mile day ahead of me, as I had gone to bed a bit later. I got to the trail magic the girls had pushed for the night previous, where I enjoyed a beef and turkey sandwich courtesy of a lovely trail angel. I set out again through the woods, making the miles as quick as I could despite the persistent pain in my foot, as well as frequent pain in my hips. The day was often quite buggy, and I found myself growing bored and annoyed with the trail. I had been dealing with this boredom somewhat regularly for the last couple weeks, and combined with the mosquitoes, I was just frustrated. I was glad to see my friends when I finally got to camp, 30.1 miles later.

On day 110, we were to hike about 26 miles, setting ourselves up to get into Sisters the following day at a decent time. The day was frequently extremely beautiful as we made our way up to and around Mt. Jefferson. The trail often made its way across open lava fields and meadows, with little alpine lakes and ponds dotting the landscape. However, despite being aware of the sublime beauty around me, I was again bored, annoyed, and in constant pain. At this point, I became fairly certain I had a small fracture in my metatarsal, as the pain had not subsided at all, and the area was not terribly swollen the way it would be if it were muscular or a ligament problem of the same severity. My hips were also giving me quite a bit of trouble again. The views were gorgeous, but often difficult to enjoy due to heavy mosquitoes. I limped into camp at mile 633 well after 6 PM for the fourth night in a row, and I was fairly convinced at this point that it was time to reevaluate the hike. As we hid in our tents in the evening, with dozens of mosquitoes lining the outside of my tent, I let my hiking companions know that it was potentially going to be my last night on trail. I checked my bank account and credit card balances for the first time in nearly a month, and realized something: regardless of my injury, boredom, or annoyance with mosquitoes, my finances were putting a hard stop to the hike. There was a number that I decided on before hitting the trail in April that if my account fell below, I would have to get off trail, and my account was just a hundred or so above that number.

Day 111 would indeed be my last day on the PCT. There was about 19 miles to hike to get to Highway 20 at Santiam Pass, mile marker 652.2, where a hiker can easily hitch into Sisters or Bend. The last day was beautiful as we made our way south from Mt. Jefferson and around Three Finger Jack, approaching Mt. Washington and the Sisters. Alpine ponds and lakes were scattered throughout a lengthy burn area that provided excellent views of the volcanoes, as well as views out to the west and the coast and views out to the east and the Oregon desert. It really was a nice sendoff, a lovely last day of hiking, under sunny skies, with few bugs and easy-going trail. My foot and hips were killing me, but I took it all in with a fairly content, if not slightly melancholy, attitude. It was a bittersweet day to be sure. At the pass, there were a couple of locals making hot dogs and giving out beers to hikers, one last bit of trail magic. I enjoyed a beer and a dog before heading down to the highway to hitch. After about 10 minutes, a bright red vintage 1972 Corvette Stingray pulled up and gave me a ride – definitely one of the coolest hitches I’ve ever gotten. The car was in excellent condition and was really a joy to ride in, and its owner was a pleasure to meet as well. He dropped me off at the public campground in Sisters, where Sunny and Inge shortly met me. We enjoyed dinner together and drinks at the campground later in the evening.

I had lunch with Sunny and Inge the following day before saying goodbye and wishing them well on the rest of their hikes. I was sad to leave them, having hiked with them for over 500 miles, but we all have to follow our own paths in life. I spent the day in Sisters figuring out how to get home, and hanging out with Moon Bite, a hiker I had seen periodically since the desert (he had also flipped). He too was ending his hike, and heading home to Portland. We both booked a shuttle for the next morning to Portland. I rented a car from PDX and drove home to Wisconsin (my preferred method of travel – I hate flying with gear and in general; train and bus are too slow). And here I am, resting and recovering, letting my foot and body heal.

Interesting things to note: I lost exactly 40 pounds, going from 192 to 152. I hiked a total of 1397.5 PCT miles, just over half of the trail.

So what’s next for Mellow? I’ll be moving to Oregon in the near future. The Pacific Northwest captured my heart, and Oregon in particular seems the best spot for me for now. I’m hoping to finish up the PCT in Oregon in sections in the near future, which shouldn’t be hard once I’m living in the area. I’d like to do the Sierra, the one section I’m quite bummed to have missed, soon as well, though it will likely not happen this year. As for other future hikes, I’d also love to do the Colorado Trail, although I’d likely take a few alternates to hit some bigger peaks along the way. The Arizona Trail is on my list as well, and I’d really like to spend some time in Utah.

Thanks for following along on this year’s adventure. I’m a bit bummed to not have hiked the whole trail in one go, but I was never terribly committed to doing so anyway. My purpose for hiking this year was to have fun, and once injury, boredom, and money came in the way of that, it was time to stop hiking. I’ll update in a few weeks hopefully once I’m in Oregon and a bit more settled. I’m in the process of rescuing a Subaru Outback to bring back to its native habitat of the PNW as well, so maybe I’ll post a couple of pictures of that cute thing sometime soon.