From the Journal: June 28, 2013
I am exhausted. It seems like so much happened today that it couldn't have possibly fit into a single day. I woke up today and the sun was out! It was glorious! The moon was also rising (or setting) above the rock band that hugs the little lake we camped next to. The first few hours of the day were spent climbing snow up to Fire Creek Pass. There were two hummingbirds flying around us on the way up, which I believe to be Aunt Cathy saying "hello". This is the second time I've seen hummingbirds in an unlikely snow-covered landscape, the other being on Ruth Icy with Mom last summer. We also saw two fighter jets soaring and doing tricks amongst the mountains. Looks like a fun job. The mountains today are unbelievable, by the way. I'm afraid I might trip over my own feet because I can't stop staring. We are right next to Glacier Peak. We haven't gotten an unobstructed summit shot, she kept shooting off lenticular (halo) clouds. On the other side of the pass, we descended in the snow for awhile, did a few death traverses and scrambled up some steep brush before it became evident that we had miles of snow covered traverses ahead. Also, very important, we got to walk up this incredible narrow snow ridge to the top of the pass. It was scary at times and very exposed but also exhilarating. There was even a little rock scramble/climb near the top. Anyway, instead of miles of death traverses, Ben worked out a route that took us down to the valley and eventually met up with the Kennedy Ridge Trail. Basically this entailed hours of bushwacking up and down very steep terrain. For example, you know you're on a steep slope when you get to your creek crossing and it's a waterfall instead! Eventually we made it back to the trail. I literally felt tempted to hug the tree bearing the PCT sign. At this point it took 12 hours to walk 8 miles. And then another 1.5 hours to do 3.5 - 4 more miles. We hiked until 9:40 and are camped by another creek. Now my feet are dry and my belly is fuller so I'm a happy camper. 44 miles to Stevens Pass.
June 29, 2013
Day journaling for once. We are sitting on a ridge waiting for a party of backpackers to bring us some extra food. They even offered to bring it up for us so we could take a break. It is warm and sunny, it feels so good to sit and take in this landscape.
Glacier Peak is off to my right and the other 360 degrees is filled with countless unknown and beautiful peaks. There are layers of blue and white mountains, sitting below the blue and white cloud filled sky. It is like two worlds sitting on top of each other, or maybe the same world reflected back on itself. I sit here and feel my whole being fill with peace. We left some of BJ in the neighborhood, it is an appropriate place for him to live on.
Travel continues to be slow going. We were on the trail an hour this morning before hitting snow. It was relatively flat before we began the climb up to Red Pass. We were able to go straight up the snow without difficulty. At the top there was trail for a few glorious feet before we turned a corner to view yet another death traverse. We did one traverse, then opted to go up and over the ridege, which offered breathtaking views.
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As I type, Dwight, Rachel's cat is on my lap....couldn't resist adding the photo!
June 30, 2013
It seems like each day is more exhausting than the last. There is so much snow that any view of the trail is obscured for miles at a time. We walked 14 grueling hours today to go 12 miles. Thank God for the extra food we got yesterday, we have been rationing as is. We just had a PB cup and four gummy worms. It was actually hot today, with hardly a cloud in the sky. It feels so good to be warm. We caught our first glimpse of Rainier today. One of our breaks we sat on a rock outcropping and looked south at the mountains we could identify - Daniel, Stuart, Colchuck, Dragontail, Prusik, Chair, Guye, Snoqualmie - we are headed their way! The trail is testing me, but I feel strong. It feels right to be here.
July 1, 2013
Today has been a whirlwind, another kind of day that seems like two or three. It was another gorgeous blue bird day, which makes it hard to complain about anything else. There was a beautiful red hummingbird flying around camp last night. I woke up to brilliant stars and again early this morning to the first rays of light touching the sky. We walked mostly on snow, and had some Ramen, down climbed some steep willows, lost and found the trail repeatedly, had a PayDay dipped in PB and Nutella, climbed up a steep snow slope only to get cliffed out and find a way down through more steep brush. I think it is a combination of the heat, exhaustion and limiting calories that I feel a little delirious today. I notice at 4 or 5 pm I feel completely drained but I do seem to get a second wind that carries me until dark which is when we've been hiking until. These days if you're looking for the PCT, you will likely find a river. There is a ton of run off with the heat the last few days. These are the moments when things get very frustrating, we have trouble keeping the trail and when we do find it we can't even walk on it without getting soaking wet. And, then this evening we made our way to the top of Grizzly Peak and found ourselves in a meadow of glacier lilies with the most picturesque mountain views surrounding us on all sides and I feel on top of the world. That is the funny thing about this trail - even when you are hot, cold, wet, scared, bleeding, hungry, thirsty, tired or lost, it is still hard to imagine a place I would rather be. It is certainly a lesson in perseverance. We have a little over 10 miles into Stevens Pass and the miles have started moving a bit quicker over the last two or three. It felt good to hike this evening, to watch the sky change color, the sunset casting a rosy glow over the snow slopes. We walked near Heather Lake, one of my childhood favorites with Mom and Beej. It's the first lake we've seen that wasn't snow covered. I get to give Mom a hug tomorrow. I am having a wonderful time and Ben and I have really been working well as a team and making each other laugh, but it is hard to be away from my loved ones.
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The Two Man Wolf Pack Emerges at Stevens Pass - get to hug Mom
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