Monthly Archives: July 2015

From Mazama Village, the official PCT skirts around Crater Lake and continues north. However, why come all that way without actually looking into the crater? Instead, nearly all hikers take an alternate route that climbs up to the Rim Village then follows the crater Rim trail for about 7 miles before reuniting with the official … Continue reading »

I awoke the next morning to the sound of buzzing. The noise reminded me of the high voltage power lines the trail has sometimes gone under. It took me a few moments to realize what the sound actually was: hundreds of mosquitoes swarming around my tent! I did not want to get up and face … Continue reading »

On July 3rd, I passed the 2/3 mark on the trail. I was exactly three months in and 66% done. Plus I was hiking over 30 miles per day so the miles were starting to fly by. So far the trail in Oregon has been marked extremely well. At every road and intersection, there are … Continue reading »

I left Callahan’s around 6:30 am to get some miles in before it got too hot. For once there was no huge hill to climb to get out of town! I just had some small rolling hills to enjoy, which was nice. I went past a peregrine falcon nesting area but didn’t see any of … Continue reading »

On July 1 I spent my first full day in Oregon. I got an early start because I wanted to get to Callahan’s lodge by a reasonable time so I could rest a bit after my two big days. Midmorning I caught up with Seven who had passed me while I was still sleeping. I … Continue reading »

I was awoken at 5 am by Ice Cream’s alarm going off. I thought that I wouldn’t have to hear that sound for these four months, but alas. It was actually good to get up and out of camp early since we had a big hill to climb and it was going to be hot … Continue reading »

I didn’t know it at the time, but I had made it to the top of the ridge the night before which worked out well. I was up early and started hiking when the temperature wasn’t too bad. There was a long flat section with mostly dead trees. Some had been burned, but some were … Continue reading »

When Jacob dropped me off at Etna summit, it was 3 pm but luckily it wasn’t too hot and I was mostly in the trees with some shade. I knew the next few days were supposed to be blistering hot so I tried to put in as many miles as I could that day. I … Continue reading »

After spending the night in Yreka, Jacob and I drove up to Ashland and saw two plays on Friday. The matinée of Much ado about Nothing was spectacular!! And the evening show of Fingersmith had me on the edge of my seat. We stayed in a lovely studio apartment just a few blocks from the … Continue reading »

From the windy ridge, I hiked through a heavily burned area to Etna summit. The silence there was the most striking part; there were no birds chirping, not even insects humming. Then I created a saddle and came back into the land of the living and breathed in the scent of flowers again and saw … Continue reading »

The morning after leaving Deadfall Lake I had a flat 20 miles to cruise along. At one moment in the morning I was checking the tie on my phone when I heard a rustling in the woods on my right. Thinking it was a deer I didn’t pay much attention until a large black furry … Continue reading »

When I left Castle Crags State Park, I had a huge climb, as always. There is nearly always a long downhill into town and then a huge climb out of town. This one was nearly 4,000′ and took me nearly all morning. I went through Castle Crags Wilderness and then entered the Trinity Wilderness. Once … Continue reading »

On June 22, I continued on a long downhill section and did an easy 24.5 miles into the tiny town of Castella. It was an easy and fast walk and I listened to the traffic on I-5 for miles before I got to the bottom of the hill. The last few miles into town were … Continue reading »

Coming off the saddle where I camped, I hiked along a ridge overlooking a beautiful meadow filled with tall grass and wildflowers. In the middle of the meadow, about 100 feet in elevation below me was a black bear, foraging for food. This was the first bear I had seen the whole hike. It was … Continue reading »

After Hat Creek Rim, Seven and I got an early start to make it to Burney Falls State Park before lunch. Along the way we encountered a bit of heaven: Wild Bird Cache, which should actually be called an oasis instead. It had the usual cold drinks and candy bars, but also a solar shower, … Continue reading »