Into Canada

Day 27 (129) Miles: 3.9 (plus 8.5 into Canada) Mileage: 2,650.1!!! It was a cool, wet morning. The rain stopped, but every fern and bush was dripping. We spent the morning chatting and the miles seemed to fly by. Three other hikers joined our campsite the night before, so we were all pumped, and yet […]

I can see Canada from here

Day 26 (128) Miles: 26.4 Mileage: 2,646.4 Like I said, you never know what the mountains will bring. Most of the day was warm and sunny. But as we crested our last PCT climb, we saw a storm a few ridge lines over. As we walked, it came toward us, making every ridge in between […]

Longest day in Washington

Day 25 (127) Miles: 29.4 Mileage: 2,620 It was our biggest day yet and as far as my feet were concerned, it was a twenty-mile day. It only took 480 miles but it seems my feet have finally settled in to hiking. And it’s less than 40 miles to the hotel in Canada where I […]

Oh, heat.

Day 24 (126) Miles: 21.2 Mileage: 2,590.6 Breakfast started at 7 a.m. and we were ready and waiting. There was eggs and granola and yogurt and potatoes, but I filled up on the delicious homemade biscuits. After breakfast we gathered our packs and caught the bus back out to the trailhead. It was another hot […]

Nearo and zero in Stehekin

Days 22 and 23 (124 and 125) Miles: 2.9 and 0 Mileage: 2,569.4 When I was in high school, I would spend a week every summer at my aunt’s house in Alliance, Ohio. It wasn’t just any week. It was always planned around the Rodman Public Library book sale. The majority of my book acquisition […]

More food thoughts

Day 21 (123) Miles: 24.6 Mileage: 2,566.5 There’s something wrong with our food. Last year when planning our food drops, I gathered store-bought dinners and just sent them to us out on the trail. While they were plenty caloric, Richard requested something with a little more variety of pallet. So this year I took the […]

How to quadruple your hiking distance

Day 20 (122) Miles: 26.6 Mileage: 2,541.9 The rain stopped by morning, but everything was still wet and cold. But “not currently raining” is my favorite weather, so it was not a bad way to start the day. We had a short up, long down, long up, long down for our terrain today. Despite covering […]

A little rain to answer the sun

Day 19 (121) Miles: 24.9 Mileage: 2,515.3 The day started as most have: under clear skies and a sun warm even at 8 a.m. We stayed high on a ridge most of the morning with spectacular views of mountains on mountains for miles. That’s one thing I love about the PCT versus the AT. On […]

Another hot one

Day 18 (120) Miles: 26.9 Mileage: 2,490.9 What a day. It was hot. I was slow. Full sun. Barely any wind. So much sweat. Not twenty paces after leaving our tentsite this morning, the uppers of my right shoe ripped in half. The part of the upper covering my toes is now completely detached from […]

Resupply at Stevens Pass

Day 17 (119) Miles: 21.8 Mileage: 2,464 Today was cooler, overall, than the last week or so. We had a breeze most of the day and spent three hours at the Granite Peaks ski lodge at Stevens Pass, so that helped. We got to Stevens Pass around 2 p.m. after 19 miles of up and […]