Well we had said goodbye to Shelly and it was time to go find a trail angel house to crash at for the night. I sat around with LB for a bit at the brewery and then met back up with everyone when his dad showed up to take him back to Vancouver. It was one goodbye after the other. LB and Dad were taking a few days off and this meant they would be hard pressed to catch us again. So with Shelly's absence still sinking in we hugged LB and Dad goodbye. We wouldn't see them again on trail this time. The gap was going to be too big for them to catch us. The Wolf Pack was going to be missing some members from now on.
I was numb as we walked the block to the trail angels house. Three pack members in one night. And one of them my hiking partner. I was so low. I had cried after Shelly left and now I was crying again. What had been such an exciting day had turned into a very sad evening.
We got to the house and quickly went to bed. In the morning we slept in and then walked down to the local cafe/hotel for some delicious breakfast food and milkshakes and burgers. Around noon we crossed the Bridge of the Gods. My grief from the night before couldn't ruin this moment. We all triumphantly crossed with howling and yelling and laughing and maybe even some crying. It was a glorious moment, one we had waited for for so long. We were finally in Washington!
After pictures at the Bridge we got on trail. 12 miles out up a giant hill? No problem. We crushed the miles and got into camp as night fell.
The next morning it was clear no one was very impressed with Washington thus far. I heard several comments about a "green tunnel" and the words "muggy", "wet", and "cold" were thrown around a lot. I was slightly offended by this but that was because I knew what was coming-the North Cascades. So I kept my mouth shut and kept going. We had a couple more days to Trout Lake and it was clear that it could only get better from here.
For the rest of the day we gained and lost a ton of elevation. Our morning was spent climbing a giant hill only to go down the other side and back up another one. It reminded me of Yosemite, which was not a good thing. My legs were burning all day and only occasionally did I get a good view of anything. But, just as a reminder of the amazing sights to come, Mt. Adams popped out of the trees every now and then when we reached a ridge line.
We pulled two 26 mile days to get within 20 miles of the Trout Lake exit. On our way we passed through Indian Heaven Wilderness, which was absolutely stunning. Every turn brought a new lake or a new view of the surrounding volcanoes. We also passed 2200 miles in this area, which was an amazing moment! Any three numbers with a "2" in front of them is pretty cool if I do say so. Anyways, we zoomed through this area while the weather was nice. The second full day we planned on getting about 19 miles from Trout Lake. I, however, somehow passed the group camp spot that evening and ended up camping 15 miles from the highway. It was my first night alone on trail and it was not fun. NOT FUN. I hate being by myself out in the woods. Its not something I look for in a recreation experience. I prefer the social aspect of wilderness time, which means I enjoy camping with people at night. Its more fun and it makes me feel a little bit safer. Anyways, I spent a very cold night wondering if I was going to be eaten by a mountain lion.
Luckily I wasn't! I got up very early and knocked out the 15 miles to Trout Lake. I got a hitch into town by an awesome trail angel called the Lounge Lizard (because he has a sofa in the bed of his truck). I was dropped at the Trout Lake Grocery Store where I found Wright hanging out on the porch. He had gone to Portland with LB and Dad to give his feet some much needed rest and recovery time. I hung out with him for a while on the porch while I updated my Facebook and drank way too much soda. An hour or two later the rest of the crew arrived and we went to the local cafe for burgers and shakes.
We decided to spend the night in town. Everyone was tired from all the climbing and we wanted to shower and relax. So, we got ourselves a room above the grocery store for the night and settled in for movie night! We watched Dallas Buyers Club and This Is The End while munching on popcorn, ice-cream, and burgers. Dinner of Champions!
After a good night's sleep we got back on the trail bright and early. Well, most of us did. Nathan's eye was bothering him so he decided to get on trail later in the day after seeing a doctor. So, we said goodbye to him at the store and piled in a big truck. Another Trout Lake local gave us a ride up at 8 AM so we got to log a full day of miles. Our morning was spent climbing up to the base of Mt. Adams. We were finally getting up close and personal with Washington's volcanoes! After the climb it leveled out into an amazingly easy day. The sun came out, the wind died down, and we were treated to views of Mt. Hood, Adams, Rainier, and St. Helens at every turn. It was fantastic! To top it off, everyone had stopped complaining about the "green tunnel". That's right, we were all on the same page now. No one was doubting the majesty of the Cascades anymore.
The next day we entered Goat Rocks Wilderness. This was a very exciting moment for us because we had been hearing about this place all the way down in SoCal. Thats how beautiful it is. Unfortunately it was a cloudy, cold day so we didn't get the full experience. We were, however, still blown away at the beauty we were passing through. We went over Cispus Pass and climbed a very steep grade up to the beginning of the famous Knife's Edge. As the sun began to set, Matt and I crossed the Knife's Edge. It was exhilarating and unnerving. To my left and my right was about 5-10 feet of rock and then a 2000 ft drop. The wind was blowing, the trail was wet, and the grade was extremely steep, up and down. So I gingerly led the way down this precarious trail as the clouds swirled overhead. It took us about an hour to cross this area because it was such a rough trail (and also because I was leading...I'm slow). When we finally reached the point where we could tell we were off the Knife's Edge we rounded a corner and saw a herd of mountain goats! There were about twenty goats munching on what little grass covered the steep hillside we were traversing. As we passed they moved away from us but not fast enough to imply any sort of fear. They had clearly interacted with hiker trash before...
Right at dusk Matt and I reached camp. Vanish was close behind and we hadn't seen Ride or Wright since the morning. Darkness closed in and no one arrived. As the hours ticked on even Vanish didn't show. That was concerning. She always shows up. Always. And so I fell asleep nervous and concerned for my friends, hoping they hadn't tried to attempt the Knife's Edge in the dark. That would be a death sentence.
It was bitterly cold and windy the following morning. Matt and I woke up and promptly looked for Vanish, but she wasn't anywhere to be seen. I packed up my stuff and got off the windy outcropping we had used as a camp spot in an attempt to warm up. I didn't know whether Vanish was ahead or somewhere behind but I started getting the miles out of the way in order to find out.
Today we were coming into White Pass, a place where I have skied once or twice. We were about 15 miles from the highway and I was very motivated to get into town. There was a possibility that my parents would be there and that thought pushed me up the large hill that stood between me and the ski area. As I crested the hill and began to descend I found myself looking into a bowl-shaped valley. The trail cut across the hillside to my left, leading off into the trees in the distance. I could see the small speck of a lift house on a hill far off and I knew I was within at least five miles of White Pass. Movement caught my eye on the trail and I realized that Vanish was crossing the hillside! Phew! I breathed a huge sigh of relief knowing she had gotten over Knife's Edge safely.
I caught her at the trees about a mile later and motored into White Pass with her. We spent several hours at the little store down the road and soon Matt and Nathan showed up. Nathan had somehow passed Wright and Ride without seeing them, which was concerning. So, we waited until the store closed at 6PM and then walked back to the trailhead. It had been our hope to get back on trail much earlier that day and get about 10 miles into the next section but our people hadn't shown up so we camped at the road. About an hour later the two showed up. Apparently they had just been taking their time, which was very annoying. Everyone else had been busting ass (pardon my language) to get into town early so we could get in and get out but it ended up not mattering. That made me angry. But at least they were safe and back with us!
That evening we got a fire going because it was very chilly and we sat around enjoying our dinner and doing Highs and Lows. The next day we would head toward my stomping ground: Mt. Rainier National Park.
Weather forecast for the next few days was sunny with a chance of volcanoes.
-Smokey
No comments:
Post a Comment