Birthday Month

We made it to Burney Falls! We were hoping to hike out that evening after some ice cream, but we ran into some friends called Team Eagle! They had a car and a desire to bowl......sooooo we couldn't resist. We went into town for real food and bowled. After, we talked everyone into camping together at the park. It was a fun night of ice cream cake and buffalo wings. 

The next morning was not so productive, but after a few ice cream cones we eventually got on trail. We were about 9 miles out when we stopped for camp. So... Productive day. 

The next day we actually logged some miles. We got 30 miles under our belt as we hiked through the smoke. We could look back and see the vague outline of Mt Lassen but Shasta was completely obscured to the north. The smoke was frustrating for most of the day. We knew we were missing some amazing views. Nevertheless we pushed on and ended our day at an unpaved road, tired and ready for sleep. 

The next morning we logged some more miles. We had lunch together and then Nathan left us. He wanted to visit a friend and so he headed out. We hope to see him down the trail. The rest of us stopped at a swimming hole, Squaw Valley. There was not much camping, but we made it work.

 

After a cramped night of sleep, we got up and did the 15ish miles into Castella. In order to get into town there was a two mile road walk. We both were lucky enough to get rides into town. A sheriff picked me up, and a fellow hiker picked up Smokey and Vanish. We had a small break in town and got sandwiches, drinks, and shade. Once it cooled off we hiked out of town. It was a small side trail and it took us through a buggy area. We made camp next to a river after about 5 miles. It was a cozy camp. We hike with 8-10 people at this point so finding a campsite for all of us can be a challenge, but we made it work. 

The next day we headed out to climb up Castle Crags. It was a large climb and full of many bugs, but the views were amazing.

The smoke set in and though we had a beautiful ridge walk, we could only see a couple miles.

We ended the day after an easy 23 miles at a nice lake. We jumped in to cool down and enjoyed a fire. It was nice to have a campsite for all of us.

The next morning was equally as smoky, but I had a mission for the day. Nathan had lost his trekking pole somewhere and since we were behind him it was our duty to find it. I busted out early with a mission. I knocked out 16 miles and found the pole. I did two more miles and had lunch. Two more thru hikers joined me, Gummi Bear and Happy Little Trees. After lunch I finished out the 30 mile day and ended at a spring. We were hoping for camping, but there was none. We made our own for the night, some almost directly on trail. 

After a night of little sleep we hit the trail. We had one more full day to Etna and one more half day. We were tired and ready to be in town. After crossing one road that would have taken us in town, we were tempted. At the second road Emily and I decided to head in for a much needed shower, rest from the smoke, and sleep. At the last minute Wright decided to join us on a hitch with a beautiful sunset.

 At this point we haven't showered in almost two weeks. We were dirty and hungry. 

The guys who gave us a hitch dropped us off at the Hiker Hut, a wonderful place. It is this garage looking hut that was made into a bunk house. It had a shower, fridge, TV, and computer. It was beautiful. They also gave us bikes we could use around town. We immediately used these bikes to fly into town for a burger. It was so much fun to move so quickly. We looked like a local biker gang rolling around. 

After a delicious burger at Dotty's we biked home to clean up. First, a beautiful sunset.

When we got back to the hut our new hiker friend, trail name Dad, told us that the scrub brush that you may think to use on the floor, actually is the only way to get the dirt off of you. 

After finally being clean, Smokey and Wright brainstormed ways to do the miles we had missed. They decided they would slack pack the miles and be done around the same time as the other people in our group. They took all of the stuff out of their packs except water and a lunch, and arranged a ride. 

As they went off to slack pack the Trinity Alps, I hung back and wrote letters, rode around on the bike, and used the real computer to work on grad school applications. Here are some photos of their slack packing adventure: 

The rest of the group came in and we went to the local brewery, Etna Brewing, where I had one of the best sandwiches on trail. By then Smokey and Wright made it in and we had to pick up a package from Sugar Momma, the trail angel in Mammoth. It was our birthday surprise! She was kind enough to send us two cakes, frosting, decorations to make hats, candles, bubbles, and a kind note. It was a great surprise. We enjoyed the cake so much! Thank you!!!

Later on we heard about a concert in town. We got on the bikes and headed down for milkshakes and music. 

The next morning we grabbed coffee at the local shop, and groceries to have a grill out. We grilled brats, zucchini, squash, peppers, and onions. We had a feast. 

Then the town was having a community celebration, so of course we had to visit. It was a local street fair. Food, dancing, homemade pies, people on stilts, and dunk tanks. It reminded me of the local celebrations in Iowa. 

After almost two weeks without a zero, a shower, or much rest Etna was the perfect town to rest and enjoy. It gave us a break from the ever present smoke, and let us join the community for just a little while. There is not much more we could ask for. 

But the trail always calls us back.....

 

On the trail again!

After such a large break, we were excited to get back on the trail. A night of beers and dancing made it a little harder to get on the trail, but after a hot breakfast we got going. It was around a 12 mile climb out of Belden. It was not very fun, but we did it. It was our way of earning being back on the trail. Emily's ankle was strong and the miles went by. We hiked to a cold spring and stayed in a cow pasture. The water was cold and delicious. The next day we met back up with Vanish, a hiker we have been yo-yoing. We were planning on doing great miles, but we got held up by trail magic! It was the most wonderful thing to stumble upon a group of lovely people with a table and food. At first I thought I was interrupting their camp, but P came up and made sure I took off my back and sat down. He got a sandwich ready, fresh fruit, and drinks. Needless to say, we stayed there for hours. Then, another trail angel group showed up. They were serving BLTs with blackberry and cream. Nom. We called it a trail angel off, and everyone won..... mostly just us. We left the parking area with an extremely full stomach, a BLT for the road, and a beer for our soon to be midway point!

We headed out and hit the halfway point! The post was at 1305 or something around there, but it is marked for 1325. Either way, we made it half way. We had a celebratory beer, and just enjoyed the moment.

We hiked a couple more miles, for the evening and called it good. The next morning was......MY BIRTHDAY!!! My family had sent cards that I was to open on my birthday morning. It was a wonderful surprise. That day we hiked through Lassen National Park. The volcanic rocks were fascinating, and there were boiling lakes.

We hiked 30 miles, a first for me. We stayed at a lake and had freeze dried ice cream cake! A wonderful way to celebrate.

The next day we woke up and headed into town. We said goodbye to Lassen and headed to the valley. 

I stumbled into Old Station. It turns out it is mostly just a RV park, post office, and gas station. We found a cafe to eat at and a cave! Subway Cave was formed by a lava flow tube. It was pretty cool.

We camped by the cave, and got ready for the hyped up Hat Creek Rim section, a 30 mile exposed, hot,and dry section. 

What a beautiful view it was. In the morning we climbed up to the rim and caught our first view of Mt. Shasta!

The picture doesn't do it justice. Mostly because you can't really see Shasta, but I promise it is there. 

Anywho, we meandered our way across the rim full of beautiful views. The water less stretch was broken by Cache 22, a beautifully shady shelter with all the water. 

After a shady break, we continued on to a fish hatchery. It was a soft grassy area with a view of the stars for the meteor shower that night. 

The next morning we woke up and walked a couple miles to trail magic! The Wild Bird Cache. It was the perfect hiker trap. It had chargers for phones, food, solar shower, and soda. Amazing. Needless to say, we were there for awhile.

Eventually we dragged ourselves out, and made it to Burney Falls State Park! What a beautiful park, with soft serve ice cream. :)

Friends and Family

Shelly and I (temporarily) parted ways at Northern Kennedy meadows. She needed some time off trail so we decided to meet back up at South Lake Tahoe. It was about three days from Sonora to Tahoe which meant we would be without Shelly for only a couple days.

Nathan and I were given a ride from the people at Camp Awesome up to Sonora Pass. We got back on trail around 6pm and pounded out 5 miles. On the way to our campsite we were treated to a gorgeous sunset. A beam of golden light was cutting across the canyon and slowly drifting up the hillside as the evening darkened. Both Nathan and I were awestruck and elated at the same time. The rush to our campsite became a little less frantic as we laughed and sang our way down the trail. 

That evening we camped with Macgyver, a hiker we met in Yosemite. The three of us ate our dinner as the yellow alpenglow of the sunset faded into a deep red on the edge of the horizon. After dinner I sang the boys my favorite James Taylor song and we all went to our tents. Spirits were high. It felt good to be back on trail. 

The next morning Nathan and I left very early so we could catch Loverboy on the trail. The elevation for the day wasn't terrible so we decided to pull a long one- about 25 miles. We caught Loverboy and Riderdieh around 11 am and the laughs started flowing. Both Ride and Loverboy are hilarious guys with infectious energy. They are the kind of people who remind you why you are on the PCT. So naturally, Nathan and I were extremely excited to have caught up to those two. 

We hiked as a group for the rest of the day and set up our tents in a giant campsite on a sheltered ridge line. Nathan and I spent a while trying to convince the other two to stay with us there even though they had less miles under their belts for the day than us. Finally we got to them and they stayed! More hiker friends showed up and by the end of the night there was a big group of us sitting around the fire watching Loverboy trying to make biscuits and gravy. That was one of my favorite nights on trail. Everyone was happy and talkative. The jokes kept coming and the laughs didn't stop. We were with some amazing people. Those are the nights I live for on the PCT. 

Nathan and I decided to log even more miles the next day. We planned to go 27 miles, which was the longest mileage for me thus far. We got up and out early again and the miles started flying by. We crossed craggy hillsides and flower-filled meadows. It was clear that we were in a transition zone; the forest was slowly giving way to sagebrush steppe. Nathan and I saw each other off and on all day as we churned through our mileage. We had a great pace set but unfortunately that meant we didn't see Loverboy or Ride all day. By the time we reached camp it was clear that we had lost our hiker friends. It wasn't a complete loss, however, because we met a new hiker named Jellybean. 

After a night of good food (mountain house meals) and great company, Nathan and I awoke well rested and ready to be in South Lake Tahoe. It was just over 20 miles from our campsite to the state highway. Both of us were itching to get to town so we headed out early. The knowledge that my parents were waiting for me at the end of the day was what spurred me on. I was very excited to see my family and all I wanted was hugs from my folks. 

I practically ran those 20 miles.But along the way, we encountered some trail magic. Early in the morning we crossed a highway near a visitor center. The volunteers there maintain a cooler of food and drinks for hikers that includes watermelon, tomatoes, brownies, root beer, strawberries, and other delicious goodies. I was in a hurry to get to Tahoe but the food sucked me into a trail magic vortex (this happens a lot). After signing the logbook, eating my food, and buying a Smokey Bear tshirt, I set out for the final stretch. It was mostly downhill after the road so I started jogging. At this point my feet were aching and the sun was blazing overheard but it did not slow me down. I powered up steep ridgelines and flew down rocky staircases to the Echo Lake trailhead. As I rounded a corner about .25 miles before the parking area, I saw my mom and dad waiting with Shelly and Nathan.

I'll be honest, I teared up a bit. I was grinning ear to ear as a I walked down to give mom a hug. All of the aches and pains in my body just melted away. I was back with my favorite people in the world and nothing could spoil the moment. I can't convey how meaningful it is to see family when you have been on trail for a while. The trail breaks you down physically and mentally everyday until you are completely and utterly exhausted. The people who make you feel most at ease and relaxed are far away. You have no safe place to run to and no comfort zone to retreat back to. It is you and the trail. Oftentimes it feels like it is you versus the trail. So when the opportunity arises to see your family, its your golden ticket to complete self-renewal. The curative powers of a hug from your parents are endless.

After the reunion on trail, we hopped in the car and drove down to South Lake Tahoe. We settled into a hotel and then decided dinner was in order, which meant beer was in order. So we went to a German-style bier haus. The beer was awesome and the food was delicious (potatoes on potatoes on potatoes).

The next day was spent running errands and exploring Tahoe. We went to a swanky country club (because we are hiker class not hiker trash), jumped in Lake Tahoe, and visited the local outfitting shop. In the afternoon we moved our stuff into the house my parents rented. WE HAD A HOUSE! The level of excitement was through the roof when we saw the place. It was gorgeous on the inside. And the carpet was heavenly on our sore feet. It was awesome to have a space for ourselves that we didn't have to share with anyone else. In other words, my parents are AWESOME :)

We settled in quickly and invited some other hikers up to the house. Loverboy and Heather came up along with a French hiker named Damian. Mom treated us all to homemade lasagna and then surprised me with my favorite beer in the world: mountain man from the Front brewing company. My parents are amazing! It was the coolest surprise I have ever gotten on trail. (Thanks to Jeff for bringing it back from MT!) 

The next day was a fairly uneventful zero day. We lounged around, prepped our food, and ran some errands. That evening we got to host more hiker friends. Bean, Two Wars, Mike, and Fly Free/Sweet Tea showed up for a big stir fry dinner. Shelly and the rest of the gang made my parents a wonderful meal with different fried rice and other delicious things. It was heavenly. To top off the evening we watched a movie in the living room until everyone went to bed. It was an awesome night.

Our very early wake up call came too soon the next day. We cleaned up and left the house by around 7:30 in the morning. It was time to say goodbye to our hiker house and the city of South Lake Tahoe. It was also time to say goodbye to my parents. That was pretty tough for me but I knew I would see them again soon. Afterall, I am hiking home.

So, to get all sappy and sentimental, I would like to dedicate this post to all of the friends and family who are out there supporting our adventure. Whether it is boxes of food, letters, or just hugs and love over the phone, we love the support from the people back home. This adventure is not only for us but also for you all. So thank you. For the late night phone calls, the silly birthday cards, the food in the mail, the car rides, the oranges and soda, the hugs, the love.

Here's to you, friends and family! Thanks to all!

-Smokey

Dirty and smelly=free beer?

After a wonderful couple days off with Emily's parents, it was time to get back on trail. The trail family was reunited and it was time to start hiking! We waited for the Oklahomies to get the packages at Echo Lake, and  then we headed out. As usual the boys jumped ahead and Emily and I were just trying to keep up. We entered Desolation Wilderness and it was beautiful. We also got to see a helicopter come down and get water for a fire. 

It was a pretty cool scene. 

We chased the boys, but as it got later we couldn't seem to find them. We settled on sleeping early and trying to catch them in the morning. We flew in the morning, trying to find them, but to no avail. Then another hiker informed us they were behind us! It turns out we were the ones being chased, but as usual the boys caught up, and we were determined to actually camp together! And we did at a beautiful site. 

At this point of the trail we join up with the Tahoe Rim Trail. So we had beautiful views of Lake Tahoe and met some ultra marathoners who were doing crazy miles every day. We were lucky enough to run into them when they were getting food. They kindly shared their goodies with us.

We enjoyed the view of Tahoe and continued on to Truckee, a town on the north side of Tahoe. A friend, Section F, was having a birthday party in Truckee and so we hustled in and celebrated in typical hiker fashion; campground, fires, and beer.

The next day we hiked two miles to a microbrewery and Thai food! Worth it. A lovely group of people bought us beer at the brewery. Who knew looking smelly and dirty could get us free things?!

That evening we found a wonderful spot to stay. It is called the Clair Tappaan Lodge. It is a Sierra Club lodge and is set up like a hostel. Included was an old school hot tub, and the history that lay within the walls. The lodge reminded me of a giant family cabin or the best summer camp cabin. Needless to say, I really enjoyed it. 

 Back to the trail.... Or so we thought. As we were walking the 1.5 miles to the trail, Emily rolled her ankle pretty badly. Our friend Loverboy helped her to a nearby lodge. I was already on the trail, but luckily I had left my phone on. I headed off trail, and met up with Emily. Unfortunately, this roll was bad enough Emily couldn't walk on it. The Oklahomies went ahead, and we decided to rest for one more day and meet them in Sierra City. 

I guess I will take this moment to explain how crushing it is to get an injury on trail. We spend everyday straining our bodies, and we are used to pain. But the moment the pain goes too far, it is scary. One moment of not paying attention can cost the whole trip. If you don't pay attention to your body, an injury can sneak up on you and ruin your trip. So instead of risking it, we usually take the safe route. Though it is sad to miss part of the trail, we find it more important to be healthy. Since we started so late it is hard to take days off without missing miles. It is an odd predicament to be in but we decided to stay with our trail family and miss a couple miles. 

We hitched ahead with the help of a business man and two mountain bikers. We found out Sierra City is not a city, instead a tiny village with one general store. It had a sign for "high speed internet" and cell service was dismal. The church let us stay on their yard, and the general store let us hangout there all day. 

Though the towns are small, they are very welcoming. 

The Oklahomies came and left, Emily's ankle had not healed yet, and I was waiting for my sister and brother in-law to visit. So we hungout at the general store for another day until.... FAMILY! 

It was amazing to see familiar faces. We all went out for dinner and celebrated my birthday early. It was very kind of these two to drive out to see us for such a short time! They also drove us up to the next town: Belden. It is less of a town and more of a bar/grocery store/restaurant/hotel in one building. 

We waited for one more day. The ankle was finally ready to roll! The Oklahomies came into town and we were going to have food and go, but one round of beer later and free rafts in the river, we were stuck. 

Soon the whole town was at the bar, and everyone was buying us beer and who can deny free drinks?! So we stayed and danced. 

Some night you can't resist the calling of a town and a good time with friends.

Trail provides

The hype surrounding Tuolumne Meadows was huge. We were told it was "God's address" or it was the best place ever... Etc. 

It was beautiful, however, between the massive amount of people, expensive food, and lack of fixes for our Sawyers, I was a little bitter. But we found Aquamira, and we decided to share that until we could find something better. 

Yosemite overall was tough. We left Tuolumne and Yosemite showed us its true beauty. There were waterfalls and domes everywhere. 

After the first day, the trail took us away from the valley and towards the hills. It started going straight up, then straight down. Over and over again. We learned why it does that. The in house ranger can tell you why!

SMOKEY: hey folks! So here's a little history on the Yosemite trails. When the park was originally established, congress had a difficult time controlling activities within the park borders. In order to maintain the integrity of the area the Calvary was sent in to regain control. While the army was inhabiting the area they built much of the trail system that is used today. These trails, however, were not made for hikers. They went from water sources and grazing in the most direct route possible to keep the horses healthy. This is why the trails traverse canyons in the most brutal way possible for hikers. 

A couple days of up downs and we were all a little tired. We were getting ready to leave Yosemite. Just up one hill and we would be free. But then it rained. So much. It got to the point where we were no longer avoiding puddles. We were going straight through them. But the wildflowers were putting on a show for us. 

We left Yosemite and hit 1000 miles! Soaked and tired we set up camp. But only one more day till town! 

We woke up begrudgingly and headed out. Our goal was just to make it to Sonora but the PCT had a surprise for us. We went straight up this mountain and found an amazing day. 

We found ourselves on a ridge with mountains on both sides. We could see the high Sierras in the distance. It was a goodbye to the Sierras. 

We saw all the views. Rolling green hills and rocky mountains greeted us at every turn. It was insane.

We came down into Sonora to find some trail magic and a ride to Northern Kennedy Meadows. We got our packages and started to look for a campsite, and as always the trail provided. This family invited us into their camp, and a good old celebration commenced. We played corn hole, ate roasted veggies, and in general had a wonderful time. 

When we woke up they made us pancakes and fixed our Sawyer. In general gave us the love and generosity you can only get from families. 

They took us to the trail, and let me stay an extra night to recuperate and drove me to Bridgeport to catch a bus to Tahoe, where I would meet up with Emily and Nathan again. It was an 80 mile round trip. The generosity on the trail never ceases to surprise me. We remember this family as Camp Awesome because of all the awesomeness they gave us. 

B-E-A-UTIFUL

After loading up on all the free food we could find we climbed out of the valley and up Seldon Pass. On the way we passed beautiful lakes full of wildflowers.

The views never stop, and neither do the climbs. :) 

We climbed the next day until we got to Lake Virginia. It was a beautiful spot to camp. Mountains and a crystal clear lake. 

But civilization was on our mind. We raced into Red's Meadow and called the families. Unfortunately, Nathan took a wrong turn and ended up putting in a long day, but eventually made it. 

We took advantage of Mammoth's awesome transportation system and got into town, filled up on burgers, and got our packages. Then we called Sugar Momma, a wonderful trail angel. She gave us a place to crash and let us have an evening of binging on Netflix. It was wonderful. 

With a day as wonderful as that we decided to stay one more day. Mammoth is full of free trolleys, great food, and awesome people. Plus Sugar Momma made amazing bread. 

We tore ourselves out of Mammoth the next day. It was a struggle but before leaving we had to see Devil's Postpile. It is this rock formation that looks like a church organ of rocks coming out of the ground. 

Nathan nerded out, Emily met a friend from Washington, and I ate Twizzlers. It was a good day. We got a couple more miles in and camped at Rosalie Lake. It was stunning. 

We took the John Muir Trail alternative in this section because we heard it was beautiful. It lived up to the rage. There were lakes every mile and each one took my breath away. 

We passed through the beauty and into the next section: Yosemite. 

But first, both of the water filtering systems broke. We had two Sawyer Squeezes and both of them stopped working on the same day. Luckily, my mom sent me with a LifeStraw, which I had yet to use. It is only useful for drinking sips but it gave us drinking water for the day. We boiled the rest of the water and let it sit out all night. It was a problem solving activity, but we figured it out :) 

Due to the odd water situation and our desire to get to Tuolumne Meadows, we flew through the miles. We made it for lunch and even had a sighting of Jared Leto. We spent the night with our trail friends and celebrated all the climbing we just made it through.