Pacific Crest Trail - Von Mexiko nach Kanada, zu Fuss

Montag, den 13. August
We were up and walking by 6:45am, and by 7:15am we had made our way over the Bridge of the Gods and entered into the state of Washington. Not only was it exciting, but I would have to say I was a bit on the giddy side!
We encountered patches of logged areas throughout the day, and in the morning we actually trekked through an area of active logging. We could hear chainsaws and a logger yelled, "Fall! Fall!" which made us tremble in our trekking shoes at the possibility of a tree crashing down on our heads! We made it through safely and were witness once again to the destruction and devastating effects that logging causes on the environment.
The trek was mostly in dense, lush, mossy forest and the day was hot and muggy. Trekking through forests over the past few days we have encountered numerous spider webs that are strewn across the trail. The trek today was no different and we continually looked at each other with pathetic eyes hoping the other would walk first and sacrifice face, arms, and legs to spiderweb bombardment.
We also had our first slimy slug sighting since beginning the hike, which was a definite sign that we were trekking in the northwest. My grandma Tocheniuk used to use slugs to help get me out from under her feet in the kitchen. I would be given a salt shaker and sent out to the garden to rid it of slugs. It provided hours of entetainment as a kid.
We stopped for dinner and a rinse off at Rock Creek and trekked on to camp at Sedum Ridge next to the abandoned Rock Creek Trail, punching in at 26 miles for the day. The most impressive highlight of the day (and the most fatiguing) is that our trek began at Cascade Locks which was at 180ft of elevation and our campsite was at 3080ft, a mere 2900ft elevation difference. Adding the elevation gains over the entire day came out to approximately 6000ft of climbing (that's the impressive part). We had heard that the trail in Washington had alot of climbing, and we certainly weren't spared any mercy on our initiation day into the state. Even so, it was a good day on the trail and we are on our way home!!!

Dienstag, den 14. August
We began trekking at about 7am. We both had a great sleep, although we both agreed that a few more hours of sleep would have been welcomed. We were actually awoken by some creature walking in the bushes close to us which certainly got our morning adrenalin going. We lied there in silence and a huge elk climbed up onto the trail about 25ft away from us. He watched us for about a minute and then headed back down into the bushes ... another magical moment on the Pacific Crest Trail.
The trek for the day was fairly uneventful. The trail stayed in forest all day, so we took turns in front on spiderweb patrol duty. The day was once again hot and muggy and we both sweated up a stinky storm. We took a breakfast break at Panther River and munched on Pop Tarts and Fruit Loops (treats that we still had from Clare and Topbob's visit). Just before crossing Wind River we spotted a coyote in the bushes who stopped for a brief moment then went on his way. Dinner and a rinse off were enjoyed at a small spring where someone had built a small bench with a table that we could sit at. It was wonderful to be able to sit down since usually we just sit on the ground on top of our groundcloth.
We were both fairly tired throughout the day, possibly due to all of the climbing yesterday. We set up camp at Crest Campground which was completely deserted. We trekked approximately 26 miles and camped at 3490ft elevation with a cumulative elevation gain of 4000ft for the day.

Mittwoch, den 15. August
We were on the trail at 7am. The trek continued mostly through forest, although not quite as dense as yesterday. We passed into (and out of) Indian Heaven Wilderness, and there was ample opportunity to sample Washington huckleberries throughout the day, which I did with great pleasure and enjoyment. Occassionally the trail would open out onto a grassy meadow with glimpses of Mount Adams in the haze of the day along with patches of logging surrounding the mountain. As well, over the last few days there have been numerous different types of mushrooms growing along the side of the trail. Some of them are huge and they all sport different colours and shapes. The weather was once again hot and muggy and we did our fair share of sweating and stinking.
We stopped for a break at Bear Lake in the later morning which was most enjoyable. We munched on our ever-so-delicious, never-get-sick-of, wouldn't-want-anything-else-to-eat trail mix. The lake was wonderfully inviting and we both enjoyed a cool, cleansing swim. We trekked on to Mosquito Creek for dinner (where there were actually no mosquitoes, thank goodness!), and then continued onwards to Trout Creek where we set up camp for the night. We rinsed off in the creek and enjoyed an early night in the bags with huge trees above our heads that made the night that much more dark. We fell asleep to the sound of crickets as well as the sound of the creek in the distance.

Donnerstag, den 16. August
We were up and on the trail by 6:30am. The morning was damp and misty, making the forest feel very cool, still, and quiet. In some areas, it was so misty that dew dripped from the trees -- it was a beautifully peaceful morning.
We trekked uphill most of the morning to reach 5770ft (approximately 3500ft of elevation gain) and crossed into Mount Adams Wilderness. The morning mist disappeared as the sun rose in the sky and as we reached higher ground, the forest opened up to alpine meadows of grasses and sweet smelling, colourful wildflowers as well as small, almost dwarf-like pine trees. There were a number of glacier fed creeks surrounded by wildflowers and there was open blue sky above us as opposed to shady trees, allowing us a great view of Mount Adams (which we were on the ridge of) as well as Mount Saint Helens in the distance. As we came around one corner along the path, we heard what sounded like loud thunder. We looked up to Mount Adams and saw a rock slide in progress. Huge boulders were bouncing down the mountain and crashing on the ice of the glaciers. It lasted for a couple of minutes and at the end of it, a cloud of dirt and dust lingered in the sky above. It was an amazing thing to see and a small reminder of the powers of Mother Nature.
We trekked 25 miles for the day and had planned to go further until we arrived at Muddy Fork River which was supposed to have a bridge across it, but it had been washed away. The river was raging in a fierce way and because the water was so silty, we could not see the bottom to determine how deep the river was. We decided it would be safest to wait until morning when the water level would be lower and cross then. We set up camp right on the trail just before it ended at the river and had a relaxing and early evening.

Freitag, den 17. August
We were up and ready to tackle Muddy Fork River at 6:30am. To our relief, the water level was significantly lower than it was last night and we crossed without a glitch. The water level came to about mid-thigh height, but we were able to make it across over rocks and tree trunks, only getting our shoes slightly wet.
The morning was crisp and clear, although it took us a few hours to warm up. The trek began through forest with a few ridges that gave us a clear view of Mount Rainier -- what a magnificent sight. We left Mount Adams Wilderness behind, bid farewell to Mount Adams and Mount Saint Helens in the distance, and crossed over into Goat Rocks Wilderness, but not before both and elk sighting and a coyote sighting.
The early afternoon was spent ascending to Sheep Lake at 5710ft, a beautiful little alpine lake, that we had a dip in and dined at. The ascent took us along a ridgeline that gave views of Mount Adams behind us, forested mountains around us, and valleys and lakes below us.
We continued our ascent past Cispus Pass at 6470ft along ridgelines and passed jagged peaks with snow patches on them that fed beautiful creeks surrounded by colourful and fragrant wildflowers. We approached just under 7000ft and set up camp amongst a bed of wildflowers. We celebrated the scenic day by sipping on brandy from a tiny bottle that Clare had brought for us to Cascade Locks. It was one of the prettiest days on the Pacific Crest Trail, and supposibly tomorrow's trek is to be just as spectacular.
It was a chilly night up near 7000ft, but the surroundings were gorgeous, the night sky was sparkling with stars, and the brandy helped take the nip out of the chilly of the night air.

Samstag, den 18. August
August 18th we awoke to a chilly, windy, misty morning and we began our trek at 7am with all of our warm possessions on. We trekked up to 7080ft which was the second highest point along the Pacific Crest Trail in the state of Washington. Although the following 3 to 4 miles were supposibly the most scenically spectacular, we only got to see about 20ft infront of us and the rest of the scenery was fog which was accompanied by a strong wind. One amazing note about the early morning trek was that not only did we cross over snow patches, but we crossed over Packwood Glacier ... never in my life did I think I'd a)own an ice axe (and actually use it!), and b)walk on a glacier!
We continued our descent and the fog broke up and the sun began to shine through. We had breakfast on a saddle above Elk Pass with a panoramic view of jagged snowcapped mountains and lush green valleys below. The trail then took us through forest until early afternoon when we once again began an ascent, this time to approximately 6600ft where we enjoyed a great view of Mount Rainier.
We motored it on down to White Pass at 4405ft where Tom indulged in pop, I indulged in a mocha, and we both indulged in some junk food. Maggie (Tom's younger sister), her husband Steve, and their children Joe and Gwen picked us up at about 6pm. It was wonderful to see them and both of the kids took a minute to recognize Uncle Tom due to his weight loss and his "mountain man" appearance. We all piled into the van and the Raiders were incredibly polite about our stench permeating through the vehicle. We headed to Godfather's Pizza for some delicious food and then the Raiders dropped Tom and I off at Tom and Ed's apartment at about 9:30pm. Ed was home and although he was happy to see us, he only gave us a brief hug and reminded us both where the shower was located in the apartment. We showered up, threw a load of laundry in, chatted with Ed for a bit, and crawled into Tom's comfy bed. Ahhh ... life is good!!!

Sonntag, den 19. August
August 19th Tom and I did not fulfill our dream of sleeping in until noon and found ourselves awake and unable to fall back asleep by 7am. We finished off our laundry, had another shower to cleanse away another layer of dirt and stench, and puttered about doing various other chores.
At 10am we went down to the local Denny's with Ed to meet Mutti and Topbob for a Grand Slam Breakfast (you probably could have finished the rest of that sentence off for yourself!). It was, as eating non-trail food always is, most enjoyable.
After breakfast Tom and I stopped at the local Starbucks for a delicious, overpriced mocha and then headed over to Tyee High School parking lot at noon to rendez vous with my mom and dad. They were on their way to Long Beach, Washington with their fifth wheeler for a week and were passing through Seattle on their way down ... what great timing! It was exciting to see them both and we all enjoyed a visit in the sunshine. We also had the chance to check out Dad's new high tech digital camera which has been his latest toy for the last month or so ... yep, with me and my pocketmail and Dad with his new computer and camera, the Tocheniuks are slowly making their way into the computer age!
After bidding farewell to Mom and Dad, Tom and I spent the next few hours driving around town running layover day errands. We made a brief stop back at the apartment to organize the packs and then off to Mutti and Topbob's for a family dinner. Tom's Uncle Frank and Aunt Kaye were in from Chicago and along with his other siblings, his niece and nephew, as well as family friends, it was a full house. We enjoyed alot of delicious food that Mutti had prepared (I noticed that I was doing the "alot" part more than everyone else) and the company was great.
At about 7:30pm Tom and I headed off to Clare's house to spend the night. Clare, being the kind soul than she is, agreed to drive us up to the trailhead at the ridiculous hour of 4:30am for a 6:30am start on the trail. Such a wake up time is definitely above and beyond "the crack of stupid", but when Tom and I calculated out the mileage and days left until Manning Park, it makes the "crack of stupid" seem worth it!