Day Ten
6 September 2016
Mile 2650.4-2658.9
Day total 8.6
Tally 197.4 miles
Total up/down: +1570/-1875ft
Camp: resort lodge floor and bus to Vancouver
LL: 49.062823, -120.782672

The end of the trail.

I don’t know what that entirely means to me yet. It is hard to put into one sentence the experience of 2658.9 miles and four months of hiking across two summers. These emotions are made more complicated by the suddenness of the trail ending last summer due to forest fires. I am sure I did a better job of conveying those emotions last summer when I was fresh from the trail. This reflection is more about feeling closure with the trail.

I can remember individual days with astounding accuracy from last summer, but I probably cannot tell you what I was doing or who I talked with three weeks ago. But then I feel like in general I can recall details from my other adventures with a higher level of accuracy than I could for the non-adventuring days. To some degree I suspect that relates to my journal-keeping habits for trips that I do not practice in between. But there is also something deeper. I think it has to do with my level of presence during adventures, and the lack there of during the day-to-day rat race. Some might call this mindfulness.

I am definitely guilty of multitasking to the detriment of whatever activity or whosever company I am trying to “enjoy.” I will be the first to admit that I revel in staying busy. That is where I feel most efficient. And anyone who has spent much time with me, even while traveling, will tell you that I have a skill at finding tasks to check off a list. That is just who I am; a list maker. My brain is a chaotic maze of thoughts bursting simultaneously like rice crispies poured onto milk. If I don’t scoop them up right away they become soggy with disinterest and sink to the bottom. This is not to say I am a compulsive person. In fact I tend to think through my actions with exhausting precision. That is how I have found myself feeling in somewhat frozen in motion from having not finished the PCT in 2015.

When I set out from the Mexican border to hike the Pacific Crest Trail, I knew I would not stop until I reached Canada. I knew that with such intensity and focus that it never crossed my mind to question its validity. For 2461.6 miles, that goal was my reality. What I did not anticipate was a fire season so bad that several brave firefighters would lose their lives and almost 200 miles of trail would be closed. So on 21 August 2015, my hike was over. I went to Monument 78 at the northern terminus with my hiking companions at the time. I needed that moment to see what I had been pushing for all summer. I also knew that I would not be satisfied if I did not go back to finish.

That closure finally came yesterday, when I arrived at the monument again, about one year later, but this time on foot via the trail. And now it’s all over again. My emotions not yet organized. I feel incredible relief to be done with sadness that it is over, unexplainable gratitude to all the people who helped me along the way, deep love for this amazing trail and the people now in my life from it, humility for accepting my accomplishments while seeing the greater deeds done by others far more generous and adventurous than me, and growing joy that I have more adventures to come.

This trail is over. I hope to someday hike it again, but that will be a new trail. The trail is constantly changing as nature changes, but I too am constantly changing. This experience will always be mine, and from it I will see every future experience in a different light. The best gift is that I know I have accomplished what I set out to do, and now I can move forward, back into motion.

Day Nine
5 September 2016
Mile 2625.3-2650.4
Day total 25.1
Tally 188.8 miles
Total up/down: +4270/-6530ft
Camp: Castle Creek passed Monument 78
LL: 49.000288, -120.802120

Today we reached Monument 78, the official US-Canadian border marker.  At the border, the rainy clouds in Washington stopped right at the peak along the clear cut marking the border. Canada was sunny and warm compared to the cold, wet and windy Washington we left behind. The moment was surreal. The old monument has been sealed closed since last year, and the trail register was simply sitting out in a dry bag. We have no idea why it was sealed. Though we also found a grocery bag filled with weed, and that reminded us that last year there was also a lot of weed stashed in the monument with the completion register. I can easily imagine the monument being sealed to prevent the storage of illegal drugs. Technically weed is legal in both Washington and BC, Canada. However it is not legal to cross the border with it. Regardless, it feels really strange to officially be here, to have completed the trail on foot as I intended last summer. It is a strange thing to actually be finished now.

Today we met a woman named Cougar. She started the PCT last year too. She caught back up to us at the northern terminus and we all shared the moment of being partial PCT 2015’ers and 2016’ers. Cougar had a longer distance than us this year, but I can still understand having the end of the trail looming over like dark cloud until this glorious moment of true completion. Something really incredible about our encounter with Cougar is that she had a copy of Seawolf by Jack London that she picked up in White Pass. Last summer we were all reading Seawolf together on trail and had found it in book form at White Pass. It could be the same one!

Overall today was a relatively easy last day, despite the abundance of downhill miles. It was also a beautiful day! And we saw numerous falcons soaring the valleys. After our terminus party part two, we walked to the camp 3/10 mile further. We found a guy named Brandon with a big fire and a friendly dog named Maya. Brandon was an interesting guy, but it was the first night in a while where I went to bed completely dry and warm!

I am thoroughly exhausted and ready for a good night’s sleep.

Day Eight
4 September 2016
Mile 2598.4-2625.3
Day total 26.9
Tally 163.7 miles
Total up/down: +5159/-4882ft
Camp: below Tamarack Peak
LL: 48.776890, -120.721379

We had trail magic today!! A PCT’er from this year, Walking Home, or Richard, had to get off in Northern California for an injury. He is from around here, so brought the best foods to deal out a little magic. I ate hot split pea soup, two turkey and salad wraps, strawberries, and marionberry jam on bread. The most welcome of surprises! And our last opportunity for trail magic.

Today has been our longest day; not by much, but true nonetheless. It was a formidable day as well. We climbed six different passes: Methow, Glacier, Grasshopper, Harts, Buffalo, and Windy Passes. About 3500 feet of the 5200 total feet all before lunch. All morning we hiked along a narrow patch of sun with visible rain to either side of us. Leaving lunch we had cold rainy spittle that turned into freezing grapple for the last three miles to Harts Pass. Walking Home was positioned at Harts Pass. I am so thankful for his kindness! My legs were definitely tired today. But mostly I think it was the cold that wore me out. I will sleep well tonight.

Tonight will be just as cold as last night. Icy tents by morning. We are all huddled in our fart sacks. Endless reading another Jack London short. Tomorrow we will arrive at the monument. Everything is coming to a close so quickly.

Day Seven
3 September 2016
Mile 2574.3-2598.4
Day total 24.1
Tally 136.8 miles
Total up/down: +6815/-2674ft
Camp: camp below Methow Pass
LL: 48.585618, -120.720115

Today we crushed the trail. Last night was the first really cold night so I woke up to pee several times. But I felt good. My feet are feeling the beating of being weighed down with a pack (even light as it is) and my back is finally rubbing raw from my pack, but my legs feel great. I would say we averaged 3 miles per hour all day. Granted it was cold all morning and rained on us for 5 miles up a 2000 foot climb after lunch, so we weren’t dilly dallying around or anything. And we scored a local Washington IPL beer from some trail magic! Tami and I split it at lunch, where we stopped at the Rainy Pass trailhead. The sun came out and it was glorious. Two PCTA people were fixing a sign and two Forest Service people were checking the trailhead garbage and bathrooms. All of them were incredibly friendly and encouraging. The permit register showed eight Canada goers through this morning, and at least six from yesterday. We may run into a bubble for the end. We ran into Easy several times, and I hope we see him at the monument. He is hilarious. Anyways, we arrived to our campsite just after 5PM, despite the weather and 6800 feet of climbing, including two passes. The sun was finally out temporarily as we put up tents and the temperature dropped to freezing. Tonight is extremely cold!

Day Six
2 September 2016
Mile 2564.3-2574.3
Day total 10
Tally 112.7 miles
Total up/down: +1950/-2056ft
Camp: Bridge Creek Camp
LL: 48.429472, -120.868353

A couple days ago we were told by a thru-hiker that there is this town named Stehekin before the border that has the best bakery. This is the sort of thing that eats away at me as a now section hiker. Of course we know about Stehekin, the last town stop before finishing the trail. I asked him if he had been there, thinking he would know if there would be cookies, my favorite food group. He response was that he has not been there before. Who gives former PCT thru hikers such ridiculous advice as if we wouldn’t know just as much as a current hiker? He was treating us like weekenders, as if we were strangers to the PCT thru world. It was saddening. Today we had a quick 5 miles into Stehekin from High Bridge Ranger Station, mile 2569.4. The advice from that hiker unneeded, all of us sent our packages to Stehekin.

Stehekin is great! There is a bus that picks up people from High Bridge Ranger Station and takes them to town. A bonus perk is that the bus stops at the bakery halfway between. The bus driver gives you about ten minutes to quickly buy baked goods. This is an amazing perk to the $7 ride, except this is actually a mental game. You walk in, smell the tantalizing baked goods, see that they offer everything from quiche and pizza to sticky buns to cookies to coffee to ice cream. They have the bus stops down to a tee, quickly grabbing items and cashing you out with a well-practiced efficiency. I frantically told them a few items then saw the day olds by the check out and bought about $20 worth of their delectable sugar and fat options. We spent the majority of the day in Stehekin. There was about an hour of torrential downpour followed by consistent drizzle the rest of the afternoon. We hiked out in drizzle and arrived to the campsite in quiet, post rain cold.

Last night we increased to five, with the addition of Juban, a PCT thru-hiker whom S+M inticed to our company. Tonight we are down to three. Juban stayed in Stehekin and S+M has headed home. She was feeling ill and yesterday dealt with a knee problem. With all the exciting things coming up in her near future, she had to think about what her priorities are right now. We have just over 100 miles together now, and about 80 to go. I am sad she left, but extremely happy we spent the last six days together. I cannot wait to continue reuniting with her for future adventures!