Pacific Crest Trail (Darrington to Stehekin) |
Day 1 - August 16, 2003 Today is the first day of our adventure. We originally had plans to hike in Glacier National Park with two nights in the Glacier Park Chalet, but changed our plans due to forest fires. Over 40,000 acres burned so far. The fire came within ¼ mile of the chalet, but now it is open again. The park is just smoky and other areas (like Lake McDonald Lodge) are evacuated. So hiking the PCT to Stehekin is our back-up plan; something we've wanted to do for a while. We started outside Darrington on the White Chuck River trail. Mom & Dad dropped us off and hiked the first two miles with us, which was a treat. Followed the White Chuck much of the way. With all of the glacial silt, the river looks more like a running latte! Today wasn't very steep, but the packs are heavy. Mine is 40 pounds and Jon's is 50 pounds. We're already thinking of ways to cut down our weight for the next time. Not that it will help us now. Jon just needs to eat more trial mix! J Today we hiked about 7 miles and gained about 2,000 feet. Tomorrow will be a tough day. 9 miles and a lot of up and down. We start at 4,200 feet and the highest point (Fire Creek Pass) is 6,300 feet. Today's trail was pretty. We were in the forest the whole time. Lots of nice trees and lush underbrush. We've seen quite a few hikers (it's Saturday). Most look like climbers headed to / from Glacier Peak. Met a nice couple from Ohio at our campsite. The weather was nice Overcast and in the 70s. It's starting to clear tonight, so we're looking forward to beautiful views tomorrow. |
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Day 3 - August 18, 2003 What a day! I only hope that I can look back on today and say it was the worst day of our trip! Not that it was all bad. We had perfect weather and spectacular views again. We left Mica Lake and headed toward the ominous switchbacks. Stopped for water at Mica Creek and used the pit toilet there-what a view! Funny how the best views are near the toilets sometimes. WE hiked down about 1,600 feet, then crossed Milk creek and started up the switchbacks. Two miles, one hour 45 minutes, 1,700 feet, and 39 switchbacks later we hit the top. Wow! What a feat. Though it rivaled Mt. Si in elevation gained per mile, it honestly wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. We stopped for lunch at the top. Almost sat above what we think may have been a cougar den and quickly moved on. From there we hiked up a ridge, then around a beautiful basin. This was my favorite part of the hike. It went downhill (literally and figuratively) from there. I got several blisters today-one so big it resembled Glacier Peak-until it popped! That was 5.5 miles into what ended up being a 12.8-mile day. We thought we'd stop at one of two campsites not far from there, but the water sources were dried up. So it was down the 50 switchbacks and nearly 2,000 feet to Vista Creek. To top it off, there was only one campsite that was already taken. We found another flat spot with an old fire ring, but had to bushwhack down to it. Then scramble back up to get to water. It took Jon about 40 minutes to hand the food tonight! He kept breaking branches! Needless to say, I'm hoping tomorrow is full of luck and fun for us. Unfortunately it looks like we may not make it to Image Lake. It's still 13 miles from here! Oh well maybe another time. Tomorrow should be easier. Only about 7 miles and 1,000 feet down from here following Vista Creek to the Suiattle River Valley near Miners Creek. Totals Today: Dinner - rehydrated "Spicy Thai Chicken." Very good! |
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Day 4 - August 19, 2003 Today was an easy day. Only 5.2 miles and about 500 feet down from where we stayed yesterday. We have a great campsite right next to the Suiattle River. We're right next to the junction of the PCT and the Suiattle River Trail, and just down from Miner's Creek. The area is really pretty we pretty much hiked through forest today. It's much more open like forests on the east side, even though we haven't crossed over Suiattle Pass yet. Since the hike was so easy, we got in around 12:30 and
have just been relaxing and letting our feet rest so we can be ready
for tomorrow. Tomorrow we will cross Suiattle Pass, so we have a lot
of elevation to gain-3,200 feet and about 10.7 miles to the campsite.
Tomorrow will be another tough day. I just hope that the rest today
will allow my feet to last (not that I have any other options!). Dinner - Macaroni & Cheese Dessert - Blackberry Cheesecake (blueberry is MUCH better) Today my hydration pack somehow ended up with a hole
in it. It's near the top, so I can still carry water in it at camp,
but it leaks in my pack and I can't get suction to drink from it.
Luckily we have a Nalgene bottle with us! |
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Day 5 - August 20, 2003 We had another tough day today! Our 10.7-mile day turned into about 13 miles due to a misprint on our destination campsite. We started out in the forest from Miner's Creek. It was really pretty and we hardly saw any people. It was a pretty steady climb up to Suiattle Pass with great views of Glacier Peak near the top. The pass was interesting. It was green and had plenty of tress-most of the other passes we've seen have been rocky and barren. But there was a sign at the top, which is always a fun photo op. We followed the PCT around Sitting Bull Mountain. The hike was pretty, but hot. And the flies were out en force! Jon got the brunt of it for some reason (Maybe he's more smelly? J) We saw a couple on horses just before Suiattle Pass today. They had a dog and a packhorse too. It reminded me of when we would go trail riding as kids. We haven't seen anyone on this side of the pass. The terrain is definitely drier over here and hardly any snow on the mountains. We were afraid we were going to run out of water-especially when the campsite near the creek wasn't where it was supposed to be! So we continued on another 3 miles to our current camp. We're up above the valley a bit, so it's a walk to the creek, but it's a beautiful valley. Today: Only 15 miles to go! |
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Day 6 - August 21, 2003 9.8 miles - 2,700 feet (down) Gosh! I can hardly believe this is our last night! The time has flown by, and our trip has been so much fun! We left camp at about 8:45 this morning and already it was so hot! I'd guess it was close to 80°! Thankfully most of today's hike was in the forest! We followed Agnes Creek most of the day today-what a pretty creek! It's a big creek with lots of spots that looked like great swimming holes (at least from the hot trail they looked quite inviting!). We stopped for a break about 2 miles into our hike today at Hemlock Camp. It was a huge camp right next to Agnes Creek. We would definitely camp there if given another opportunity. Then we continued another 4 ½ miles past Mt. Blandkenship to Swamp Creek Camp. This was another large camp that looked to be frequented by horses. From Swamp Creek Camp it was another 3.1 miles to Fivemile Camp where we're staying tonight. We were both amazed how lush everything was along the trail. We saw the same plants we saw on the other side of the mountains. Lots of Devil's Club, ferns, and salmon berries. Then almost immediately past where we turned away from the creek it turned very dry with lots of pine trees. Much of what we expected for this area. Just before we turned away from the creek we came upon 4 backpacks on the side of the trail, but didn't see anyone. Upon further inspection as we continued along the trail, we saw that they were skinny dipping in the creek! The first person I thought of to tell was Emma. I can just imagine her getting a good laugh out of it! Now we're at Fivemile Camp for the night, and it's crowded! Luckily we were the first ones here, so we got a great spot in the shade near pass Creek. There is another man and another couple here as well. On the other side of the creek are several other campsites. We know for sure that there is a party of four (the naked swimmers we think!), two men, and another guy with a dog and a horse named Lucas. This guy seems a little off. He's supposedly been on the trail since June. One would expect, therefore, that he started in Mexico, and is headed for Canada, but in fact he said he started in Canada. At that rate it will be December before he reached Mexico! We haven't seen a ton of wildlife on the trip marmots, chipmunks, squirrels, grouse, a mouse, and two lizards. We saw deer tracks and droppings in several places, and bear scat near Vista Creek, but that's pretty much it. (Shortly after writing this, a deer walked through the dried creek bed on the other side of our camp.) The marmots are my favorite. They're so cute, and it's funny to watch and listen to them warn all of their marmot friends when we walk through. We also saw a couple of military planes. A big one (Jon thinks maybe an A6) flew over us this morning. When we were walking down to Vista Creek a fighter jet flew really low right through the valley. It was a strange site, but cool to see. I'll have to check with Dad, but I think he said there's a low altitude training route heading East over the Glacier Peak Wilderness. It's hard to believe our trip is almost complete. We
hike 5.5 miles tomorrow, then catch the shuttle to Stehekin. We're
staying there tomorrow night, and then taking the boat down to Chelan
where Jenny will pick us up. I'm looking forward to a real bed, a
real shower, and a real toilet (with endless, unrationed toilet paper!),
but at the same time am sad to see the trip end. As bad as my feet
have hurt, it has been an incredible experience that I'm so glad I'm
able to share with Jon! |
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Day 7 - August 22, 2003 We made it! We are now at Highbridge waiting for the
shuttle. Today was a pretty easy hike-only 5.5 miles and 500 foot
drop in elevation. It was mostly in the forest, but the trees are
more sparse over here, so we were thankful that we got an early start
and missed the heat. We caught an earlier shuttle, so now are in Stehekin. It's 11:45-check in is at 2:00. Jon's making reservations for dinner at "The Ranch." We rode the shuttle with some people from Oregon who've been here before. They said the food at The Ranch is "100% better" than at the Lodge where we're staying. The town (if you can call it that) is small, but cute. There's a one-room schoolhouse, and everything has to be brought in by boat. Amazing! The view is great. The lake is beautiful, and is surrounded by mountains. I'm definitely looking forward to a shower, but all in all a week in the woods wasn't bad. I could definitely handle longer. Okay, maybe my feet couldn't I think it would be nice to do another trip like this, but hike no more than 7 or 8 miles each day. What an amazing experience this was! I wish more people could do it, but know this isn't for everyone. It's just so spectacular! I'm so grateful that we are able to do trips like this! Our trip in summary
Leave Behind: Other Notes: |
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