C. Dow LaFevers

C. Dow LaFevers

First Year Mathematics PhD Student at Rice University

Day 35

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Today was a very quintessential through hike day. Unfortunately, it began with a very early wake up for everyone at Sergio’s home because of our trail routine of waking up before the sun—I woke up at 5:30 and pretended to sleep until 7. Fortunately, luck changed as we soon headed to the incredible Krispy Donuts, where I deleted a chocolate long john (chocolate bar on the west coast, apparently) and a buttermilk doughnut before we could cross the street to our breakfast spot, a highly inauspicious diner attached to a cheap motel. The food turned out to be pretty solid—my French toast, eggs, and sausage were gone fast.

After breakfast, we ambled back to Sergio’s and, eventually, caught a ride to WalMart with Violet, Scarecrow’s injured wife. Here I proceeded to buy a ridiculous amount of food for the two days to get to Kennedy Meadows South. Alas. I also bought a delicious bagged salad, kombucha, and yogurt. On the way back we stopped to get Roadrunner’s package. After eating a huge lunch and repackaging all the food, we again caught a ride with Violet, this time to the trailhead. We started hiking at 2:30.

creepy

With full packs and three liters of water, I was a bit nervous about the 2600 foot climb out of Walker Pass. Fortunately it was a classic PCT cruiser, graded so that you could push grandpa up in his chair. We climbed the first 1000 with stopping for any reason, and the next 1500 went down just as easily. Along the way we met a friendly guy heading southbound on the heels of his three immaculately trained Rottweilers.

dog fogs

The views up high were very good, and, though we have been in the Sierra since leaving Tehachapi, it finally felt like the mountains were becoming something else.

dog fogs

The descent to water was long and offered great views of the setting sun. Unfortunately I have a heel blister I neglected to deal with yesterday, so our progress was slower than usual.

d fogs dog fogs

We grabbed water at an unmarked creek (hopefully distinct from the nearby Joshua Tree Spring known for having a high uranium content) and pulled into camp around 8 at Mile 665.9. At camp, I prepared the best meal I have ever consumed in the backcountry: rice, refried beans with green chile, two kinds of taco seasoning, half a lime, and a perfectly ripe avocado. I will never top it.

dog fogs

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Day 117

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I don’t think I could have asked for a better birthday than today. I hiked through some of the most choice scenery on the Pacific Crest Trail (for the second time!), we were able to not only ride into nearby Mazama with the first car that passed but actually secure a ride all the way into Seattle for the following day, and I was able to enjoy a great dinner at the Mazama pub with Roadrunner and Free Bird! He slept in today, so he stuck around for the afternoon in Mazama at the Lion’s Den hostel. After an excellent shower at the hostel, I ran into Carmen, a woman traveling with her dog from Mount Hood to Banff on foot via the Pacific Crest and Pacific Northwest Trails, then hopping in their canoe and paddling the whole Columbia River! A truly incredible last day on the PCT.

Day 116

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It’s difficult to write about today because it was a very emotional one. I’ll try to just describe what happened. We navigated the several passes between us and the border with ease and excitement, leaving an eight mile downhill to the border. Since this would also be an eight mile uphill, we decided to drop most of our stuff at Hopkins Lake and travel with just water and some snacks to make the hike back a bit easier. While we were off trail setting our shelters up, we missed Free Bird, a realization I would have a bit later which made me sad, as I thought I wouldn’t get to say goodbye. The hike down was so fast, so when I turned the corner and saw the border monument, I almost didn’t believe it was over. After taking some photos, we climbed back up to the lake with no problems and went to bed.

Day 115

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The heat, though not as oppressive as yesterday, made today much harder than it otherwise would have been. We hiked with Free Bird for awhile, ran into a guy very casually running a fifty mile out and back from Rainy Pass, encountered my first mountain goats as I walked a ridge towards Hart’s Pass, and passed a crew filming a dramatic scene of a priest walking through a talus field. Getting to Hart’s Pass, where all northbound hikers must return after touching the border, felt pretty weird, as it was a physical signal that we were sixty miles from the end. Brushing this off, we walked three more miles and made camp. Tomorrow, I finish the PCT.

Day 114

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After the hottest night I have had on trail—I slept naked on top of a picnic table for maximum airflow—we boarded the bus to leave wonderful Stehekin. On the way, Steve regaled us with more stories, anecdotes, and apocrypha; some highlights: “the national park service didn’t plant those irises, Mary did,” “that’s the only gumball machine within seventy miles!”, “I always like to tell people about this creek.* It’s called Boulder Creek. So now when you’re down valley and someone starts a story with ‘so I was up at Boulder Creek…’ you can say ‘’go on I know where that is.’ A good thing to keep in your back pocket,” “now I already told you about Ed Courtney, that’s the older Courtney…,” “I always say ‘people who want to grow a garden want to grow one like Carl’s,’” “I challenge you to find a single tree in that stand without a dapple of sunlight on its trunk.” I love Steve, he really tickled me. He’s a man who truly loves his town’s history and people as well as its natural beauty. Anyways, we stopped on the way at the legendary Stehekin Bakery, where I bought three massive cinnamon rolls (my breakfast for the next three days), a slice of lemon cheesecake (also breakfast), a peanut butter cookie (also breakfast), and a carrot cake muffin (supposed to be breakfast, but somehow made it to lunch).