Almost done

I'm less than 200 miles from Canada and I can't believe that this experience is coming to an end.  This morning I said to Flash, "isn't it going to be weird to not set up your tent every night?"  

A week.  That's all I've got left.  Then I'm back to America and within time back to the old grin, work.  I still have no clue where I'll be employed.  I haven't even begun looking for a job but I'm sure something will turn up.  For now, I have to focus on the remaining miles ahead. 

Washington is a burly section.  The trail is constantly going up or down.  Some days have more elevation gain or loss than days I had in The Sierras.  Thankfully there isn't any elevation sickness to deal with.  There is however, the weather.  

It's bipolar and doesn't care about your feelings.  It's also weather I've missed experiencing for the past six years. Since beginning in Washington, I've had about five days of sun and eleven days of rain/clouds.  This weekend looks like I'll be seeing some more rain!  

Well, I've lost my train of thought once again.  I thought I'd write more!  Anyhow, this might be the last update until I get to Canada!

See ya! 

Oregon, almost complete

It's crazy to think that I spent over three months in California trudging up and down mountains, dealing with the heat, having a long water or food carry, OR coping with all three at once.  Oregon has been a vacation compared to what I had to deal with in California (well, I also have some rock solid legs, I didn't have those in California).  Now I have less than fifty miles separating myself from the motherland and it's all downhill from here.  

This morning was a race up Mt. Hood to grab their breakfast buffet (10 miles and 2,600ft).  It was easily the healthiest and most delicious meal I've had on trail.  I probably stuffed down 4,000 calories worth of food.   I felt like I was about to vomit and had to rest outside, to get some fresh air.  But you know what?  The pain was worth it.  I feel like all that nutritional goodness is repairing my body.  I don't feel like a zombie anymore!

By Sunday I'll be in Washington taking a day off and prepping for the doom and gloom that is to come.  I'm expecting the worst but am hoping for the best.  The Evergreen State can get some nasty weather and a few days ago, I decided to get a stove.  

I've been without a warm meal most days on trail.  "Stove-less" is what it's called and I wouldn't recommend it.  It's only benefit is that you save some time prepping a meal but that's it.  The weight of a stove is definitely worth it.  I got it mainly for COFFEE since that drug is the ultimate game changer.

Happy trails,

Jerry

Half done with Oregon

I'm flying through Oregon and it has to be one of the most under rated sections so far.  If youve ever seen a documentary on the PCT you know it goes; desert, Sierras, ?????, ????, and then Washington (but only the last bits).  NorCal and Oregon have been awesome.  The grade isn't too intense and doing a high mile day is sort of easy...

I say "sort of" because the sun is rising much later.  Last night I told the fellow hikers I was camping with "ok guys, I'll get up at 5am".  If you've been hiking with me, you'll know that I've been saying this since the Sierras.  I never get up at 5am.  I haven't since the desert but last night was special.  We had setup camp about nine miles from a youth camp run by Seventh Day Adventists.  Breakfast was on my mind.  Although they are vegetarians, I could probably still get an omlet or cereal.

I stressed all night about getting sleep and thinking about eggs that I hardly slept.  Much like a child waiting for Christmas morning.  For thirty minutes, I watched the walls of my tent breath before my alarm went off.

Five O'clock finally rolled around and I was on trail forty five minutes later.  The sun wasn't up until about 630.  Sunrise is probably six but with the mountains in the way, it took a bit longer for the sunshine to hit me.  I forgot how late the sun rises in this part of America.  In Japan, it was always super early in the summer.  The sun was up by five or even earlier.  I remember walking around at 430 one morning with enough light to see.  

Geez, long tangent.  The staff were absent at the youth camp and no omelets were available.

Anyhow, here I am with about ten miles until I hit 2,000.  I'll be passing that mark in a few hours.  

Until next time!

-Jerry

O-R-E-G-O-N

I've been here just a little over a week but it's nice to be back in the Pacific Northwest!  The trees scrap the sky and are so tall that I have trouble getting a descent GPS signal. 

The PNW definitely wins for the best smelling section of the trail.  My allergies are gone!  Plus, there are a ton of berries!  It becomes a choice between hiking or eatting berries.  I think I lost two hours of hiking yesterday thanks to some small Oregon wild huckleberries I found. 

I hit crater lake a few days ago.  What a beautiful area.  The thing I couldn't get over was all the cars.  Wayyyyyyy to many murder machines.  Backpacking changes your perspective on things.  Going by foot enhances the experience. Roads and cars are a huge distraction. When I get the chance, I'll talk more about it. 

I'm in Shelter Cove right now.  Somewhere close to halfway in Oregon.  A few more miles and I'm almost home!  

I made it to Oregon

For whatever reason, Blogger crashed and I lost my post.  Bummer.  

I made it to Oregon and now I'm relaxing in Ashland.  These town stops are getting  tough.  I get pulled in by the vortex of fresh food and a soft bed.  I'll eventually make it out to the trail today.  

Oregon as a whole, is supposedly the easiest section of the trail.  Forty mile days are not uncommon for hikers.  I will probably be able to make up for "lost" time before getting to Washington.  But once there, I'll need another day off to get all my chores done. 

Anyhow, that's all I've got.  I had more but dat crash.

Now Entering Cascadia

I'm about 100 miles from Oregon but I have made it to Cascadia.  A place where trees are as dense as a Q-Tips. 

You know you're in Cascadia when things start getting weird.  

Some people living around Mt. Shasta believe in Lamarians.  A race of people or aliens that are invisible and harvest magical crystals.  Once upon hearing this, I knew I was home.  There are strange things that happen in these woods...

But I've never felt more at home!  There is an odd sense of comfort I have out here.  The fragrance of the forest brings me back.  It's a smell I have missed for six years.

For the past 1500 miles, I've had a horrible cough and stuffy nose.  I must have breathed in too much dirt or allergic to something.  Since going passed Mt. Lassen and entering into the Cascades, my respiratory issues have been starting to vanish.  Horray!

Well, that's about all I can think of.  I'll be hitting the trail again this afternoon.  See ya!

-Jerry

Day 79 - Here in Sierra City

The daily grind has begun.  Since South Lake Tahoe, I've been aiming to complete twenty five miles, everyday.  It's  exhausting and recently, mind numbingly boring.  The scenery has changed.  I was spoiled in the high sierras.  Now I'm walking through the forest without any views.  I'm sure I'll be fine after a few days.  It'll just take some time to adjust.

Everyone else is picking up their pace as well.  There are also a lot of quitters or it at least appears that way.  The herd has seemed to thin out.  When I was hiking in the desert, I could see fifty other PCT hikers in a day.  Now, at most I see ten.  

Anyhow, I thought there was more to write but my brain is fried.  Hunger and exhaustion is a real thing folks!  Well, I have about five hundred miles until Oregon!  See you soon! 

Day 73 - 1000 Done

Cheers!  I have surpassed 1,000 miles!  Myself and a few friends walked 17.76 miles on this special day since it was Independence Day! 

Currently I'm at South Lake Tahoe which is about mile 1,090 or so.  It's a few mile hitch off trail.

The High Sierras are over!  Which is sad because some of the best days on the trail were chilling at 9,000 feet.  

The best day easily, was when myself and some other hiker trash relaxed at a lake.  There were some nice cliffs to jump off, into a warm lake below.  I think we were there for three or four hours.  We also did nine miles that day.

The High Sierras took tons of energy out of me.  My daily average was around fifteen miles.  In the desert, I could do twenty five easy.  It's the elevation man!

I also saw plent of JMT hikers. All their packs looked wayyyyyyy too heavy.  They also smelled fresh.  I'd like to have given them a shakedown but there isn't enough time!  Onwards to Canada! 

Since I'm through with the High Sierras, I'll have to put on higher mile days.  I've done back to back marathons and I'll need to keep this pace to finish on time.  It's all a mental game now! 

Mammoth Lakes!

I'm still here at the hostel.  I managed to get a good nights despite it being a bit loud.  Everyone went to bed at midnight and my dilemma on where to sleep was solved by an extra long "L" shaped couch.  Earplugs are supplied to all guests and I knocked right out.  Apparently, another guest showed up drunk at 2am and nearly drowned in patio furniture until he was saved by a fellow Washingtonian.  

Speaking of that, Washington seems to be the most well represented state on the trail.  More so than California which was a surprise for me.  The difference in American culture is apparent on the trail with all regions living up to their stereotypes. 

As far as foreigners go on the trail, the Germans lead the pack by a huge margin (every single one is also weird).  I thought Canada would be number one since that is where the trail ends.  Europeans account for maybe 20-30% of the people on trail.  I asked a Swiss couple how the Sierras compare to the Alps.  "The sierras are more wild and dangerous".  

I've been playing a game of leap frog with two Japanese guys.  There is a lot of code switching when we speak which leaves other people in the general vicinity a little confused when we converse. 

I'm thinking of staying one more night in Mammoth.  This is a super chill city.  It's the kind of place I wish I could live, then a while later wish I didn't because of tourists.  But I still like it here.  It's also one of the lasts stops outside of South Lake Tahoe where there is a hostel to meet other hikers.  The next will probably be Ashland, OR but I could be wrong.

  

Yesterday was a wild ride of mishaps.  After sending some gear home to reduce weight, I went to McDonalds.  I ended up eatting two double cheeseburgers, two  hot n spicy Mcchickens, twenty McNuggets, and a large strawberry shake.  Thats right at 3,000 calories.  I gobbled it up in twenty minutes and felt fine.  Then I went to Von's which is a carbon copy of Safeway, to buy my resupply.  While there, I saw some chocolate milk.  YES!  I bought half a gallon.  I then went out front with the other hiker trash and proceeded to drink half of it.  Houdini/Panini, a soft spoken Australian hiker covered in Japanese style tattoos witnessed me slip into a food coma.  I felt disgusting.  The milk was a poor idea.  The lack of dairy in my diet probably contributed.  I had to fight off vomiting for an hour and spent probably another hour trying to get back to baseline.  Two hours nearly wasted when Legend showed up.

He's an old hiker whose done the PCT at least three times.  I think at the moment, he lives off of donations he makes from serving pancakes or giving rides.  He has two vehicles he drives on trail.  How does he do that?  He parks one at point A, drives to point B, hikes back to point A, and drives back to point B with with the other vehicle.  If someone needs a ride, he'll toss them the keys to his car and let them take it, so long as they park it at point B.  He makes enough money on donations and living out of a van to get by.  He was quite the character.

Some hiker "Legend, do you drink?"

L "no, I don't drink.  My vices are caffeine, sugar, and women.  But I'm interested in fast cars and drinking...  They're cheaper and less hassle than women!"

The cadence at which he said it is hard to convey in text but it made me chuckle.  

Eventually my stomach settled and I was on my way back to the hostel.  I caught one of the free buses around town and was on my way.  Shortly after getting off the bus, I realized I forgot my dry sack "full" of clothes (just two things really).  I ran back to the stop, caught the next bus, and managed to get the current driver to radio the other about my sack.  Luckily no one took or stole it on the first bus.  I was able to retrieve it but that's some more time wasted.  

Now here I am.  I'm getting hungry but if I can think of anything else to write, I will.  If you have a question, now is the time to ask.  I'll be in mammoth for at leastfew more hours, if not another night.  

-Jerry

Here in Independence, CA

It's hard to put together updates either on or off trail.  I keep a journal but uploading photos, writing blogs, or piecing a video together becomes a chore.  It's either because I lack battery life or poor wifi.  But I try!

I've made it through the desert.  It's more or less 700 miles of suffering.  Well over forty days for me.  Just like Jesus!

Making it into the Sierras feels like I'm finally taking the steps home.  It's so incredibly beautiful out here.  I don't have enough fingers to count on for the times I've became misty eyed in the presence of such majesty.  I have a few hundred more miles of these mountains and I'll enjoy every moment.  

I've summited Mt. Whitney and gone over Forester pass.  I have one last dangerous pass to go over.  At least that's what everyone says.  Trail rumors run rampant and one coward can ruin it for the rest. 

I've been drinking unfiltered mountain water for a week now.  Still no Giardia!  But I've been doing this since I was a kid.  

I love this trail and the life that surrounds it.  I have plenty to say but not enough time to put it all down.  I guess y'all will have to wait until I'm done for all the super fine details.  

Happy trails,

Jerry

Day 18 - 28

Ten days is a whole lot to cover.  Thankfully I have a physical journal to keep track of all that's happened. Life on the trail is a blur.  Everyday is similar to the last but completely different.   Time starts to get weird and it's difficult to put into words how strange it becomes.  If I was able to recall from memory the last ten days, it would feel like I'm recalling ten weeks.  I'll try my best to write about this time warp.  

Day 19, I left Big Bear with Flash.  I have written about him before where I called him Squirrel.  But now he has an official trail name which I'll be using.  He gets it from an aweful looking old lady silk shirt he wears. Trail names are given but the person who revives the name can decide to keep it or not.  

The previous names he had was meat tosser or squirrel.  It refers to an incident at Warner Springs.  He found a decaying squirrel in the campground.  This prompted him to grab a trekking pole, stab the squirrel, and chuck it over the fence.  Everyone at hobo town cheered in approval.  He also got names which he didn't like.  Flash was the one that stuck.

Sorry, I got off topic!  

We left Big Bear....

            The trail was super easy this day. It was extremely gradual and mostly down hill.  We put in around seventeen miles that day.  There were three quarters of a dozen people at the campsite and I decided to cowboy camp.

I awoke the next day to a nearly black but green bird walking a top me.  Flash said this bird had an odd chirp.  No one seemed to care about his observation.  I was the last to leave camp when I glanced down and saw the bird.  It opened its lips and the sound of 8-bit swords clashing together came out of its mouth.  That was the one and only time I heard the sword bird. 

Flash did the best job he could do and thinks the bird is called a Shiny Cow Bird.  If anyone is a bird person, research into this bird would greatly be appreciated.

Day 20 saw us leaving a forested area and now back to the desert. The climb was moderate.  We came to an area with a hot springs.  I didn't feel like going in as there we a ton of people and sunset was in a few hours.  We heard rumors of a storm so staying long wasn't an option.  There were also nudists in the area. Sweet!

There was a trail angel around mile 317 that was handing out root beer floats.  That made my day.  His name is Coopertone and he's a retired guy having fun.  He also moved his location a few days ago to mile 444 or so and did the same thing.  Having a snack surprise like that is fantastic.  Trail angels enhance the experience.

Anyhow, that day I made it to Silverwood lake. 

I had a nice dip and camped a few miles from this location.

After the lake, it was time to make it to everyones' favorite restaurant, McDonalds.  This was in El Cajon.  There were about thirty hikers already there when I arrived.  The restaurant was humid and stinky.  Since its along the interstate, most customers are just passing through.  The looks of confusion and disgust on some peoples' faces was amusing.  I ended up eatting roughly 3000 calories. I felt disgusting immediately after but the next day, it put a spring in my step.

It was time to get back into the mountains and forest.  The beginning of the day it was cold, foggy, and windy.  I was somewhere around in the 7,000ft range.  These was the beginning of the San Gabriel mountains.  

I had a quick resupply in Writewood then back on the trail in less than three hours. I camped with a bunch of folks at a place called goose hallow.  Being that it's higher elevation, there were clouds aka fog throughout the night.  It was also below or near freezing with wind chill.  For whatever reason, I decided to cowboy camp.  Despite those conditions, I was kept awake by a snoring camper.  I forgot to put in my earplugs.

The next day began summiting Baden-Powell; a wonderful 9k+ mountain that overlooks LA, in the fog.  The entire day was foggy. I didn't bother taking pictures.

Here are some photos from then until now.

There are far too many details I'm missing.  I hope I will have the time later to write about them.  Tapping this out on a smartphone isn't fun.  But no worries everyone, I'm doing fine.  I'm at hiker heaven and will leave for the trail again tomorrow.  

Day 13-17?

I Day 13 started off with a long walk from Idylwilld to the park of San Jacinto.  This is the second highest mountain I have climbed next to Mt. Fuji.

10,834 feet.  I think Fuji is just a few hundred feet taller.  The big difference between the two was Jacinto didn't have vending machines and crowds at the top.

Just some amazing views. 

I was happy to get rid of twelve once a of weight.

Since it was a struggle getting to the top, Squirrel and I camped at 9,000 feet. 

The next day (14) was a chore.  It meant descending to 1,300ft. 

This was such a mental mind game.  It's one of many I have experienced on the trail.  Imagine being able to see five miles but you know you have to go fourteen miles to get to that point but it's going to take maybe eight hours because it's about 100f outside.  That was my day. 

But hey, I got a nice view of San Jacinto.

I gave cowboy camping another try and it was amazing.  Everytime I woke up, I saw a million stars.  I did it the following two nights.  I was able to finally see the Milky Way Galaxy.  Amazing.  

Day 15 started out rough.  This was another 100 degree day and I had to stop at 11am or so.  But I found the most amazing place to beat the heat.  It was so great, I didn't even take a photo.  

Squirrel found some shade next to a shallow creek.  The shadow from the willow tree covered part of the creek.  I laid down in about three inches of water starring at the leaves move in the wind for about two hours.  I had my sun umbrella ready when the shadow moved to much.  I got a little sun burn but I think it was well worth it.  

I took little to no photos the rest of the day as my battery life for everything was super low.

Day 16 started the torture from Mission Creek to Yucca valley.  This was a detour, an in official one that wasn't endorsed by the PCTA. 

Squirrel and I started early at 4:45am.  We walked with G-String for about seven miles.  Walking up highway 62 was gross.  We walked on the side of the road in sand for about three miles uphill.  Finally we hit a circle K where I could get some nasty hot dogs.  Then began more mental torture, the last nine miles to Yucca Valley.

I could see the nine miles ahead of me.  It was all uphill.  Squirrel, G-String, and I beat the heat but from the Circle K to Yucca Valley, it was all in the sun.  Torture.  That was about three hours, looking at the same spot, dodging traffic, uphill, on pavement.  But I did it.  

We lost G-string at the circle K. I heard through the grapevine he was with two Mexican gals and an American gal so he was probably ok.  

Squirrel and I had lunch at a Mexican place where mostly who're people are.  That was weird, not enough food, and the manager who was Mexican wasn't that friendly which is weird.  

We met up with an Aussie.  We were planning to stay at a hotel but the prices were hiked because of a music festival at Joshua Tree.  No way we were paying that price.  

The Quartet of Four, a group we've kept pace with stayed at a hotel.  But unfortunately the ice cream duo couldn't flip the bill.

Dejected we sat at a chevron contemplating out next move.  We thought, "let's camel up, 8 liters of water, a day and a half of food, and head out.  We'll have to camp illegally but we can do it."  We got everything ready for this next phase but had to wait out the sun. We had hours.  After two hours of sitting, a park ranger pulled up and asked if we were thru hikers.  He told us we could camp eight miles up the road at pioneertown preserve.  There was fresh water and bathrooms.  This dude made out crappy situation turn into a great one.

The two of us poured out half our water and waited until 5pm to set out.  We got there a bit after 8.  The ranger bought fruit, pizza, and beer.  I should mention, the people in Yucca valley inherited PCT hikers but the kindness of everyone blew me away.  Cars were always pulling over asking if we needed a ride or help.  This has been true for most of the trail but in this area, it was over the top.

After another night of cowboy camping, it was onto day 17.

(I'm low on time so I'll finish up quick)

The first ten miles were awesome.  Nice people and Joshua trees everywhere.  The second fifteen or so, terrible.  The PCT is home and being on a road where you can't have your own thoughts or a place to rest are agonizing.  I got tired of moving over for Jeep Rubicons.  Plus, what a lazy and lame way to enjoy the outdoors.  I understand dirt bikes but an SUV seems boring.  

At 5pm we hit the PCT again after two days, home.

Today, we made it to big bear.  We got a hitch from Hiker One.  An old fellow on an oxygen tank.  He's sectioned hiked parts of the PCT and has done the JMT.  As I heard his stories about his love of the outdoors I could hear a reggae version of "Knocking on Heavens" door playing over the stereo.  The dude has cancer.  He wanted to hike the PCT when he retired but cancer got in the way.  That's some heavy stuff.

Well, I have many more things to say but I'm tired of typing.  Off on the trail tomorrow!

  

Day 11

Today was quite the day today.  It's going to be hard for me to recall as my mind is a blur.  I have been hiking a lot today, over twenty five miles. 

I started with squirrel at 155.  We pushed it really hard.  We got to 6800 feet, the highest this far on the PCT.  

At mile 162 or so we had to take a detour due to a forest fire in 2013. 

That meant a lot of road walking 

but there still was incredible views.

Eventually we made it to Idylwylld.  I have no clue how to spell it.