Day 69 – Clearing

Stopping early last night was exactly what I needed. I got caught up on the writing. And I got to sleep at a decent hour. The night passed uneventfully (thankfully) although I was chilly under my quilt for the first time. It did not rain and my tarp was dry by morning.

Get out

My bad waking habits continue. My alarm goes off. I silence it and go back to sleep. This time I dive under my quilt – a whale sounding to escape the whaler. When I surface, it is 5:40! The good news is it takes me only an hour to get out of camp, even with my tarp deployed. Not bad, after three straight days, I am getting better with the tarp. I bid my rousing neighbors adieu, and head off down the trail.

The skies are clearing. Still, the mountains are loathe to emerge from their quilt as well. See the photo at top of post.

Animal shenanigans

A deer plunges away from me into the forest. It pauses and turns to see that it is only me, Doolittle. I reassure the doe, but she tosses her head and keeps going. Some folks cannot be reasoned with.

How many of you have been hit by falling pine cone pieces as a squirrel above you tears one apart? I have. And that is what I see on the trail this morning. The squirrel is after the seeds. This one probably sat on the stump by the trail, and had a good old time chowing down.

Not long after that, I see my first wild blueberries. They are tart and delicious. The deep blue color is unmistakable when placed next to the purplish huckleberries.

Good looking

It’s so wonderful to finally be able to enjoy all the scenic beauty of this section. As I emerge from the forest, the view behind my is breathtaking.

I pass over a small bridge. I am not sure who YCC73 is but I guess it is Youth Conservation Corp. if it is, they would be happy to know that the bridge the built is still working 48 years later.

The trail alternates between soft, muddy and rocky. I put up with all of it to get these views. Here is the gorgeous Deception Lake. There are two young ladies who spent the night camping on a rocky peninsula of the lake. They are just packing up. One is still wearing a headnet. They said the spot was worth the bugs.

Camera roll

Look I could keep talking about how special this area is, or I could just show you some pictures.

This view is cool because you can see the trail going off to the left in the valley below. The picture is taken from hundreds of feet above. You get down there by a series of switchbacks. Those rocks way down by the trail are actually enormous boulders.

A dream deferred?

This next young fellow is Bryce. He is the last of a dwindling number of southbound PCT thru-hikers. He had to get off the trail due to IT-band issues in both legs. Now he is trying to go again, although with a lot of pain. I wish him well and tell him I hope to hear he made it to Mexico.

Oh wait, one more lake.

Floral shenanigans

I call these flowers “sunny side up”. I don’t really know what they are, do you? A few days ago, I had though they were white poison berries. Those were really just tight buds!

These next two flowers are a mystery. I found them randomly tossed on the trail about a mile apart and 8 miles from the nearest road. There is a story here. Maybe I should make one up!

Blind-sided

Not long after I arrive in camp, and just as I sit down for a nice dinner of chicken ramen and chili cheese Fritos, I here someone coming up behind me. Before I can turn around I hear the person say, “Bilbo? Really, Bilbo?” It’s a disgruntled hiker, unhappy with the way I referred to him in my blog. It’s Nico, who I said looked like a hobbit when I saw him sitting on a rock. I have since become friends with him. He has been chasing me through this section.

Before we can talk much, this young man with a fly rod comes up to us. He is heading to the Steven’s Pass tonight. Bilbo, er, Nico sees an opportunity and asks for a ride to Skykomish. The young man agrees so my reunion with Nico will have to wait.

Lake Susan Jane

The last lake I want to mention is the lake at which I chose to camp tonight. It is Lake Susan Jane. My mother’s name was Susan Jane as well. If she had lived to know that I had camped by a lake with her name, she would have been so tickled. Like my mom, this lake is nothing special among the other lakes. But if you spend time there and look closely, you will find that everything is special. Flashiness will get you noticed, but enduring qualities take time to emerge. My mom was like that. Once I learned that the trail went by her lake, there was no way I was not going to spend the night there.

Tomorrow I arrive at Steven’s Pass and the end of this section of the PCT. I am about 16 days from Canada. The details around that event are still unknown. I hope that my activities in Skykomish, the town up the road from the pass, make things clearer. In any event, there are new shoes, socks, shorts, and food bag. There is more food for the next section. And I hope I get to see some of my friends again.

• August 9
• Starting miler: 2443
• Ending mile: 2460
• Daily PCT miles: 17
• Total PCT miles: 1088
• Animals: Surprised deer