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Day 20-24 (Aug 26-30) mile 2466.9-2554.5 (+11 hike to Holden Village)

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  On day 20 I got back on trail at Stevens Pass loaded with five days of food. I started late and got 12.8 miles in setting up camp at mile 2479.6.   On day 21 I went through some incredible alpine scenery, with the colors just starting to turn to the fall reds and oranges. I stopped for a while at the spectacular Pear Lake and had it all to myself. I passed a very significant milestone of 1000 miles hiked on the pct combined with the desert section. I began to see a big cloud of smoke billowing from one of the fires that is burning just a few miles off the trail. I ran into a forest service ranger who was telling hikers about the upcoming fire closure and to be cautious of the nearby airplane lake fire that is steadily growing. So far that fire hasn’t closed the pct but it might if it grows any further. I set up camp back in the smoke at mile 2502.9 for a 23.3 miles day. On day 22 I awoke to a strong campfire smell- the wind had blown even more thick smoke into my direction f...
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Day 15-18 (aug 21-24) mile 2395.8-2466.8

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  On day 15 I left Snoqualmie Pass, heading back out into smoky air. I felt the air was just fine to breathe and I didn’t notice any irritation all day. It was a 5 mile climb out of the pass gaining almost 3000 feet. Halfway through the climb a man named Karel Sabbe passed me running up the mountain, and I’ve been following his entire hike online. He is attempting the fastest known time on the pct and he left the Mexican border 42 days ago averaging almost 60 miles a day.     The record is 51 days so he’s well on pace. At the top of the climb the trail went across a narrow ledge called the Kendall Catwalk. People make it sound like it’s super scary but I didn’t think it was much worse than a lot of other places on trail. The next 10 miles were through the beautiful Alpine Lakes wilderness, but I didn’t take many pictures because it was hard to see the scenery through the smoke. I set up camp at mile 2414.8 for a 20.7 mile day By the morning of day 16, the smoke had fully ...
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Day 9-14 (aug 15-20) miles 2295.9-2394.1

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  On day 10 I left White Pass to start the longest stretch of Washington, 98 miles. It was a very hot day with several pretty exposed climbs. Near the trailhead, I encountered a group of pack llamas which I’ve never before encountered. It turns out that they are part of an organization called Pass to Pass (passtopass.org) that supports people with Parkinson’s and brings them out into the outdoors.    Eventually I entered into Mt Rainier national park, greeted with spectacular views of the mountain. I set up camp at mile 2315.6, for 19.6 miles for the day. Day 11 consisted of a a series of beautiful ridge walks with incredible views of Mt Tahoma (rainier). It was also quite a bit cooler, with some overcast skies. In the late morning there was an incredible amount of day hikers out in a lake strewn section that must be very popular. I then arrived at Chinook Pass/ hwy 410, one of the entry points to the national park. There wasn’t much there except for a parking lot. I also...
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