Day 2-5 (aug 8-11) pct miles 2161.0-2229.9














 Day 2 started with a long descent, followed by a long climb and another descent. I saw the first view of Mt Rainier poking up above the hills, but it was mostly hiking through dense forest. I set up camp at mile 2183.1 near Panther Creek joined by Toad and Fungi (trail names) for a total of 22.1 miles. 

I filled my water bottles and began a 10 mile straight uphill water carry to begin day 3. It felt a lot better than the previous day’s climbs despite gaining over 3000 feet. The water source after the summit was a tiny trickle flowing out of a plastic pipe, which took a while to fill up.


The rest of the day was a gentle uphill with some wonderful views of Mt Hood. I set up camp at mile 2200.7 at a place called Sheep Lake for a 17.6 mile day. No sheep to be seen however, except for a few mosquitoes and ground squirrels.


Day 4 started off with a small climb in the fog. It rained a little bit but not enough to get the rain gear out. I hiked for a while with a guy named Tour Guide from Tuscon Arizona. I passed 3 lakes in the first part of the day: Green Lake (which was indeed green), Blue Lake (aren’t they so creative with the place names??), and Bear Lake (no bears to be seen). 


The rest of the day was a steady downhill. I passed Mosquito Creek (which lived up to its name) and saw a great view of Mt Adams which is getting super close. I set up camp at mile 2224.8, a total of 23.2 for the day. Just before the camp I passed a grove of some of the biggest Douglas Firs I’ve ever seen.


The morning of day 5 I had five miles to get to the access road for Trout Lake, the first resupply point of the state. When I got to the trailhead at mile, wonderful trail magic was waiting for me. A man named Sam drives two hours to the trailhead once a week to give donuts, fresh fruit, and more to hikers. I also ran into Mark from Scotland, who I hiked with in the desert! It was great seeing him after such a long time. He started in Northern California after skipping the sierra. 


After a while the shuttle arrived to bring truckloads of hikers into Trout Lake. The general store there has a little pct hiker area in the backyard, with camping, laundry, and hiker box. I spent the rest of the day relaxing and doing town chores. I ate a lot of amazing food from a taco truck and fresh blueberries.





Comments

  1. AnonymousAugust 11, 2023 at 6:39 PM

    Thanks for sharing!! Loved your pics. Glad you ran into someone you know. Cyndi

    ReplyDelete
  2. K. LarsenAugust 11, 2023 at 11:07 PM

    Beautiful stories from beautiful places. Here's to health and good hiking!

    ReplyDelete
  3. SarayaAugust 12, 2023 at 11:52 AM

    This is so awesome Ian, thank you for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousAugust 14, 2023 at 10:21 AM

    So good to be hearing from you again. Wonderful getting to hear you're still making good connections. Cheryl

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousAugust 14, 2023 at 7:50 PM

    Thanks so much for sharing, Ian! I love reading about your adventure! In case you wonder who I am, I’m Anna and Kari Hall’s mom - I think you were in the same class.

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousAugust 15, 2023 at 8:03 AM

    Quite a different view then southern California. Beautiful Washington 😍

    ReplyDelete

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