I Didn’t Know Marble Was This Flammable.

September 15
Ashland to Etna, sort of

I was hosted in Seattle by extended family. They treated me to my favorite northwest ice cream, Tillamook Mudslide. Very good stuff for a half gallon container. Normally a thru hiker has to watch their diet very closely upon finishing a hike. They still feel as if they need 5000 calories a day, even though they are not burning that much. But in my defense, I still have 150 miles to go. I have more, but I have decided to hold off on the stretch from Sierra City to Chester. Due to fire, that section was closed for nearly all of this year’s hikers.

I left Seattle with a giant turkey sandwich in my possession, arriving by train in Salem to visit more family. I must have ate 20 pounds of cherry tomatoes before leaving by bus the next day en route to Medford, where I hitched to Ashland to start hiking south.

After nearly a week of zeroes, it felt great to be walking again. What am I going to do with myself when I get back home? I thought.

After 15 miles, I found a cooler stocked with sodas! I don’t recall whether I have discussed “trail magic.” This is when a hiker finds something unexpected n trail such as a cooler full of sodas, fresh fruit, a guy making sandwiches, a guy giving rides and letting hikers stay at his house. People go out of their way to support hikers which gives us much needed morale boosts. I could have survived the 75 degree late summer day without a root beer, but is was a bonus.

I camped high up, under a stout pine tree. With clear skies and views of lights from distant towns, I “cowboy camped” under the stars.

I wanted an early start so I could knock out as many miles as possible the next day. It was now late in summer and daylight had decreased. I was up at dawn, about 5:30 and walking 15 minutes later. From my camp above 6000 feet, it was a long mellow descent to Siead Valley, home of the famous five pound pancake challenge. The trail was easy and the weather was pleasant. I made highway 96 at about 7:00, 43 miles into my hiking day. I had hoped to get this far, not expecting to go further. But with a little daylight left, and nothing but road to walk on, I decided to go further. It was another 8 miles to Grider Camp, near the northern border of the Marble Mountains.

And so at 9:30 pm, in the dark I arrived at my destination, sore and tired after about 15 hours of hiking and a 51 mile day. I laid down my tyvek ground cloth , pulled my sleeping bag out and fell asleep quickly.

Feeling refreshed in the morning, I moved futher south, gaining elevation into the Marble Mountains. About 10 miles in, I reached a bit of a clearing with a view south. Ahead of me was a plume of smoke reaching thousands of feet in the air. I took out my compass to check how close to the trail it might be, and quickly turned around and jogged back to highway 96.

Upon reaching Etna by way of hitching, I received news that that a controlled fire had jumped and exploded into an inferno, somewhat close to the trail. It is not in the cards for me to hike the Marbles this year. I tried twice!

So with two full days to go until being picked up by family in Yreka, I jumped on trail just south of the Marble Mountains and headed further south. The views in the Russian Wilderness are rather like northern Washington, just slightly more arid. The terrain is steep, but the trail traversed the ridges pleasantly.

On the third day, early in the morning, I was done. I now had continuous footsteps from Chester to Etna, and the Northern Marble Mountains to Canada. This, I told myself, was enough. This was the trail this year.

In total, I walked nearly 2500 miles.
If I encounter closures the next time I hike the PCT, I will find alternate routes to connect my steps. But I have no regrets for this year.

before I started, I had never been out for more than five nights, and had never hiked more that 50 miles in a single trek. I had never had to resupply in a town between sections of trail.

I met a lot of great people out there this year, hiking sections with Zoner, Frankosaurus, Zorro, Lei Low, Tarzan, Zelda, Ninja Tortoise, Scratches, Oasis, The Sheik, Lumbar, Voyageur and Forrest. I met many more, too many to mention.

So I am hooked. I thought maybe this would break up the time in between years and years of school, but I feel like more. I spent the last 700 miles planning on future treks.

So what is on the docket for the next few years? Appalachian Trail, Continental Divide Trail, Northern Forest Canoe Trail, Te Araroa (the longest trail in New Zealand,) Sendero de Chile (Length of Chile) GR10, GR11, Sail around the world? It will be exceedingly difficult to settle down. Stay tuned for more!