Days 122, 123, 124

Day 122, 28 miles, endpoint PCT mile 1968

Today was all about trees and lakes. For the second long day we spent most of our hiking under dense, green tree cover. I hate to say it, but Oregon has been a little bit on the boring side overall.

The forest of the Three Sisters Wilderness was dotted with many small lakes, somme no bigger than a pond. I bet we saw 20 different lakes today, all surrounded by trees, trees, trees everywhere.

We finally got a break from the trees at about 6pm. We made it to the top of a long 1,000 foot climb and magically we were face to face with Central Oregon's beastly mountains. There was Mt. Bachelor, with just a smidge of snow left, Broken Top, with its incredibly jagged summit, and the biggest of them all, South Sister, Oregon's second tallest mountain.

After the view it was back down into the trees. Several miles later we entered a wide open meadow filled with red-leafed plants and yellow wildflowers. To the east of us were the mountains again, this time even closer. Unfortunately, South Sister was all but hidden by cloud cover at that time, but hopefully we will get a better view in the morning.

We have a 20 mile hike tomorrow to McKenzie Pass, where we will head into Bend for some rest and relaxation!

Morning camp views

Nice lakes everywhere

Broken Top

Trail views

That PCT sign has been there awhile

Trail views

Day 123, 21 miles, endpoint PCT mile 1989/Bend, OR

Today the hiking was the best yet since leaving Crater Lake. We were finally out of the trees and had amazing views of the Central Oregon peaks. Well, we had views a little later in the afternoon, once the stubborn clouds finally cleared and the rain stopped. When we woke up, however, the air was foggy around the tent and the temperature was cold. South Sister was still hidden behind the clouds, as if it wasn't even there. We hiked through misty rain and hoped the clouds would part so we could see the multitudes of mountains we knew were there.

Finally in the afternoon the mountains began to win the battle against the clouds. Out came not only South Sister, but also the other members of the trio: Middle Sister and North Sister. To the north we could see the snowless Mt. Washington; further north were the snowy peaks of Mt. Jefferson and Mt. Hood. We will walk right past Jefferson and Hood in the coming days.

Towards the end of the day we walked across crunchy red lava rocks until we hit the pavement of Highway 242 at McKenzie Pass. We walked to the nearby Dee Wright Observatory, a stone building at the top of the pass with 360 degree views of Central Oregon's mountains.

We knew we needed a ride from the Observatory into the town of Sisters, and we easily got an offer for a ride from three nice people visiting the area from Portland. We sat in the back of their pickup truck and enjoyed a scenic ride downhill from McKenzie Pass, breathing in the crisp pine-tree air and feeling the sun.

In Sisters, an old-west themed town, we met our friend Josh, who lives further down the highway in the bigger town of Bend. We had dinner and drinks at Three Creeks Brewery in Sisters (Central Oregon is full of breweries) before heading back to Josh's place.

Tomorrow we will get a few things done while we are in town, possibly hit up another brewery, and enjoy a day off from hiking!

Trail views

Trail views

Trail views

Trail views

Trail views

Trail views

Roof of Dee Wright Observatory

Dee Wright Observatory

Josh & Josh

Day 124, 0 miles, still in Bend

Today was a great rest day. Josh and I hung out at (friend) Josh's house while he was at work. I did a quick run to the store (and drove a car for the second time in four months) and put together a box of food to ship to Timberline Lodge. After that, we were mostly done with our hiking responsibilities, so we sat on the couch and watched a couple of movies.

When (friend) Josh got home from work we headed out to 10 Barrel Brewery, one of many breweries in Bend. We got dinner and drinks with another friend Ben, as well as Whitney, the hiker we met in the Sierras. Whitney lives in Bend now, so it was fun to see her and catch up.

After that we had just enough time for one more movie (The Great Outdoors with John Candy and Dan Aakroyd) before bed. In a real bed! Tomorrow it will be back to the trail.