The Adventures of...: Day 146, 147, 148

Day 146, 14 miles, endpoint PCT mile 2490

We went into town from the Dinsmore's this morning for breakfast. And when I say "went into town," what I really mean is we went to the one and only building in the entire town. In this one building is a cafe, a (very) small store, and a (very, very) small post office. We suffered some slow service for a great breakfast, then went back to the Dinsmore's to pack up.

We got a hitch back to Stevens Pass and hung out at the ski resort for a little bit. The lifts were running for mountain bikers; we watched as they careened down the steep dirt roads that will soon be covered with snow for skiers. By then it was early afternoon and we had procrastinated enough: we had to get some miles in.

The trail led us to the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness, where we spent 14 lumpy miles going up and down and up and down. We ended the day on top of blustery Grizzly Peak, which gave us amazing views of Glacier Peak and surrounding mountains to the north. We found a campsite tucked away from the wind, and are hunkered down against the cold for the night.

Hikers camped in the back yard.

Reunited with our New Hampshire friends!

Henry M Jackson Wilderness

Lake Valhalla & Lichtenberg Mountain

Glacier Peak from camp on Grizzly Peak. You can barely make out the trail in bottom center.

Day 147, 23 miles, endpoint PCT mile 2513

From our campsite up on Grizzly Peak nearby Glacier Peak looked close enough you could reach out and scrape the snow off the gray rock. However, we spent all 24 miles today hiking towards the towering mountain; it sometimes felt like we were making no progress towards Glacier Peak at all, despite the miles.

The hiking itself was both tough and beautiful. It is a different world up here, one filled with alpine lakes, sprawling green meadows, wide open vistas of mountains for miles, and reddened huckleberry bushes which turn entire hillsides a bright red color. We could see layered peaks in all directions. Even Mt. Rainier, which I didn't think we would see again, made an appearance. It was sunny and relatively warm all day; I'm hoping we keep this weather through to the end of the trip.

The gorgeous scenery had a cost: hard hiking, with steep uphills and steep downhills all day. I don't think we took a single step on flat ground at all today. I was hoping for more miles than 23, but it was all I could manage. We still have 67 to go until our next stop in Stehekin, so we are hoping to put in some big days despite the terrain.

A couple of highlights for the day: hitting mile 2500 and our first Washington bear sighting! The bear was in the bushes next to the trail eating huckleberries when we unknowingly scared him off. The bear hastily but clumsily ran straight up a hillside to get away from us, crashing loudly through the bushes and grunting as he went. I felt bad that we disturbed his huckleberry eating!

Late in the afternoon we crossed over into the Glacier Peak Wilderness and found a campsite hidden behind a hill at an area called White Pass. We watched the sunset turn Glacier Peak amber in color, and are heading to bed early to be ready for a long day tomorrow.

The final moments before the moon sets

Mile 2500!

Approaching Saddle Gap

Lake Sally Ann

Glacier Peak Wilderness boundary

The beard receives beautiful golden sunset light.

Camped near White Pass

Day 148, 26 miles, endpoint PCT mile 2539

We continued our trek around Glacier Peak today, covering a tough 26 miles that included plenty of elevation gains and losses. I think we had more ups and downs today than any day in recent memory. In fact, our total elevation gain for the day was around 8,000 feet. My legs are sore and wobbly--I'm definitely feeling it.

Once again, the scenery did not disappoint. We were surrounded by rugged, jagged peaks on all sides of the trail. We passed through dense, moss-covered forests, as well as open, high altitude rocky meadows. Glacier Peak looked huge today--we were right up against the giant, snow-covered mountain, its summit sitting at 10,541 feet.

Besides the beautiful terrain, we had an interesting moment in the early afternoon. We crossed a river and heard a helicopter approaching. The next thing we knew, a girl near the river was waving her arms at the incoming helicopter and we saw a woman laying on the ground next to the river. We stopped to see what was wrong and learned she said she had low blood pressure, couldn't walk, and used her emergency button to call for the helicopter.

The helicopter didn't have any place to land, so instead, two people jumped out of it while it hovered next to the river. They ran up to the woman, told us they were going to have the helicopter drop more supplies, and that it would be getting very, very windy. The helicopter buzzed overhead while a bag was lowered on a rope to the ground, and we were indeed drilled by the sudden windstorm.

We wanted to see the rescue team hoist the woman up to the helicopter in a basket, but we were already behind on miles and had to get moving. About a half hour later, as we were trudging uphill away from the river, we could the helicopter take off through the trees, likely headed to a hospital somewhere.

In the late evening we began a long ascent, hoping to make it to a camping area before dark. The climb was steep and slow, and the shorter days are getting to us. We didn't make it in daylight, and instead hiked the last half hour or so with our headlamps on.

We have one more big (and probably tough) day to get through tomorrow before we hit our next resupply in two days. Phew.