When I woke from the night filled with the patter of raindrops on my tent, it was still dark. I lit my tiny alcohol stove to warm some water for coffee while I examined with amusement a new ache in each of the toes of my right foot. I wondered to myself whether this was what arthritis felt like, and set to the morning ritual of packing my backpack…
What Happened to the View?
First and foremost, a big Happy Birthday to my wife Emily. It's the first birthday of hers that I can ever recall not being there to celebrate with her, and it's a painful reality. She is the most supportive and loving partner I could ever have hoped for and today is her day.
Washington, My Home
On the last day of August, we'd finally reached the last state of the trail, my now-home state of Washington. At only about 100 feet above sea level, the Bridge of the Gods that spans the Columbia River linking Oregon to Washington is the lowest elevation on the entire trail. For fans of the book Wild, it is also the place where Cheryl Strayed's adventure on the PCT came to a close.
Eagle Creek
The third and final day on the trail with my Mom was also our final day in Oregon, and what a fitting end it was. The final 15 miles in Oregon are spent by nearly all thru-hikers, not on the official PCT, but on the alternate Eagle Creek trail. Plunging down 4000 feet, the alternate leaves the PCT and follows the course of Eagle Creek along a series of waterfalls…
Mountain Mom
Just when I thought they were beginning to dwindle, there they were: the juiciest, most plump berries we've had on the entire trail. Blue and purple-hued huckleberries, bright red thimbleberries, and golden salmonberries with their equal mix of bitter and sweet.
Mother and Son
Saying goodbye to a pair of shoes doesn't seem like it ought to be hard. But when those shoes have just carried you nearly 1200 miles, it only seemed fair that they should at least be able to meet their successors face to face.
Mount Hood
The shortest of nearos began with a lot of anticipation, of Timberline Lodge, of the breakfast buffet, and of finally seeing Emily and my Mom. The breezy morning whipped up clouds of dust and sand that made it look like low lying fog in the photos we took of the sun casting its first rays onto the mountain.