Truth be told, there are far more days like this than not. It would be easy to think that thru-hiking is largely a stroll through a long succession of jaw-dropping scenery day after day, minute after minute, but alas the reality is slightly less glamorous. With no views to speak of, no pictures to take and mile upon mile of forest, broken only by the occasional logging road…
Beardoh & Sweet Pea
The all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast at Callahan's this morning necessitated a bit of a late start as we tried to correct our mistakes from the past--Exhibit A: Donner Pass, Exhibit B: Seiad Valley--attempting not to overeat and then immediately hit the trail.
Looking Ahead
On our first full day in Oregon, the destination was Callahan's Lodge, a small hotel next to Interstate 5 and only 10 miles outside of the town of Ashland. Home to both an all-you-can-eat spaghetti dinner and pancake breakfast and less than a mile from the trail, it's a perfect place to pickup a resupply package and wash away the layers of dirt I seem to accumulate every day…
Welcome to Oregon
The sound of the morning was an unusual one: a distant chime and then a cluster of them, faint but clear. High on a ridge near 7,000 feet, the list of possible sources was quite limited. As it grew louder, the chimes revealed themselves for what they really were: cow bells. The patchwork of meadows we'd seen since yesterday were the perfect place for a herd of free-ranging cattle to graze.
A Golden State of Mind
Today marks my last full day and night in California, and although the trail is positively pulsing with excitement at the prospect of reaching Oregon, it would be impossible to forget the nearly endless string of beauty that has been on display as we've followed these first 1700 miles.
The State of Jefferson
The town of Seiad Valley hardly qualifies as a town at all, complete with its population of 350 and comprised only of a cafe, store, post office, and RV park that occupy consecutive lots. Aside from hosting a pancake challenge--anyone who eats 5 pounds of pancakes, gets them for free--its real claim to "fame" is…
I Love a Good Steam Bath
I'd almost forgotten what humidity felt like. That unpleasant stickiness that had been a constant companion growing up in the heat of the upstate New York summer and had followed me for months of my Appalachian Trail thru-hike has been nearly nonexistent on the Pacific Crest Trail. Oh, how that would change today.