2,460 Mile PCT Upgrade: Bridge of the Gods to Skykomish

September 9 is a day I will always remember vividly. He was actually crossing the Bridge of the Gods into Washington! Getting to Oregon was huge, but this was a moment I dreamed about for years. I couldn’t believe I started at the border of Mexico and I was already here. Merlin, Worm and I walked a few miles and decided to call it a day. We had so much free time that night that we obviously had to play Ecologies. We had a «store opening» party at Merlin’s new store and laughed out loud while playing cards for hours. These are the moments that really stay with you.

The next day was filled with beautiful, lush green plants that I had only seen pictures of. They looked glorious in the Washington fog. At noon, we ran into a NOBO group that included Function, who is basically a trail celebrity! I was a little dazzled. He’s the one who had been commenting on all the water fountains in FarOut the entire tour. We trust these comments! It’s very funny how some hikers become BNOT (Big Name on Trail). Merlin, Worm and I were in a very silly mood that day and couldn’t stop laughing. We were delighted to be there! We ended up walking only about 22 miles and 21 miles the next day. That’s when our inside joke began about how any mileage under 25 felt like a ‘nero’. We were taking it easy because we had a trip planned for a certain day to avoid another fire shutdown. During these glorious «short» days, we pretended we were bulking up and tried to eat as much as possible for dinner with all our extra time.

Our neros streak was ruined one day (by me) after having a lovely long lunch swimming in a lake. I saw a 3 mile alternative on the map and Worm and I convinced Merlin to take it. It had beautiful, open views. However, as we neared the end, we noticed that we had backtracked on the trail, making our 23-mile day a 29-mile day. I’m lucky that my friends forgave me for that little mishap.

We arrived at Trout Lake in the morning after taking a volunteer shuttle with a man named Pat. People are so kind to volunteer their time to help hikers! It was the cutest little town. We walked into a restaurant that had everything blueberry, so obviously I had to have the blueberry scone AND the pancakes. After shopping and doing other chores, we hung out on the grass behind the supermarket, had a D&M (deep and meaningful conversation), and petted the friendly supermarket cats. It was nice to just relax, even though it was brief. We met up with Chip and his dad drove us back to the trail for the night.

We woke up to our first rainy day in Washington and it was pretty brutal. We walked in the rain for hours and were never able to warm up. It was taking its toll so we decided to stop for lunch under the worm tent to boost morale. We huddled together and huddled together for warmth while Worm told us a riddle. Since the rain did not let up, we forced ourselves to go out again. The day was full of beautiful meadows and fog, but it was bone-chillingly cold. It finally stopped raining early in the afternoon, but we never saw the sun that day.

We finally reached the part of the trail that everyone raves about: GOAT ROCKS! There were views for miles and we had to stop endlessly to take pictures (and say «wow» a million times). A friend told me I should do Knife’s Edge at sunrise, but I realized I would arrive at sunset. I thought it would be just as epic with the sunset, so that was my goal. Unfortunately, I got confused about where Knife’s Edge actually was. I thought it was a blue flare on the map, so I took it and ended up reaching the snowy summit at sunset. I quickly went down to meet Chip, who was waiting for me on the road. That’s when I realized we were about to do Knife’s Edge in the dark. Outdoors. We had to go very slowly and carefully, so we didn’t get to camp until 9:45 and we passed out, completely exhausted.

The next morning we started walking through the fog. When it cleared up, it was so beautiful! We had 14 miles to get to the Kracker Barrel, our resupply stop. This isn’t the Cracker Barrel chain you’re thinking of: it’s a gas station where hikers resupply and can camp for free. The miles were very cruising. I wasn’t really in a hurry, so I couldn’t find the motivation to go faster. I stopped for a snack to take in the views of Mount Rainier and a fairly deep blue lake. As I get to the highway, Worm and Merlin appear and start dancing and waving at me. I was so excited to eat, shower, and hang out with a bunch of hiker trash behind the gas station!

It was cold when we woke up the next morning and our tents were soaked. I tried to dry everything by hanging it from some wooden posts, but the attempts were useless. I grabbed a latte and a muffin from the gas station and packed to prepare for our trip with Keith around closing. After the long journey, they dropped us all at Chinnok Pass. It was great fun walking in a large group of women – there were 8 of us, including 2 of Merlin’s friends who joined us for a short stretch. We had one last meeting with all of us for dinner and then we had to split up again into our hiking groups. At the last minute, I decided to walk with Merlin and Worm one last time. From now on, they would send him off and walk more than 27 miles a day for the rest of the trip. I wanted to take it easier, so I knew we would have to part ways soon.

From the moment I woke up, I was zooming! I was able to keep up with Worm and Merlin, which is saying a lot because they are speed demons. There were beautiful fall colors throughout the day. Worm and I were in another silly, silly mood, laughing at random things all day. Again we joke that we are bulking up so we can eat more food. Poor Worm made the mistake of only buying protein bars in her Costco restock, so she had to start dissociating in order to eat them. When Merlin meets us he tells us we’ve already gone 16 miles and we really think he’s joking. Turns out he was right! That was a big mood booster and helped us make it the rest of the miles to our nice campsite. This is the time when we start hearing the sound of the moose at night, which is a very disturbing sound if you don’t know what it is!

We get up very early because we have to hike 22 miles to Snowqualmie and then walk back that night. I walk out of my tent and see Worm sitting in the dark, dissociating as I eat more protein bars. I’m basically running all morning; I was high on caffeine and music. We take a quick dip in the lake during lunch, knowing it will soon be too cold to do so. While I was eating a burrito, a camp robber bird tried to steal it out of my hand! Merlin tricked the bird by putting a stick in her hand and holding it up, and it landed right on top of her. We picked up the trail again and arrived at Snowqualmie. We spent a couple of hours hanging out and playing cards at the quaint brewery before heading up the steep mountain in the dark to camp.

I was exhausted in the morning because I had consumed too much caffeine the day before and my GERD betrayed me at night. I was moving very slowly due to the combination of heat, smoke from a nearby fire, and daze. The mountains were very picturesque, even through the smoke. I was happy to be back in Pika Town and Marmottville! Groundhogs in Washington have a hilarious cry, I highly recommend looking for it. There was tons of climbing, so overall it was a pretty tough day. Since Merlin and Worm were already ahead of me and I knew I would never catch up with them, I texted them a white flag and a greeting emoji to get them to give up: I can’t walk with them anymore. I was sad that I couldn’t really say goodbye, but I knew that one day we would see each other again! I decide to only go 21 miles that day, which still takes me until 7:45.

The day starts with rain hitting my tent before the sun comes up. I struggle to prepare, knowing that it will probably rain all day. I am still in awe of the beauty of the Washington fog. I try to improve my mood by enjoying energy drinks and listening to music. I end up crying horribly to a Beach Boys song when I realize my walk is almost over. It was very liberating to let it out: to cry alone in the rain. I told myself I needed to appreciate every day I was here, no matter the weather. A few hours later, the sun came out and I dried everything on a rock. I couldn’t stop taking pictures of the fall colors! I chose an amazing camping spot with cute little pikas running between the moss covered rocks, with 360 degree views of the mountains towering above me.

I decide to get some sleep since there is no rush to get to camp. I meet up with Function and the rest of his team, and we chat over refreshments. They were actually talking about Leavenworth, the resupply town I hadn’t planned on going to. They continue as the Camp Robbers harass me again trying to steal my trail mix. I spontaneously decide that I’ll take a shortcut and try to hitchhike into Leavenworth and hang out with them. I take Surprise Creek, a shortcut to get there. It’s SO STEEP and difficult – this is what you get for taking a shortcut. It was worth it though because it was also awesome! It was full of moss and many different types of plants. I wave to a construction crew as I walk onto the road toward the highway. A couple minutes later, one of the construction workers arrives and asks if I’m going to Skykomish. I told him I wanted to go to Leavenworth, but he said the road was closed. Shit! He drops me off at a deli in Skykomish around 5 and I have a huge veggie sandwich. Obviously I’m still hungry, so I went to a bar in town and tried the famous Jojos (a form of fries, I learned this is a Washington thing). I stay at the inn and have the room to myself for the night. I binge-watch Netflix shows on my phone until I can’t keep my eyes open anymore.

My next and final blog involves meeting up with trail friends and hitting the trail for the last two weeks. It will be bittersweet to finish my story. I guess it’s time to start dreaming about the next one!

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