Day 142 Barlow Pass – The Walk

26.21 miles
From trail camp (mile 2070.8, elev 4273)
To Barlow Pass Trailhead (mile 2094.6, elevation 4182)
Upload 2756
Descend 2854

Today’s goal was to get close enough to Timberline Lodge to enjoy their breakfast buffet the next day. But I had my struggles and I found it fascinating how much my motivation could vary throughout the day.

In the morning I felt like I had been shot out of a cannon. I got up and walked very quickly in the morning.

Then my left shoulder and left quad/hip felt tired. I tried leaning more to the left to relieve the pressure on my shoulder. But often these things don’t get better until after a night’s sleep, so I wasn’t optimistic.

The unexpected rain along with my leg and shoulder had me sitting on the side of the trail enjoying a donut (surprisingly, I didn’t eat the entire box yesterday morning) and not wanting to move.

Luckily, once I started moving, I basically felt fine.

My Achilles tendon has been causing me pain periodically for a couple of years. It was the chronic condition that most made me wonder if I would be able to complete the PCT. In general it has gone well, although it is usually a little uncomfortable.

One thing I have found helps is making sure he keeps getting fresh blood. When hiking, I try to remember to «lead with the knee.» During the recovery, as I swing my foot forward, I let the toe point downward, relaxed. This allows the Achilles tendon to relax and fill with blood. If I hold my toe up right now, my Achilles tendon is not contracting, but is stretched and under tension, so it is not relaxed enough to fill with blood again.
It’s more comfortable when I remember this while hiking.

I wasn’t sure what to expect at Little Crater Lake, but it was described as very blue and always cold, so I took a short detour to check it out.

Trail/Boardwalk to Little Crater Lake

The interpretive sign describes it as an artesian spring. It was originally a layer of gravel containing pressurized water. On top of that was a layer of siltstone. The siltstone cracked along a fault allowing pressurized water to reach the surface. As it flowed along the crack, it eroded and widened until it reached the size of the current lake.

Small crater lake

While the wet weather was predicted to clear up in the afternoon, it never actually did. Things were wet and cold enough to be considered optimal hypothermia conditions. It wasn’t cold or wet enough to keep people off the road. But it was wet and cold enough to chill them pretty quickly if they weren’t prepared.

I ended up eating a few extra snacks in the afternoon to give my body some extra fuel to warm up. I also put on rain gear if it was a little wet. This, combined with the hiking activity, kept me warm.

I saw just a touch of sun. While I hoped things would become clearer, they didn’t.

In my attempt to get closer to Timberline Lodge, I set my goal on Barlow Pass, which would be a 26 mile day and put me just over 5 miles from Timberline.

Near dusk, I ran into a woman walking her dog who was curious about the PCT. We talked for a while. He also told me that the hike to Barlow Pass was pretty easy from there.

I didn’t get to Barlow Pass until it was pretty dark. I used my headlamp for about the last half mile of hiking. Things were wet when I arrived and it started raining again after I set everything up. So although I had a picnic table at my campsite, I didn’t use it and preferred to stay dry in my tent.

I figured out when I had to leave in the morning to get to Timberline when the breakfast buffet starts, set the clock, and went to sleep.

Camping at Barlow Pass

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