Day 143 Timberline Lodge – The Hike

8.7 miles
From Barlow Pass Trailhead (mile 2094.6, elevation 4182)
Via Timberline Lodge (mile 2100 at 5.5 miles, elevation 6000)
To follow camp (mile 2101.8, elevation 5619)
Upload 2032
Descend 730

One advantage of camping at the Barlow Pass trailhead/field was that it had an outhouse. Not having to dig a hole in the morning saved me some time and made it easier to start walking at 5:50 a.m. Instead of eating my usual breakfast, I just ate a Clif bar along the way. It was 5.4 miles to Timberline Lodge (with about 1800 feet of climbing). If the path was easy enough, I felt like I could get to the breakfast buffet very close to when it opened at 8:00 a.m.

While the sky was clear this morning, everything was still wet along the trail from yesterday’s rain. Fortunately, the trail was wide enough that I didn’t have to touch the soggy plants frequently during my hike. So my pants just got a little wet instead of soaked.

Above the tree line

There are many ridges descending from the top of Mount Hood. The trail climbs to a ridge and then crosses a glacial wash to the ridge where Timberline is located. When I emerged above the tree line on that first ridge, I found myself on crunchy, frozen ground. There were also clear opinions in all directions. Mount Hood towered above me immediately to the north. To the south, I could see Mount Jefferson and the Three Sisters in the distance. It was a little hard to believe I was hiking through those mountains just a few days ago. Spectacular!

Mount Jefferson and Three Sisters (just left of Jefferson)

As I made my way through the glacial wash, I ran into some people walking the opposite way from the Timberline Lodge area. One pair was «Inspector» (trail name from the previous PCT hike) and his partner. They both work near Mount Rainier in Washington and gave me some updates on the weather and fire conditions there.

Looking across the glacial wash toward the ridge at Timberline Lodge (the lodge is not pictured, but my shadow is right near the center)

When I sent a selfie to my family a few days ago, my brother made fun of me and said my beard and hair were long enough to be «really scary.» So before entering the hostel, I took another selfie with the hostel in the background. Knowing his story in the movie “The Shining,” I sent the photo to my family and said that some people might not consider me the scariest thing in the photo. The photo, including the back of the lodge, was not the iconic view from the movie, so I told my family I would send them a more recognizable perspective after breakfast. I wasn’t going to prolong my hiker’s hunger by detouring to the front of the lodge to take another photo.

The photo I sent my family of myself with Timberline Lodge, Mt. Jefferson, and Three Sisters (if you zoom in enough) in the background.

I met up with Firefly and AKA at breakfast. They arrived at Timberline yesterday afternoon and were still feeling full from an all-you-can-eat buffet yesterday (Mirthful wasn’t having breakfast, I guess because he was still full and comfortable in the hotel room). I didn’t have that problem, so I happily continued back to the buffet, finishing six plates of food before feeling too full to move.

The hostel dining room

Satisfy the hiker’s hunger

My family wanted to see exactly what was needed to satisfy hikers’ hunger, so here are photos of my breakfast dishes:

Plate 1

Plate 2

Plate 3

Dish 4 – I forgot to take a photo before eating the grits in this dish.

Plate 5

Plate 6 – I started eating this before I remembered to take a photo.

Front/Iconic Perspective of Timberline Lodge

I couldn’t jump high enough to get the iconic view of Mount Hood directly behind the hotel, so I took this photo a little from the side to include them both.

Lodge conversations

While sitting and enjoying the view at the shelter, I overheard a nearby family from Minneapolis (all adults) talking about the area. They weren’t sure about a couple of things about the PCT, so I answered those questions for them. Having a real PCT hiker there with them piqued their curiosity, so we talked for a while. Before they left, they asked me if we could take a photo including my backpack (Eric, Kristen, and Mark: if you read this, I’d love to get a copy of that photo!)

Photos of the hostel

During the day I explored the lodge and took many photographs. It has a room that projects a film about the history and construction of the hotel. It was built during the depression to provide work for the people of the area. To avoid having to work outdoors in the winter snow, in just four months they had the entire shelter indoors. In that same drive for speed, they created no formal plan for the interior art. Instead, they simply let the craftsmen create and carve. The result is the beautiful lodge that stands today.

Fireplace in the middle of the central common area of ​​the hostel. This is just inside the main entrance.

Upstairs in the central common area of ​​the hostel.

Entrance door with hardware.

This is not the mailbox you normally find on corners

All the newels had animal carvings on them. This staircase near the front door also had wood carvings on the wall behind it.

Another newel carved in animals.

An original table, with carved animal heads.

Central fireplace on the ground floor

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen an old wooden ping-pong table like this.

Here’s Johnny

When I saw that the registration desk had a replica of a firefighter’s ax like the one Jack Nicholson used in The Shining (with «Overlook Hotel» and «Here’s Johnny» woodcut on opposite sides of the handle), I took a photo with it. When I was a kid, everyone knew me as Johnny. I thought this might be a scarier view of me than just being outdoors with my hair and beard.

Here’s Johnny! Jack Nicholson improvised this famous line from The Shining. Apparently, Stanley Kubrick, who is not from the United States, did not understand the Johnny Carson reference and wanted to remove it from the film, but was convinced to keep it.

I was taking a mental break all day. Instead of making a meal after hiking camping, I simply ordered dinner at the bar: fancy macaroni and cheese and a fancier hot chocolate. The Mac & Cheese was good, but nothing special. At first it didn’t seem like it would satisfy the hikers’ hunger. I was glad it was more filling than it looked. The hot chocolate was topped with whipped cream and drizzled with chocolate and caramel syrup. I treated it more like a dessert. It was very good.

…or at least things that require connectivity.

While I didn’t spend the night at the Lodge, I did spend most of the day there, taking advantage of the internet connectivity, electrical outlets, and comfortable chairs.

• I talked to my sister Carol and my mom on the phone. Carol, who says she doesn’t watch any movie scarier than The Wizard of Oz, took to the Internet and discovered that the lodge served as a backdrop in The Shining.
• I had another phone call with Becky.
• I probably spent 30 minutes freeing up space on my phone. Now I have more than 6 GB free.
• I made sure a couple of bills were paid. I updated an online document with instructions for a friend who agreed to house-sit for my last two weeks of travel.
• I signed up for a free trial of YouTube Premium so I could download the Thrill the World instructional video. That would allow me to practice more while I’m on the road.
• I also browsed Garmin’s website to convince myself that I could get an unlimited amount of their «premium» weather forecast on my InReach. The greater granularity and duration of those forecasts could be helpful in avoiding life-threatening winter storms in Washington.

Leaving the hostel, it was difficult to make much progress at first. It definitely slows down progress when, before the lodge was out of sight, I stopped to talk to three different couples/groups about hiking.

Conversing with a couple made me think a little about the trip and helped me realize how much the trail makes you appreciate simple things like food, water, shelter, and people.

Looking south just before sunset

The sun sets between the trees. I found a nice camping spot just a couple miles away. The sky is still clear and it wasn’t too cold. It was a relaxed walk. I set up my tent just as it was getting dark. I felt more relaxed because I already had dinner, I didn’t need to dig a cat hole (I took care of that at the shelter), and I had water.

Camping

All in all, the day was definitely a change of pace. And although it seemed like there was a lot to do online at the hostel, it was physically relaxing and my legs got a much-needed rest.

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