PCT SOBO DAY 10 – The worst path of all time

Day 10

Home: Dolly Vista Trail Camp, Mile 121.1

END: SITKUM Creek, Mile 141.2

Walked miles: 20.1 miles

This morning I had an early start when the sun rose directly in front of my store. I couldn’t fall asleep at the bright sun. After packing and leaving, I enjoyed the beautiful views of the surrounding mountains. The snow still scratched the rock walls, but most had disappeared from the path. I saw a distant marmot on a hill, but it was too slow to get a photo.

After a few miles, I started the descent to Milk Creek. I had no idea what I was getting. It started pleasant enough, but then things got bad. There was an unimaginable amount of shrubs covered with weeds, so much that I could not see the path. Parts of the path were dragged on the edges, revealing rocks or only holes where it was too easy to fall. From some places of damaged bushes, I realized that someone had fallen not long ago in some places. I had to fight the branches of trees and bushes by miles. When I arrived at the stream, I was exhausted and fed up. But it didn’t end.

The bushes were higher than me!

Once I crossed the stream, I had to fight even more along the way. The shrubs of thorny berries and woody bushes were difficult to push aside and sank me until the thorns no longer envied me. There were sometimes when I was no longer sure if I was on its way. Who knows the last time this path was maintained? Years have probably spent.

After falling a couple of times, I had to get a band for my knee. It was hard! I spent too much energy fighting plants. Fortunately, the path improved as I went up. I met a couple making a section that said there was snow but that it wasn’t so bad.

When I finally got to the top, I had lunch for Mica Lake, a beautiful dark blue alpine lake that still had snow and ice. It was a small oasis located at the top of this mountain.

After finishing lunch, I approached the last part of the climb. I could see at least 3 layers of mountains, their snow peaks perforated the sky. There were some snow tours but nothing bad. In the upper part, I immediately remembered the mountains and the impressive views of those mountain passes. However, while looking at the distance, I could see the fire near Chelan in eruption, sending a huge cloud of smoke of fungi in the air.

Despite all that hard work, I still had more miles to cover. Now, in the afternoon, it was hot and difficult for me to move on. The path was not the best yet and there were many coatings. The landscape was beautiful and I wanted to have appreciated it much more, but fighting the earlier growth in the day really stirred my energy. Even so, I kept pressing and finally arrived at my camp after a long job. I hoped to see some campers, but instead I had a quiet night in the forest.

And that is a day in the life of a PCT Sobo hiker!

This website contains affiliate links, which means that the walk can receive a percentage of any product or service that you buy using the links in the items or ads. The buyer pays the same price that would do it differently, and his purchase helps to support the continuous objective of the walk to address his quality backpack advice and information. Thanks for your support!

For more information, visit the page about this site.