September 11th, 2022 by Jon
We woke up and it was so dark under the heavy pine canopy that hung over our heads. We got up and packed fairly quickly, giving ourselves enough time to have a leisurely breakfast. It was warmer this morning, partly due to the natural fluctuation in temperature, but also because we camped down lower for the first time in a long time. We hiked through fairly flat dark forest for many miles. In more recent years, a bridge has been built over the Suiattle River and the PCT was rerouted to go over the bridge. It added about 6 miles but the river crossing is not very safe so it’s totally worth the extra miles.
The hiking itself was actually quite nice. The old growth forest has such a quiet and peaceful feel to it. At one point it started sprinkling for about 45 minutes but it was very light as easy to hike through. We crossed the bridge, thankful it was there as we watched swift glacial water flow by underneath. The downed trees in this valley were insanely huge. The largest we have seen on trail. At times we would walk an extra 100 feet around a tree because it was completely impossible to climb over. Sometimes this meant hiking straight up the side of the mountain. It was so tiring.
We had to stop at a small stream a few miles after the bridge to fill up for our last big climb on the PCT. We had about 3500 feet of elevation gain over 10 miles. Nothing too steep, but a very long continuous climb nonetheless. After getting water we began. The trail switchbacked up and up through pine forest. In many places the brush next to trail was substantial and required a bit of lush to get through. We fought our way through and felt with more blowdowns on the way up. We crossed many small streams as we reached a small flat spot where all 5 of us took lunch together. It’s been so humid this morning with all the rain that we all were sweating profusely. We’ve all eaten most of our food snacks at this point and all I have left are besides meals are bars. I don’t know how long it will take before I can eat the dang things again. we finished eating and tackled the second half of the climb.
This half was much more exposed, and we climbed along beautiful ledges surrounded by towering rocky crags. It was absolutely incredible. The trail continued winding up the mountain before crossing over a ridge and entering another alpine bowl high up on the mountain. Green gras and rock was everywhere. We had an amazing view of the valley below and the many streams that combined along the way to crest the river at the bottom of it. I found Biscuit, Wilco, and Missile all waiting at the top and we decided in a campsite about 4 miles away. There were some comments about nearby dead trees , but also many who said it was a great site. We decided to check it out for ourselves and move on if it looked unsafe.
Hiking down into the bowl so so amazing. The rocky trail was crossed by many streams as we made our way down before rounding the other side of the bowl, climbing over a ridge, and getting on the other side of the mountain. We switchbacked down this side for a long time. About halfway down we passed by some burned trees before getting to the bottom and walking across a log to reach the other side and keep hiking. Shortly after that we can to a the campsite we had been heading for. While there were one or two dead trees nearby, nothing that looked remotely unsafe so we made camp there. This is our last camp site on the PCT.
It was strange putting up the tent and I have so many feelings about this entire experience. The gratitude I have that Singsong and I were able to take the time off to do this, the people we’ve met and made friends with, the endurance, both mentally and physically, we’ve built to sustain us through this crazy adventure, the time to ponder some deep questions during long days, the views we’ve seen way out in the wilderness away from any easy access, the sense of adventure, tactical planning, and adaptability when the inevitable road bumps come out way. These are only a small portion of what this trip has meant, and I can’t believe it’s coming to a close.
Tomorrow we have 12.5 miles to get to a road where we can meet a bus that will take us into Stehekin. From there we plan to ride into town, gorge on delicious pastries, and spend a night in their campground before taking the ferry the following day.
