23 Jul Day 5 – No Hard Climb Today

Deep Lake to Waptus River Campsite 7 miles Today I hiked some with a southbound PCT thru-hiker named Lucky. Lucky was nursing a sore foot and seemed to slow down a little allowing me to catch up. Lucky is from Modesto so in a way he is hiking home. Good luck Lucky! 🙂 Later in camp we met another PCT thru-hiker (northbound) named OCD. There are 2 OCD’s on the trail. OCD shared his stories around our campfire. Everyone was impressed with OCD’s pack that came in at only 16 pounds fully loaded with food, water, etc. He was using ZPack gear (backpack and 2 person tent). I’ll check out ZPack tents for my planned PCT thru-hike. I had a relaxing day. Into camp early. Washing up, reading my Kindle, picking blueberries for morning oatmeal, and eating lunch. Later, I walked back across the bridge and spent time on top of big rock enjoying the view of the clouds moving in from the West and on and off Bear’s Breasts mountain. Today was mostly downhill or flat with no long difficult climbs. Here is how I compare the PCT and AT.

Waptus River with Bear’s Breasts peak in background.

Thimbleberry, we ate many of these berries that break off in your hand leaving a berry that is open in the back like a thimble.