04 Aug Day 104 – Return to Snoqualamie

At mile 2393.1 (Snoqualamie Pass). Hiked 11.1 miles today.

It rained last night and I slept well to the sound of rain. Awake in the predawn, I crawled out of the tent into the rain and headed toward the cathole I had dug the night before. It was around the end of a large fallen tree. As I rounded the tree, I tripped over the broken off end of the tree and landed flat on my face right into the wet ground directly in front of the cat hole. Not a good start to the day.

The last 6 miles of the trail into Snoqualamie was torture to walk. It was full of rocks and roots and very inconsistent which made it hard to get a rythme. It was a trail that you had to think about as you walked it. I could hear the Interstate Highway below for several miles. The rain didn’t help. After what seemed like a long time, I looked down a ski slope to the Summit Inn where I had booked a room for the night. Room for the night! Summit Pancake House! Yep, this is good. I had returned to Snoqualamie after 3 years. The weather had been the same on my visit in 2015 … low clouds hanging around the surrounding mountains.

This is Mirror Lake. I had considered this spot for camping last night, but it would have made a 34 mile hike yesterday which was doable, but I thought it wiser to limit my day to 30 miles.

This is the detour for the Bannock Lake  fire. The PCT is closed for 20 miles from Suiattle Pass to High Bridge. The reroute is 28 miles. 

The 2nd fire I may need to deal with, the Cutthroat Fire, with a detour at Rainy Pass has been contained and will be re-evaluated for trail opening this weekend.