Category: Pacific Crest Trail

Day 56

At mile 1455.1. Hiked 22.4 miles today. Reached 1000 miles hiked.

Lot of bear sign including this awesome bear track. There was a great deal of very large bear scat. The largest I had ever seen. Already one hiker warned me to move through this area fast. Guthook has comments on water sources such as “a bear hung out at this spring all day” and “there is a bear that lives at this stream”.  I want to know how a hiker knew that a bear hung out all day at a spring. Did the hiker hang out at the spring all day with the bear?

This morning there were two times I heard a bear crashing through the woods. Each time I had stopped to check position and was standing silently with my back to the bear. In each instance, it became too much for the  concealed bear and the bear bolted. The 2nd one actually kicked up a cloud of dust when crossing a road below me. I didn’t get a visual on either bear, but I am sure they were bears.

This morning I grew tired of breakfast sausage I have 50 of the flesh colored greasy links to eat before my next resupply. I’m calling it the 50 Sausage Challenge. 

The PCT already has the McDonalds challenge where the hiker eats nothing but doubles for about 5 days on the trail. There are many variations on this. It was made popular by a YouTube video. There is something about the PCT thru-hiker that likes a challenge. No mind that thru-hiking the PCT is enough of a challenge. Many hikers push for a record distance day or decide to tackle the Sierras early when there is risk of dangerous snowstorms and there is deep snow and raging waters. Some carry extra frivolous weight such as large wooden rubber band rifles. It seems that there is nothing that a PCT thru-hiker would hesitate to add on to the already difficult challenge of completing a thru-hike. In the name of actually finishing this hike, I’m doing my best to resist the temptation to challenge and compete. I just hope the 50 sausage challenge goes well. As if tonight I’m down to 18 sausages. I had 10 mixed in with my Mountain House spaghetti. I had 3 in my oatmeal this morning. That is 13 in one day. 

My 13 remaining sausages.

Today I reached 1000 miles hiked. Although I reached it on day 56, if you look at days 2 through 56 you see that 1000 miles were hiked in that 55 day period. Day 1 was only 4.4 miles because I didn’t start until 5:10pm. So, I’m calling it 55 days to hike 1000 miles. Pretty good for a 57 year old. 

Some of the trail this morning was overgrown. See photo below of trail. Do you see it? Not complaining. This is part of hiking and to be expected in places. In the afternoon I came across trail where  maintainers had recently cleared a broad 10 foot wide swath of undergrowth. 

Here is Shasta in the morning.

Here is Shast later in. Clouds had moved in giving me a break from the heat. 

People: 

Met 2 Percent and Tumbleweed who were from Virginia (near Damascus) and Alabama. They had wisely jumped up from Kennedy Meadows to Ashland to hike south. They had listened to the stories of those that entered the Sierras early and decided that wasn’t for them. Theae ère the only people I saw all day.  Count of people seen equals 2. Count of bears equal 2. 

At mile 1432.7. Hiked 20.3 miles today.

I spied a rookery with large storks of some sort nesting all over a dead tree. Occasionally a stork would spread its large wings and take off in flight. It would swoop back with a long stick in its beak to be woven into one of the platform sized nests.

I made the side trip to Burney Falls where I also stopped at the General Store to buy 2 ice cream bars and a little ice to keep my 50 sausages cool (now down to around 35). At the Falls I met Bobby Blaine (@thebobbyblaine on Instagram) who hiked the PCT in 2017 (a record snow year) going through the Sierras in May. More recently he hiked th Florida Trail.

He really wanted to get me some trail magic, but I didn’t need anything. 

I crossed this dam. The water from the turbines was blasting out of a pipe near the bottom.

Here is the footbridge over Rock Creek. I ate lunch here next to the creek and was so exhausted I fell sound asleep. Later after I awoke I heard kids voices in the distance. A dad and his kids came walking across the bridge. I mentioned that I had been sleeping earlier. The dad said, “I know. We passed from the other direction earlier when you were asleep.” I hadn’t heard a thing.

Just 100 yards below where I slept, Rock Creek passes over these Falls. The kid had climbed down to the Falls pool where he caught a couple of trout.

People:

Around 5pm Soda passed me as I was taking a blogging break. He had gone into Burney, but it had taken a long time because he had to hitchhike and the road was closed to one lane causing a 30 minute delay in both directions. Looks like I made a good decision to bypass Burney. I was planning to hike just a little further, Soda was going on until nightfall in order to make up lost time. He’ll be to Canada in no time.

At mile 1412.4. Hiked 18.8 miles today. 

 I’ve struck trail magic in Northern California! Yesterday, I had an anonymous cooler full of cold sodas and snacks on the Hat Rim. Today, Tracy and John were waiting at a road crossing  for some lucky PCT hiker to come along. I was the lucky one. I had a Sprite and one of Tracy’s homemade brownies. And we were talking it turned out that Tracy had already accessed my blog via a link from PCTA.org.

It was a hot day, but at least yesterday there was some breeze, there was very little movement of the air today. A person at Burney ranch told me it was above 90 degrees and that it rarely got that hot at the ranch.

Trail Angel John told me that people hang glide off this.

Another hang gliding opp.

Flowers 

Walked through many fields. In some areas more grown up with trees there were very skittish cattle running around.

The first photo is my favorite flower. They are the same, but come in blue, white, and a rare purple. Wish I knew what these are called.

I ate lunch under the bridge where Hat Creek was gushing out of the PG&E power station. A man and his mom from Santa Rosa, Ca next to me were fishing. Here are the Rainbows that the man caught. 

Baum Lake is fed by Hat Creek just below the PG&E Power Station. I was so hot  I wanted to jump in, but I didn’t.

Arnaud Burney Ranch, I did my wash with a real washing machine fir once. Here are all my clothes with exception of down jacket and vest.

While clothes were drying I was taking a dip in the pool. I also had a fantastic dinner at the ranch. It was make your own burrito and salad. I had 2 gigantic tortillas each piled high with the works. After this, I had one of each of the desserts. Later, just before I hiked out, I was told that I was supposed to get the complimentary homemade ice cream for PCT hikers. I I’ve Burney Ranch 5 stars!

Eagle nest. I could hear baby eagles squawking like crazy. Earlier I saw an eagle flying around where there were several nests on large electric utility transmission  towers.

People: I met Soda at Burney Ranch. He had gone through the Sierras in May and to hear him, it sounds miserable.

 

At mile 1393.6 Hiked 23.9 miles today.

I  hiked an early 7 miles to the Chevron Statiion in Old Staion where I managed a  limited resupply to get me to  Dunesmeir. I bought 50 precooked breakfast sausages. Maybe I should start the sausage challenge. Live off sausages  for 5 days of hiking. I l’ai bought stovetop stuffing and plan to use sausage with stuffing. I am inventing a new breakfast called the PCT. Porridge with Cooked Turkey sausage.

The desert came to Northern California today at Hot Creek Rim. …oops… Hat Creek Rim. Everything is relative and I have nothing to complain about. My early season desert walks in SoCal weren’t typically hot and Hat Creek Rim will be hotter for hikers that arrive later in the season.

Hat Creek Rim had to be one of the most beautiful sections of the PCT that I have experienced. One walks on a high table of lava rocks and wild flowers overlooking broad expanses of green valleys a thousand or more feet below. The trail often tracks along the edge of the table with rocky precipitous drop offs to the valley below. Wind sweeps across this open highland sweeping grasses in waves. There are a variety of wildflowers dispersed among black lava rocks in sprigs, bunches, and bouquets of every color. Volcanic mountain ranges stretch across to far side of the broad valley with the east end anchored by snow blanketed Lassen and the west anchored by Mt Shasta. Only the towering Mt Shasta disturbs the blue sky with tiny wisps of clouds forming just below the peak. As the afternoon advances these cloud wisps join and extend in a string stretching beyond Shasta.

Today I had the first trail magic of Northern California. It was a cooler full of cold drinks and snacks and oranges hanging in a tree. Thank you anonymous trail magician! Great spot to find trail magic. Hat Creek Rim is where you reallly appreciate it.

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Here is Mt Shasta from Hat Creek Rim. Notice a cloud beginning to form.This is only happening to Shasta. Lassen and others didnt generate their own clouds. It’s own wether system  helps keep snow on Shasta.

Here is where I could have resupplied water but didn’t. There is a stream at the bottom of this gorge. A steep trail descends 450 vertical feet rob the stream. The PCT goes around this lava rock gorge.

Often the trail follows the edge.

Here are a few examples of flowers on the Rim.