Hilltop, east of Hyatt Lake
Elev: 5500
Miles: 24
Trip: 905
No matter how rough a day has been, how hard the miles have felt, a good meal and a beautiful sunset can make it all feel worthwhile. Not that today was really all that rough: rolling terrain through a dry fir and cedar forest, nothing all that challenging or remarkable. So far Oregon seems to me like a good bowl of oatmeal: satisfying and comforting but not usually something I'd get excited about. I'm sure there will be some show-stoppers on the way to Washington, but for the moment I'm grateful for the soft ground and gentle slopes.
Just as the giardia is quieting down (still a few days of meds to go), my knees start crying for attention. My brother Joe was right - everything starts falling apart after 30! The knees are worrisome, though. First it was as if something down there was out of place, then some uncomfortable popping with every step, then some pain and the always-ominous swelling. I'll try wrapping it tomorrow (with my bandanna, since I stupidly forgot an ACE bandage) and being gentle on the downhills. At this rate, will I ever get my 30-mile day?
Shaggy says:
It was a chilly morning and we both woke up feeling pretty refreshed. For some reason I did feel like the day dragged on. The scenery was okay, but not like what we have seen recently. We are getting into a bit more of a green tunnel. Its still super beautiful, but perhaps a different beauty than what is found on other parts of this trail.
We did not see any other thru-hikers today. Did meet a few folks out for the day, and a few on a week long hike. It is so weird to get in and out of bubbles of people on this trail. Also strange to think about all the hikers behind us. Are they still hiking? Its hard to know.
We managed to hike 24 miles today. Not terrible considering we still are not feeling completely 100% yet. We will get back into it though. I am exhausted tonight for some reason. Time to get some rest.
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| Redneck totems lined a private property next to the trail. This one says, "If you can read this you are in range." Very classy. |
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| More cheeriness from the welcoming committee. |
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| Believe it or not, some locals did not roll out the red carpet for hikers. Luckily they vented their prejudice on poor PCT trail markers instead of poor PCT hikers... |
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| Giant fava bean? That's my best guess... |
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| I swear I heard this tree speak as I hiked by. It sounded a lot like, "Nomnomnomnom..." |
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