Brrrrrrrr Beautiful Brrrrrrrr - Mile 2430.7 - 10/2

Well luckily the rain stopped by the morning. But it was still really....I mean really cold. Packing up a wet tent in cold weather is GREAT for your hands. The only way to get warm is to hike. And that I did. The hiking is getting a lot more difficult but with it is very beautiful scenery all around. Climbing and decending ridges around lakes up in alpine country with vibrant fall colors is rewarding but when you stop to rake a break it gets cold fast. So short breaks were taken and hiked into the night. Tonights hike was up twenty switchbacks to a potential campsite hopefully. When we got there there was a small lake and we camped there for the night and set up our wet tents and by the time they were set up all the moisture froze instantly. And then Spins saw eyes. I was to cold to care and so was she so I fell asleep and it was really cold. But I had all my clothes on and slept alright.

Leaving Snoqualamie - Mile 2410 - 10/1

After meandering around the pass all morning and afternoon it was time to get back up to the mountains and I really mean up! The entire eight or so miles to the campsite was uphill and I was able to catch a good glimpse of the sun setting down on Snoqualamie and the clouds moving into the valley. Then it got dark and I was in the clouds which made visibility pretty crappy which was nice considering I was hiking on the side of a cliff. When I got camp set up the drizzle began and it started to get a bit heavier and consistent throughout the night. Hopefully it stops in the morning I don't like cold windy rain.

Snoqualmie Pass - Mile 2402.something -10/1

Holy Crap it's October!!!!!! And it's still sunny and 70. I love this fall weather. I resupplied at a gas station of all places and currently stuffing my face with huckleberry milkshakes and fantastic corndogs. Oh I ate breakfast here to. Time to head out soon and get back on trail. Under two weeks to go!!!

Beautiful Scenic Day - Mile 2399.5 - 9/30

So the other type of day is when you wake up and there is no fog and the day turns out beautiful. It's the day before October and it's sunny 70 degrees with a cool light wind. This is perfect fall weather. In the morning it was pretty much uphill but I came to a wonderful spring which I haunt seen many of recently. I continued along uphill for the rest of the morning and with the clear sky could see actually see Rainer in the distance! It was pretty exciting out of the big three mountains (Adams, St. Helen, and Rainer) I finally saw one of them! With such a nice day and so much uphill I took it easy and ended up yet again hiking into the night this time until around ten pm. Just like the beginning of the day, the end had a bunch of steep uphills as well but nothing to serious. With the dark it was impossible (not really night hiking demotivates me pretty quickly) to find the spot to camp near the lake so i made due with a little spot on the aide of the trail. Tomorrow morning is Snoqualmie Pass and more importantly a bunch of food.

Foggy Cold Damp and Foggy - Mile 2374.6 - 9/29

So you can tell how the day will turn out in Washington the second you wake up. If there is a misty fog around in the morning the weather is going to suck. It was misty this morning.

With the mist comes droplets of rain off the trees and pretty freaking cold winds. It stayed like this until around two in the afternoon. But in the morning about five miles in I got to a cabin/shelter where a bunch of drunken 30 something year old guy were waking up a little rough around the edges. They hooked me up with a bratwurst and chili which really hit the spot being so cold. Afterward I passed another group of car campers and the clouds broke into logging country. The underbrush though gave beautifully vivid autumnal reds, yellows, and oranges. Then a ear shattering plane flew low over which happened to to a fighter jet. Not only did it scare the shit out of me but it left my ears ringing. Then another flew over again. The test of the day was windy and I hiked up in and through a few clouds. Coming down Blowback mountain the pass gave a cool show of clouds blowing through it an spinning down into the valley. Hiked into the night yet again and set up camp only to be hassled by a brave fearless mouse that did not realize or care that I could squish it at any instant. So I left a few crumbs out for him and he left me alone for some of the night. Luckily the elk were calling all over the place as well.

Trail Magic'd - Mile 2332.3 & 2350.1 - 9/27-28

So started the day around normal time and it was chilly! The mornings hike was hazy from a fire as well which meant no good view of Mt. Rainer, as usual fire has screwed me out of another view. Coming down the mountain towards Chinook Pass there were tons of dayhikers out enjoying the nice weather. I stopped and had a bunch of great conversations with quite a few people before getting to the note. Right before the pass there was a note for PCT hikers saying there was tons of food five miles down the road from Sam from Ollalie campground who I met down by Mt. Jefferson. I didnt know it was her until she pulled up. Down at her camp she had tons of food, snacks, soda and beer. Two other hikers were already there and had been there for a few days. With the word of the group behind us coming in tonight as well I stayed and all of us had a good time hanging around for the night. Even towards the end of the trail little hiker bubbles of people form and are able to have a nice night of fun all of which is thanks to Sam who is quite a generous trail angel.

After pancakes in the morning I put in a solid day with a partial view of Rainer and I hiked into the night a little bit and escaped a potential day off at Sam's trail magic.

Leaving Packwood - Mile 2322.8 - 9/26

So I tried to leave the bustling logging town of Packwood yesterday afternoon and after around two hours of hitching Spins and I got another night. This morning was looking pretty similar until a guy in a huge semi pulled over. At first I thought he was just pulling over to get out tithe gas station but he honked his horn and swung the passenger door open. The guy was transferring fruits and veggies from Yakima to Olympia forthwith farmers market and normally didn't take this route but did today just our luck!

The hike out was pretty uneventful and of coarse as it started to get dark we entered Mt. Rainer National Park and it was pretty country. Lucky the moon
was bright and as I turned a corner u came across the darkening silhouette of Rainer with the sun set behind it and clouds darkening overtop it. It was a pretty remarkable sight. I hike for a few miles more with the sounds of elk calling everywhere until I got to camp and called it a night.