Day 63 (after some time off…) - PCT 2024
Trail miles hiked: 5.7
Ascent: 1,536.7 ft.
Descent: 571.5 ft.
I’m back!!! But I’ve flipped to mile 1719 on the PCT which puts me in Oregon. I decided to skip ahead 1200 miles from where l last got off in May, due to the terrain and my injury. It was a decision I did not make easily. I struggled coming to terms with potentially not completing the PCT this year. But the fact I’m out here again is wonderful. When I got off trail back at mile 517, I honestly didn’t know if I’d be back at all this year. My IT band was hurt. Badly hurt. But here I am! Cautiously optimistic as I head north.
I did physio twice weekly for six weeks which included laser, dry needling and shockwave. I went from barely able to climb a small flight of stairs to hiking up a mountain six weeks later. I’m not out of the woods yet, and I need to take things slowly while I ease back into hiker life.
I debated picking up where I left off but with the Sierras quickly to follow, I knew my knee couldn’t handle that stress so soon. It’s also extremely hot in the desert now. I also debated going sobo (southbound) and starting over from the Canadian border, however I was convinced by Lee, my trainer, that Washington is hard like the Sierras and rather doing a flip-flop hike would be the easiest to navigate my injury. Hence Oregon! Now don’t get me wrong, Oregon is a beautiful state and the snow covered volcanos are stunning, but perhaps the “purists” got to me a bit. “Are you even hiking the PCT if you don’t have a continuous footpath?” And all that jazz. It took some mental gymnastics to adjust my mindset to taking a different approach to the trail. Ultimately, it’s about the spirit of the trail.
AND! In exciting news, Krista (trail name Boomerang), part of the OG Campo/Cleef crew who left way back in Mount Laguna because she had to go back to teaching, has joined me in Oregon and we’re planning a slower start with plenty of stops and breaks at all of the little lake resorts along the way. She had joined Jo and Dean in Tehachapi and hiked north to Ridgecrest but decided that the terrain was too difficult without hiker legs. She too had doubts and hesitations so we’re navigating our new approach to the trail together and I’m just so grateful to have a friend along for the ride.
I flew into Medford, Oregon on Tuesday and Krista flew in on Wednesday. In true hiker fashion, we ate fast food; Chick-fil-A to be exact and caught up over a couple of ciders before hitting the trail together today.
We decided on a super chill 5.7 mile hike to ease back into trail life. It’s weird being in the trees versus the desert. People call Oregon the green tunnel. More forest than views but today did not disappoint. And our camp site overlooks Mount Shasta and Pilot Rock! One of the coolest campsites I’ve stayed at on the PCT yet. Mount Shasta is a potentially active volcano at the southern end of the Cascades. Although we are dry camping and had to pack in extra water to make it four miles in the morning to our next water source.
Stormy, a 2022 thru hiker, here to hike a few missing sections due to fire closures in her year, passed by around 6pm. She stopped to have a chat with us before heading out to camp at the next water source up the trail. It was wonderful seeing a fellow hiker! We’re early for the thru hikers as most of them are in NorCal or the Sierras still so we didn’t think we’d see anyone. FarOut doesn’t have many comments from hikers ahead of us so we’re going in to lead the charge.
But as I’m sure if you’ve kept up with my previous posts, you can probably guess that my shoes are causing issues. 5.7 miles in and they’re toast. I took a gamble and wore my Altra Olympus shoes hoping a repeat of what transpired in Mission Creek wouldn’t happen again. Well, guess what? A softer blow out of my heel occurred. I wasn’t able to find any shoes in stock in any of the nearby stores (via an online search here in camp) and I reached out in total distress to Aaron at Backcountry Foodie who searched for shoes, found, bought and had them shipped to Fish Lake Resort all in a matter of about 20 minutes. She’s amazing and I don’t know how I’d do this trail without her. As an international hiker, I don’t really have anyone to help with packages and shopping specific items here in the US. Shipping from Canada is prohibitively expensive. I won’t get my new shoes until next week so duct tape, mole skin and whatever else I can MacGyver will have to last. Thankfully we plan to take the next few days pretty easy so I’m hoping my ankles hold up with minor blisters.
I’m enjoying a beautiful sunset over Mount Shasta and hoping the current windstorm doesn’t blow my tent down overnight.
