Today was a tough PCT day! These mountains threw the book at us today. This section really is difficult, in some ways worse than the Sierras. We were up at 6:30am, on trail at 7:30, climbed 2500 feet through overgrown rocky trail. The sun showed itself briefly and we were able to see the snowy summit of stupendous Glacier Peak for a few minutes before we were engulfed in clouds.
Once up at 6000 feet we were up and down in open exposed ridge, and it was cold. Then we began a 2300 foot descent which ended at totally devastated/washed out Milk Creek. The sun was shining and the descent had been rough with rocky trail hidden by overgrowth, which we really had to take slow. At Milk Creek, more like a river, we looked for a place to ford (since the bridge was gone) so we could spread out all our gear to dry out.
After lunch and drying, we found a log to cross over the creek, then spent about an hour covering 300-400 yards of intense bushwhacking through dense, prickly plants to get back to the trail, since the flood wiped out and left a vertical cliff of loose rock and scree. Once on trail, we began another climb, with several switchbacked sections of trail gone. We had to go vertical bushwhacking again to reach the next switchback. Another 2500 foot steep climb awaited.
My feet hurt all day with shoes digging into the heel blisters. Knees hurt too. At least the calf muscle was doing o.k. Tabasco’s feet hurt, too, so we were slow. Late afternoon we made it across Fire Creek Pass, then dropped to Fire Creek, where Tabasco needed to break to rest his feet. Another round of steep climbs and descents followed and I was whipped by the time we stopped at a campsite alongside Glacier Creek. We got great afternoon views of a glacier just above our campsite and the brilliant white snow-laden Glacier Peak between the clouds.
Today we must have done 8000 feet of climbing, had to ford, bushwhack, hike through miles of undergrowth, and we didn’t see a soul except marmots, hawks, chipmunks and squirrels. I don’t think anyone can get any deeper into rugged wilderness than we did today. Several times I thought about how much trouble we would be in if we had an injury that prevented us from hiking or needed medical attention. It could be days before help would arrive. But it was a fun adventure day, beating us up physically. The views were as good as it gets, and I’ve decided that these are the most stunningly beautiful mountains I’ve ever hiked in, more so than the Sierras.
My camera isn’t cooperating, so I’m thankful Tabasco has his digital and is taking lots of pics and video. We stopped at 6pm, could have continued to Kennedy Creek, but we know that area took a major hit and acres are missing, so we’ll have to route-find tomorrow morning. Today kicked our butts! Today’s weather: partly cloudy, low 35, high 63. Today’s mileage: 17.7; hard cumulative miles: 1452.5.
PS. Looks like rain coming in tomorrow…cold rain. Ughh!!!
