Another Monday. Another cold morning. A very wet morning from excessive dew. We got up at 7am, were on trail at 7:50. We hiked in the woods with no views except for lots and lots of small lakes and ponds. We hiked all morning except for one break. We stopped for lunch at a small creek, the first non-lake water on trail since leaving Shelter Cove Resort. We tried to dry out gear while eating, but the amount of sunlight available in the forest was little and the sun quickly moved behind a canopy of trees.
I studied the data book points and decided we had only hiked 12.7 miles in 4 ½ hours. All morning we had tried, in vain, to get a cell phone signal so we could call for an updated weather forecast. There were many options discussed regarding miles done, miles to do, and whether to push all day or not or to stop at nearby Elk Lake Resort for burgers. We reached an open meadow about 20 minutes after leaving our lunch spot, where I finally got a signal. Abby, in Charlotte, was still at her office and helped me get a forecast. Rain moves in tomorrow afternoon.
After that call and while I was on the phone with Debi, some retiree day hikers emerged into the meadow. Tabasco visited with their group leader while I was still on the phone. He learned that the snow level will be 8500 feet; good news for us as we’ll be at 7000 feet and below. Our big concern with the approaching three days of weather has been snow and losing the trail, if too much accumulates. So our fears were put to rest somewhat. Tabasco also learned that Elk Lake Resort was probably closed, so we chose to continue hiking and the burger temptation was gone.
We had one of those late afternoon climbs hidden in the data book. The data book showed 2.4 miles to the next data point, with a 600 foot gain. Instead we gained 1200 feet, then dropped back down to the net gain of 600 feet. I was cussing the data book, which I do frequently because it is poorly written in comparison with great data book information on the AT. At least at the top of the climb we finally had a view for the first time in two days. Mt. Batchelor, Broken Top, and South Sister were close by.
As we hiked on in the late afternoon, we reached the base of South Sister, a large volcano, which still is expected to erupt again at some point in the future. We shot a brief video after getting some water for cooking at Sisters Mirror Lake. About 6:15 we found a clump of trees in the middle of a wide, long open area dominated by short grasses and volcano strata. We pitched our tents and began cooking as darkness quickly descended upon us. Tabasco said he felt better today than yesterday and that the only problem today was painful feet. My aches and pains were practically nil for a change, but dizziness and being lightheaded all morning and shoulder pain from the unbalanced pack kept me off on pace and I stumbled some this morning.
I called Jumpback and we plan to get to the highway tomorrow afternoon, so hopefully we’ll be at her place in Bend tomorrow night when the rain kicks in. Forgot to mention we saw a couple bull elk yesterday, the first and only large animals we’ve seen since leaving Ashland. The Oregon forests are very quiet, devoid of much wildlife. Though I’m tired and I don’t want to hike 23.3 miles tomorrow, I’ll do it so we can get into Bend for a break.
After tomorrow we’ll only have 117 miles left. We’re on the home stretch!!! I’m excited to finish, to get to Portland for a few days to rest and eat, and I’m excited about the visit to Charlotte to see friends and family. Then it’s back to Portland for winter and spring and time to make some money and see Debi, as well as spend time with Eric and Ashley and the pooches. I’m counting down the miles and days left in cold Oregon with winter on the way. Today’s weather: sunny again, thankfully. Low 30, high 55. Today’s miles: 26.5; cumulative: 2109.7.
