Mile 1198

After our last post, we hitched out of Tahoe with a nice couple in a nice car. It seemed like our new lifestyle contrasted so strongly with their 

lifestyle that they were extremely interested in our journey and were full of questions. Yes, we do sleep outside in the dirt. Yes, for months at a time. As soon as we got out of the car and said our goodbyes and thank yous, we realized we had left three hats in town-

-two of which were handmade. The other, necessary to protect against the broiling sun. We decided to hitch back as the sun was setting. Anyone who knows hitching knows that this feels like a sin, wasting trail magic by acquiring a ride and then just going back to where we came from. We were lucky and a man coming from the ski lodge nearby picked us up. He was friends with one of the hikers we know, Sprinkles. In town, we found our hats and settled down at one of the last spots at the campground. In the middle of the night, the pitter patter of rain started and by morning, it was a full blown thunderstorm. Maybe we were lucky for forgetting our hats...safely in town during the storm. The weather let up in the afternoon and we hitched out, rather reluctantly, in the overcast weather. We were picked up by a woman, Rebecca, in a VW bus and her two very patient kids in the back seat. Despite our reluctance to leave the comforts of town, it felt good to be back on trail. The post storm sunset was fantastic and we camped overlooking the spectacular Echo Lake. The following days were so beautiful, rolling around in the mountains. The terrain climbs easily up to breezy ridges with wild flowers and wind-shaped trees and then back down to thick forests. We felt a bit more trail serendipity when we met Anne and Bill at Barker Pass trailhead. Meeting them was pretty special. Their lives are so full of adventure, living part time in a houseboat on the Northern California coast and part time in a fully equipped camper. They've completed the Washington section of the PCT together and Bill hiked the Oregon section when he was 19 in the 60s with an iron skillet and a 65 lb pack. They've hiked the Pyrenees mountains, which is something we definitely plan to do someday. We left feeling infected with a fresh sense of adventure as I hope our talk of our journey did the same for them. Back onto the trail and our miles are picking up with more determination than ever. Are we willing to set aside everything we think we'd rather be doing at home to complete this one goal? Yes! Absolutely, it is worth it. So with this new determination, we are striving to hike 25-30 miles a day. We got to the Red Moose Inn yesterday afternoon, not sure what to expect. Is it a trail angel or a business? When we walked up to the front door, the sign outside read, "Open for PCT hikers only." We were immediately handed towels for the shower and shown the laundry. With Margaret insisting with the softspoken sincerity that a mother would have that, no, we don't smell bad. That we should wear our dirt with pride. The place was decorated with letters and postcards from hikers. A framed map of the PCT hanging on the wall. Margaret's handknit scarves hanging on a rack in the mudroom. This was not just a business, this was a home. They allowed us all to camp down by the river in their backyard. Bill made ribs for dinner and Margaret made breakfast for everyone. Bill said that they made the prices as reasonable as they possibly could for the hikers. The best meals on the whole PCT alongside Teri and Joe's pancakes and taco salad and Tom's pancakes. We could tell that they were tired as 26 hikers had just passed through two days before, but they fed everyone with care and grace as if they were cooking for family. Everyone we meet has a profound affect on us, but Bill and Margaret have rearranged their whole business to support us dirty hikers. I don't think any hiker can overlook how difficult this must be, how hard they must work. And this will stick with us for the rest of our lives. It's been a great day here in Sierra City and the Red Moose Inn. Now, we're sitting at the bar, watching the Olympics, eating raspberry sorbet, and drinking $1.50 ales. A thru hiker's life is tough! We will be in Belden soon, awaiting news on a closure of 13 miles of trail due to a small wildfire near the halfway mark. Fingers crossed that it will be put out before we get there so that we don't have to be rerouted around the celebratory midpoint. Miss and love everyone!

Hi everyone!

We're still having a great time and are well past the thousand mile mark at mile 1093! This is huge, but what's more huge is that we are only a week and a half from the halfway point.  We have had a nice weekend in Tahoe and were happy to find that Brett's parents made the long journey up for this weekend as well. We actually stayed in Carson City (which turned out to be a great trail town) and travelled back and forth from there and Tahoe. We saw Moonrise Kingdom. We enjoyed a real hotel room which was a sweet surprise because we had been planning on staying in a campground. We ate the most ridiculous portions you've ever seen at the Harrah's buffet. It was so nice to be full for once. As if our hiker hunger wasn't already out of control, it has now doubled! The terrain should be much easier from now on and we're going much faster now. 25 miles a day instead of 15. At this point in the trip, we're a little homesick and craving time to do the things we like to do. Be with friends and family. Go to a concert. Make something. Read. Go to the beach. Relax in the sun and not think about miles. Brew beer. Work. Make a home. The trip demands all of our time, but we both agree that the payoff and lessons learned will be sweeter than anything we could be doing at home. And so, we are motivated to keep putting one foot in front of the other.  The trip also continues to evolve as we get ever closer to Oregon and it's volcanic rock, green, green forests, ferns, and berries. I can't wait for berries! Not too long now.

Love to everyone!


P.S. We've been hearing that a lot of people are having trouble leaving comments here. That the comment disappears. I don't know how to fix this, but if you'd like to leave a comment, you can follow the facebook link at the top of the screen and leave it there. You can also email us at GoingNomadPCT@gmail.com

Goodbye to the High Sierra

July 6, 2012

We woke early this morning looking out on Purple Lake, excited to get into town. This has been our longest and most difficult stretch between town stops. Eight days and six mountain passes in some of the highest mountains in the lower 48. We cowboy camped so that we could make a quick dash for town in the morning, but the lake's moisture left our sleeping bags soaked with dew. We packed, chatted with some people passing by, had a small breakfast and plenty of coffee to fuel our run for town, and set out. Town fever set in as soon as we set foot on trail and the miles seemed to melt away. 13 miles...10 miles...5.5 miles...5 miles...2.5 miles...Mammoth, here we come! As we got closer to the tourist stops, Devil's Postpile and Rainbow Falls, the trail became more and more packed with day hikers and people just starting their journeys on the JMT, shiny and new. We had tried our best to keep clean, but after eight days without laundry or a proper shower, we weren't feeling too fresh. In the presence of these people, the contrast stung, but we also couldn't help but puff up with pride for what we had just accomplished. What we had just conquered. Our filth seemed to highlight what a different breed of hiker we are. We passed the 900 mile mark. The familiar old arrangement of stones. I chuckled at the thought of day hikers stopping to wonder at its meaning. When it means so much to us. This last 100 miles has probably meant the most. We have struggled and strived through the High Sierra. We have experienced that adrenaline rush and exhileration of climbing over a pass and seeing a whole new landscape laid out before us. The quick breath and thin air cleansing and then we descend into a new canyon, flying faster and faster down the mountain, fueled by adrenaline. We have also felt the low of being at the bottom of a canyon, looking up at the next pass we have to climb. Squinting into the sun, wondering which one is the pass and where this trail is dragging us. Feeling every ounce of energy in our bodies depleted. The Sierras hit us hard, even after over 700 miles behind us. We summited Whitney and passed through Forrester before we even knew what hit us. After our stop in Lone Pine, after celebrating the ease of going over these two huge formations, we headed back to the trail over Kearsarge Pass. That day, we did both Kearsarge and Glen Passes, arriving to our campsite at 10pm. Maybe it was too much elevation gain and loss in one day, maybe it was the rumor that it's the hardest pass going to our heads, but when we headed out the next day with the goal of going over Pinchot Pass, our energy crashed. We kept thinking that we were further than we were based on the number of hours we'd been walking and found that we were dragging ourselves 1mph when we typically go 2.5 to 3 mph. This would mean that an 8 mile ascent would take all of eight hours compared to a little over three hours. We finally decided to call it a day, a few miles before the pass. A full night's sleep and our energy still hadn't returned in the morning and we were really starting to wonder if our bodies were depleted of calories, nutrients, electrolytes, water, or rest. We huffed and puffed our way to the top and relaxed at the top with a couple of other hikers. The speed picked up a bit on the way down and, miraculously, by the end of the day, our spirits and energy levels were much lifted. We went over Mather Pass with strong legs and celebrated Brett's birthday by enjoying the view at the top. The next day, we spent some time at the river napping and washing up and made the long, beautiful journey toward Muir Pass. This section of the Sierras has been the most beautiful yet. Suddenly, the landscape is filled with lush forests and waterfalls everywhere. We climb into new plateaus of lakes and creeks and wild flowers. There are wild onions everywhere that are good to eat right out of the ground. We camped overlooking a waterfall and a lake and woke up to find a buck nibbling at our cooking equipment. We just watched it for a long time, curiously poking around our campsite. We were feeling much, much better by now and climbed up to the top of Muir Pass easily. There's a really cool rock hut at the top and we spent a while there hanging out with some fellow PCT hikers. The Sierra section of the PCT is also considered the JMT (John Muiir Trail). There are so many options for which towns people can resupply in, hot springs and resorts to hang out at, that PCT hikers leapfrog each other. People that we were hiking with for weeks prior could have chosen different town stops and everyone gets jumbled up. Most of the people we see out here are thru hiking the JMT so it was really nice to see familiar faces and people that have been through the same journey we've been through. It is starting to mean more and more. The next two passes after Muir were Selden and Silver, which were much smaller and easier. The JMT hikers start North to South and these are some of their first passes. PCT hikers do all of the high passes first, making their way North to the smaller passes as we exit the Sierras. The JMT hikers gradually work up to the higher passes as they head South. The people we met at these passes were just starting out with the passes as we were finishing them. They seemed exhausted as we were feeling rejuvenated and alive with the accomplishment. We made it to Red's Meadow General Store where the bus picks up hikers and tourists to take them into the town of Mammoth Lakes. It was a small reunion of PCT hikers and then we boarded the bus.

July 9, 2012
Hello from Clocktower Tavern in Mammoth. Setting out tonight. This weekend, we had the incredible luxury of staying at a condo owned by Brett's Uncle's friend. We didn't want to get our hopes up about it and when we left Bishop it was just a maybe, but you know it was all we thought about for three days of hiking before getting into town. What we would be able to cook. Movies we could rent. Popcorn and a fire. Soaking in a tub. Real beds. I feel like we still have to pinch ourselves to believe it was real. We had such an incredible time. Thank you Mark and Lawrence! We also had a great time with Brett's parents and the surprise that his brother, sister-in-law and brand new baby neice came up too. We really appreciate you guys making the long journey up. This was the most relaxing break we've had yet and it was so needed. It's hard to say goodbye to town and venture out to trail again, but we'll be in Tuolomne in a couple of days which is said to be one of the most incredible parts of trail. Then South Lake Tahoe soon soon soon. Can't wait!

Love to everyone. Happy birthday, Mom!

Mt. Whitney

We clambered all the way to the top of Mt. Whitney today! It's the tallest peak in the lower 48 at 14,505 feet. This is actually a side trip off of the PCT so we made our base camp at Guitar Lake about halfway up the back side of the mountain. At this point in the trip, the climb was...kind of easy. The hard part was that we were huffing and puffing for air, plus that I'm terribly afraid of heights and went wobbly a few times on the way up. That just added to the excitement and makes it impossible to forget that it's the highest peak. As we got closer to the top, it got colder and colder. We stopped to put jackets on and a man on his way down pointed out where the peak was. "Just above that snow patch." As we got closer, we started to see little figures moving around on the snow patch and realized that we'd be going right through it. On a steep, rocky mountainside. I tried to keep my mind calm, moving through rocky passes. A few times, the mountain would open up into a window view of Lone Pine, our previous town stop. Finally, it was our turn to make our way through the snow and the final ascent to the top. The snow has been walked through so much that it is actually melted down in the middle, creating a wall and security. This part was really fun and then, soon after, we could see the hut at the peak. It was really cold on top; especially for a sunny day. We hung out for a while behind a rock wind block and had lunch. There were tons of people up there and we chatted with a few, finding out all the ways people has come up and all the trails they were on. Some were day-hiking up from Whitney Portal. Some were thru hiking the John Muir Trail. Some had taken the technical route with a guide. When we started to get chilled, we headed back down, flying this time. As we got back to our base camp and Whitney was in the background, we started to get a little nostalgic about it. Now we can call Mt. Whitney our home as well as the PCT.