Twig Adventures

PCBCRT Day 44: Out of the Heat

Tuesday, Aug 22nd, 2023, 0850-1930Soda Creek I-5 to Ash Camp & McCloud River27 miles, Gain 6870′, Loss 6580′, elevation 2390′ It rained all night, making me so happy and lucky to have stayed another day with Karaoke. I even had to get up to grab an extra blanket, it was chilly! I walked with Karaoke to work in the light rain and we took our picture with Smokey the Bear, who was warning of high fire danger. I made sure my umbrella was in the picture. Even with all the rain, the fire danger was still high and the many fires were still burning. I said goodby but hoped I’d see Karaoke again…I had to come back to climb Mt.[…]

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PCBCRT Halftime Report

Thursday, Aug 17th to Monday, Aug 21, 2023 In past years, I was always pretty motivated to keep moving during my thru-hikes. If I even took a double zero, it was only to let some severe weather pass or recover from an illness (like norovirus on the Grand Enchantment trail). I only took 5 zeros total on the PCT and 4 on the AT. This year was quite the exception. I took a lot of zeros on the Hayduke and even a week off to go back to do some hikes around Escalante. So many down days were somewhat needed, but also kind of messed with the momentum and motivation I felt for the hike. This thru-hike had a similar[…]

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PCBCRT Day 43: When Fires Start to Burn

Wednesday, Aug 16th, 2023, 0610-1200PCT SOBO mm 1133 to Castella18 miles, Gain 900′, Loss 5000′, elevation 2030′ Smoke filled the valley when I woke in the morning, not unlike my visita looking down upon Castle Crags in 2018. How ironic that I was racing to get through or around the first fire closure that year. Paradise was burning, along with numerous other fires throughout California and Oregon, yet somehow, miraculously, this was the only one that affected the trail during that time. I just made it through before the USFS officially closed the area and now it seemed I had just squeezed through, once again.  I checked the website to see that no fewer than 19 fire incidents in the[…]

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PCBCRT Day 42: On Cruise Control

Tuesday, Aug 15th, 2023, 0620-1930PCT SOBO mm 1102 to mm 113331.7 miles, Gain 3890′, Loss 3410′, elevation 6500′ I wouldn’t call it rain exactly, but it did spatter off and on all night. I was worried about more thunderstorms. The wind did pick up at times but there was no more lightning, thank goodness. I imagined the rain instantly evaporating as soon as it hit my tent and sure enough, everything was bone dry in the morning. But it was enough to have washed away previous footsteps, so for once the PCT felt…unused. It was exceptional quiet all day. I ran into the first NOBO around 8 am, then 4 more around lunch. There was a trickle of about 5[…]

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PCBCRT Day 41: Off Script & Much In Motion

Monday, Aug 14th, 2023, 0630-2030Stuart Fork Trail to Trinity Resort, then Scott mtn HWY 3 to PCT SOBO mm11025 + 7.5 miles, Gain 1160′, Loss 1170′, elevation 6040′ I began my day with a rough idea how it might go down, but almost zero knowledge of what I was jumping into. I was off script, but that’s what I loved about thru-hiking, it sometimes forced me to be flexible and open to just seeing what happens. My Hiking Project app at least told me that I had about 4 miles left of the trail, all downhill. I guessed the rest of the road to HWY 3 was 1-2 miles. The Trinity Alps Resort was listed on the map, so I[…]

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PCBCRT Day 40: Trinity Alps

Sunday, Aug 13th, 2023, 0700-1840Big Flat Campground to Stuart Fork Trail20 miles, Gain 3730′, Loss 5300′, elevation 3250′ I think this was the most quiet campground I ever stayed at. The night before, I was able to porky-pig (top but no bottoms) my way around my campsite until I dried off from my creek dunking…. that’s how quiet it was. I didn’t even see or hear people until I was on my way out in the morning. As a result, I slept like a rock. Actually, I slept behind a big rock too, concealed from the world in my rock-like tent…it blended in so well. The river valley was a refreshing 55 degrees as I set off…perfect for another big[…]

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PCBCRT Day 39: Packers Peak Bigfoot Trail Highpoint

Saturday, Aug 12th, 2023, 0630-1935Bingham Lake to Big Flat Campground, via Packers Peak 23 miles, Gain 6100′, Loss 8050′, elevation 5000′ The wind picked up overnight and my tent was flapping a bit. Even so, it was a pretty peaceful evening. I woke several times and just stared at the stars. They were so brilliant. I was sad to leave the lake but I had a big day ahead. I was finally going to get back on the Bigfoot Trail, so no telling how hard a day it might be. My planned miles put me somewhere on top or just past Packers Peak, the Highpoint for the trail at 7830′. It promised to be a tough climb…2k’ in ascent and[…]

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PCBCRT Day 38: The Russian Wilderness

Friday, Aug 11th, 2023, 1330-1835Etna Hwy to Bingham Lake13 miles, Gain 2980′, Loss 2100′, elevation 6870′ I could leave first thing in the morning, pretending I didn’t even visit town, just as I had planned. Or, I could do a proper town stop by lingering and eating lots of food. Which do you think I did? For starters, I found an extra shower token, so I woke up to a hot shower. While rummaging through the hiker box, I also found a bag of spare earbud gummies, which were the perfect replacement for one I lost. I also found a like-new pair of sun gloves, made from the fancy Outdoor Research glacier material that’s cooling when wet. I couldn’t believe[…]

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PCBCRT Day 37: Marble Mountains & Unplanned Town Stop

Thursday, Aug 10th, 2023, 0640-1930Paradise Lake to Etna Hwy, then hitch to Etna29.5 miles, Gain 5660′, Loss 5810′, elevation 6010′ I was surprised the deer didn’t bother me overnight. I made sure to pee really far away from my tent, so that seemed to do the trick. Maybe I was just too tired from the climb the day before to even notice them. I got a pretty late start, but still made almost 10 miles by 10 am. The morning was fantastic, with the landscape being so much better than I remembered it. Actually seeing the Marble Mountains was incredible. They were characterized by these white bands of marble, so dramatically different than the surrounding peaks. I couldn’t even see[…]

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PCBCRT Day 36: Running up that Hill

Wednesday, Aug 9th, 2023, 0610-1730Seiad Valley (Brian’s Place) to Paradise Lake, BFT mm 147.525 miles, Gain 6880′, Loss 2170′, elevation 6110′ The best way to break a vortex is to get out early! I was actually hoping for a 5 am dark start but 6 am was good enough. Everyone else was still asleep and the morning perfectly cool…what a change from 100 degrees the day before! With a 6000′ climb over nearly 20 miles, I couldn’t imagine a better tactic than what I employed. I walked the road as fast as I could, eating the 4 miles in 1 hour. I said goodbye to the Klamath river for the second time…I passed it a week before while hiking the[…]

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