Twig Adventures

Category: Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

PCBCRT Day 31: Clear Creek Redemption

Bigfoot Trail, Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

Friday, Aug 4th, 2023, 0640-1930West Clear Creek to Poker Flats, BFT mm 7320 miles, Gain 5590′, Loss 3440′, elevation 5040′ I woke feeling pretty bruised and battered, not looking forward to more of the same abuse. I had a mile and a half to the junction with Clear Creek, where I hoped the trail might improve. But first I had to backtrack 200 yards to find the trail again. Good thing I stopped when I did the previous day because there was about a mile more of bad blowdowns, which would have been the nail in my coffin. I could barely have taken another step, I was so tired. Being in such a state leads to bad outcomes, as evidence of[…]

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PCBCRT Day 30: Bigfoot on my Back

Bigfoot Trail, Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

Thursday, Aug 3rd, 2023, 0615-1930Harrington Creek to West Fork Clear Creek, BFT mm 53.215 miles, Gain 6510′, Loss 4950′, elevation 2907′ There was no Bigfoot again, or any other large animals overnight. I heard nothing but the river…the next best white noise after surf. As remote as this place was, it seemed like a good spot to find a Bigfoot. Apparently they are quite stealthy, having never left one shred of DNA evidence. But I crept up on a bear, so maybe I could be as stealthy as Bigfoot. As for my day, it was one of those I’d rather not talk about. Extensive burn areas, endless blowdowns, bushwhacking, and constant trail finding. I expected to do battle with rough[…]

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PCBCRT Day 29: Into the Mountains and the Heat

Bigfoot Trail, Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

Wednesday, Aug 2nd, 2023, 0620-1840Little Bald Hills Trailhead to Harrington Creek, BFT mm 3828 miles, Gain 6420′, Loss 5190′, elevation 1365′ Bigfoot didn’t bother me overnight, nor did anything else. I enjoyed the easy trail leading to some balds first thing in the morning. The path was wide, well graded and maintained. I knew this would probably be the best trail until I hit the PCT in 100 miles, so I tried to savor it. It was probably the biggest climb I’d done this trip but it felt pretty easy. My pack was very heavy with food, though. At the top, I tried to get one last glance of the ocean, but it was covered in fog. It was bittersweet[…]

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PCBCRT Day 28: Bigfoot Trail…Into the Shadow of the Titans

Bigfoot Trail, Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

Tuesday, Aug 1st, 2023, 1500-1830Crescent City center to Little Bald Hills Trailhead, BFT mm 9.89 miles, Gain 800′, Loss 680′, elevation 125′ I wish I could say that my first night in a real bed in almost 3 weeks was restful but it was only so so. The bed, room and everything else was fine, I was just troubled by all that I wanted to get done the next morning. More than anything, I think I was just anxious to get back on track, to be making forward progress on a trail. It just gave me so much satisfaction to be moving with a clear goal in mind. I don’t know where this urge came from and whether it was[…]

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PCBCRT Day 26 & 27: Redwoods Wrap-up & Return to Crescent City

Bigfoot Trail, Oregon Coast Trail, Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

Sunday, July 30th, 2023, 0630-1700Gold Bluffs Beach Campground to Elk Creek hiker biker camp12 miles, Gain 1400′, Loss 1000′, elevation 700′ The beach campground was really quite nice, despite the smell of urine around my site. I’ll take quiet over anything else. The night before, some kids invited everyone in the campground to play capture the flag on the beach…with glow sticks. It sounded like fun and I almost joined in, but was too tired once it got dark…hiker midnight. I thought I might hear them playing the game, but the surf drowned out all other noises. While packing, I was reminded of another reason I didn’t like camping on the beach: centipedes! I could stare down aggressive dogs and[…]

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PCBCRT Day 25: Redwoods Redemption Day

Oregon Coast Trail, Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

Saturday, July 29th, 2023, 0630-1700Flint Ridge to Gold Bluffs Beach Campground 18 miles, Gain 1000′, Loss 1400′, elevation 10′(My mileage also reflects the side trip I took). I had some anxious and \ or reflective thoughts overnight. I was even wondering if I wanted to continue on with my thru-hike. I think a combination of not being around other hikers, taking this detour, and being a month into the trip put me in a funk. I was also tired of smelling my funk. As I laid down to sleep, I kept getting a whiff of something bad, and I couldn’t tell if it was my gear or body or both. I guess going 2 weeks without machine washing any of[…]

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PCBCRT Day 24: Redwoods National and State Parks

Oregon Coast Trail, Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

Friday, July 28th, 2023, 0630-1850South Crescent Beach to Flint Ridge24 miles, Gain 3000′, Loss 3000′, elevation 480′ Amazingly my tent dried over night, even though I could hear the surf just below, I was that close to the ocean. I walked the trail to an overlook of Crescent Beach, so beautiful in the early morning. I entered the park and began a climb into the hills and through the amazing redwoods. The trail leveled off on an old road that was barely recognizable, except where there was a remnant painted line on the pavement below the duff. It was a very pleasant stroll, flat and open so that I could stare up at the trees rather than down at my[…]

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PCBCRT Day 23: Crescent City Magic

Bigfoot Trail, Oregon Coast Trail, Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

Thursday, July 27th, 2023, 0700-2030Tolowa Dunes to the southern end of Crescent Beach15 miles, Gain 100′, Loss 100′, elevation 90′ My tent had a lot of condensation in the morning, but I actually expected worse. I tried to mop some of it up with my pack towel but there’s only so much one of those can do. I’d ended up going to bed in this went tent at the end of the day, since I never took the time to dry it…that’s how it goes sometimes. The beach was so much nicer than the day before. The wind finally died overnight and the tide was lower. A person’s experience on these coastal routes has everything to do with the tides…low[…]

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PCBCRT Day 22: Into California and Kayaking on the Smith River

Oregon Coast Trail, Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

Wednesday, July 26th, 2023, 1500-1940Harris Beach State Park to Tolowa Dunes10 miles, Gain 20′, Loss 20′, elevation 10′ There was a lot to do this day. I needed to buy some things in town, namely a fuel canister, finish the OCT at the OR\CA border, then meet with a kayak guide, Carl, to get a ride across the Smith River. I’d read the tip about his services from Buck30’s blog. He and Steady had finished the OCT and continued to hike about 100 miles of the California Coast Trail. To stay on the beach and avoid a long road walk around the Smith River, they rented a kayak to ferry across. Since the next section of my hike, the Bigfoot[…]

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PCBCRT Day 21: Samuel Boardman Corridor

Oregon Coast Trail, Pacific Coast Bigfoot Crest Rim Trail

Tuesday, July 24th, 2023, 0630-1630Crook Point to Harris Beach State Park20 miles, Gain 3000′, Loss 2800′, elevation 150′ It was a good call to stay where I did. Not only was it a fantastic site but it set me up well for a 3 mile walk on HWY 101 first thing. There’s usually no better time than the early morning. Even still, there were a surprising number of commercial trucks going by…but it makes sense that professional drivers enjoy the light traffic in the mornings, as well. The highway at least had a pretty wide shoulder and also some passing lanes at regular intervals. Oddly, only a few vehicles gave me the courtesy of moving over into the left lane[…]

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