Day 22
Start: Polique Canyon
Finish: Deep Creek Bridge
Daily Mileage: 19.3
PCT Mile: 298.5
I don’t think the night got as cold as forecast. It was below freezing but maybe just barely. I slept well in any case; better than in the bed at the hostel.
Cookie Monster and I hit the trail and were immediately back into the snow. However, with the freeze overnight, the snow had solidified and we were no longer postholing. So much easier to make progress. It was even slippery in the boot tracks, so we put on our microspikes.
Progress was slow even with the firmed up snow, but we picked away at it, knowing that we were dropping elevation and would soon be done with it.
We entered a burn area which allowed more light in than the forest, and the snow quickly became only patches, and then eventually disappeared. We can handle the snow and we will be seeing a lot more of it ahead, but it is so much easier and more pleasant to cruise along on good trail.
Out of the snow, we paralleled a ridge covered with snow for many miles while ours remained snow free at similar elevation. I am constantly amazed by the effect of the slightest changes in slope angle with snow being present or absent. It is such a profound impact.
Escaping the snow, we continued our descent into the desert. We traded the cold snow for warm then hot dirt and sand. Pine forests to high desert.
Though our first few miles were slow, after we were done with the snow we knew we would have plenty of time for the remaining miles of the day. We weren’t completely sure where we would end up, but we started taking breaks every 2-3 miles because we could. Why rush to camp when you can make your way to the same place more leisurely. Anyone who knows me will be shocked, but I am learning to enjoy it.
We joined a stream that we would be following or roughly paralleling for the rest of the day. There were many side streams feeding it letting us carry only a liter of water at a time which is fantastic out here. The terrain varied a lot throughout the day from thick forest with overgrown trail, old burn areas, typical high desert, and everything in between. Especially with starting in the snow this morning, the day was incredibly dynamic with ever changing scenery.
We had to cross the stream a few times. CM decided to just get his feet wet. I boulder hopped the first crossing, taking a committed leap from one to the next, but was relegated to wading the next two crossings.
We continued generally downward the entire day and ended up 3,000 feet lower. We camped under the bridge over Deep Creek on a sandbar next to the stream. It was warmer at the lower elevation so we could relax on the sand with our shoes off while watching the neighborhood duck chatter at us begging for handouts.
Today was extremely varied and we experienced cold, heat, snow, sand, forest, open landscape, and everything in between. It was a pleasant, relaxed day of hiking and we still got 19 miles in without trying too hard.
