Start: McMillan Park
Finish: Hopkins Lake
Daily Mileage: 28.7
PCT Mile: 2648.9
I awoke still tired. We have been doing a lot of miles even if they were a bit easier for a couple days on the road. We are in something of a race to the finish to get done with the trail when my girlfriend is free to pick us up without waiting 4 more day somewhere until she is next available. Honeybun and I were also ready to finish the trail and move on. We’ve been on it for 5 months, and the scenery just isn’t getting new enough to continue spending much more time out here. I would rather come back at some point when I can appreciate it more.
We had 18 more miles to reach the PCT and complete our 117 mile fire bypass. However, I knew this trail would be far more challenging than the PCT since it is lesser used and steeper. On the PCT 18 miles could be done by noon or so, but who knows what these miles of trail would have in store for us.
We set out on a morning of damp, with the vegetation closely bounding and overlapping the trail heavy with condensation, immediately soaking our legs and shoes. We were enveloped in the clouds and couldn’t see much, but it was a pleasant landscape with the eerie views disappearing into the mist.
The trail did a series of steep ups and downs following along the Jackita Ridge, and we soon arrived at the old shelter at Devil’s Park, mired in the thick clouds. Probably a nice open landscape but I couldn’t tell this time.
The ridge we were traversing was also beautiful with much bare rock at and above treeline. All of this made the steeper hiking on the less used and maintained trail well worthwhile, though slower. After booking it down a well maintained and easily graded trail like the PCT for so long, it can be mentally challenging to go at a slower pace than you are used to and see the miles not ticking right by. It is best to know that is going to happen so you are not disappointed that you aren’t making the progress you once were.
The trail kept on steep but beautiful until we reached Devil’s Pass where we took first lunch and then turned off the Devil’s Dome Loop. We rejoined the Pacific Northwest Trail on the Devil’s Ridge Trail for our last 8 miles back to the PCT. However, the landscape was changing. We were in more forest with fewer clear views. The forest appeared sick though. The trees around us were brown and dead at their tips; it was every single tree, not just something isolated. You could look out across the valley below us and see a see of brown tinged trees. I hadn’t seen something like this before, and it was upsetting that it was so widely prevalent as far as the eye could see across this wilderness area. I took pictures and figured I would report it to the forest service in case they weren’t already aware.
We soon bumped into a backcountry ranger on patrol, actually the first we had seen for the entire hike and we were on our last full day before reaching Canada. She gave us her standard speech on burying waste and protecting food from bears, but we also discussed the trees. She had noticed the dead tips and had messaged her boss about it. Their preliminary thought was some sort of moth attack, but she encouraged me to take pictures and submit my observations so they would have more information. This ranger had patrolled this trail in July and hadn’t noticed this then, so it is something that she thought had come on relatively quickly.
We continued on the less maintained but relatively clear trail, climbing up to Sky Pilot Pass where we had second lunch. This was only 5 miles from first lunch, but with the slower going it was still the right time for us to take lunch. I had wanted to get back to the PCT for lunch as a goal, but it just wasn’t going to work. At least we were able to dry our tents of condensation from the night before. The ranger said there could be rain this afternoon, so you have to take any opportunity you can to care for your gear.
Downhill and just a few more miles until we reached Holman Pass where we happily rejoined the PCT once again, with a clear path ahead to get to Canada, where nothing else should stand in our way! It was a great motivating event to get back to the trail after the days of detour around fires. We even saw our first PCT thru-hiker in 6 days since leaving Stevens Pass coming back from reaching the border.
It was amazing being back on the PCT. The treadway was easy and we could resume our normal pace, flying along at 3mph or greater. This was our normal, and after doing if for so many months it is challenging to do anything else.
We cruised up the next climb to Rock Pass. The PCT was so familiar that you could just look out over the mountains and know where the trail would head since it was in our blood now. It also stayed high as the trail does, affording its typical views over the mountain landscapes from around the ever lowering treeline. We had some great views over some of the last great mountains on the trail.
Crossing Rock Pass, the clouds were beginning to thicken and darken. Maybe what the ranger had said about rain and storms was coming to fruition. There was nothing we could do but continue on hiking. We wanted to get as close to Canada as we could to finish earlier tomorrow and allow enough time to drive home.
We climbed the barren Woody Pass where several thru-hikers were camped. It was about 6pm, but we were still going strong, motivated by our proximity to Canada. We were hearing thunder in the distance, and soon it started to sprinkle on us. We got out our rain gear since we only had one small, shallow climb left before Canada. Since my pack is made out of Ultra which is supposed to be water resistant, I made the decision to not bag my gear and let my pack do the work for the rain I expected to be short lived.
The rain picked up and we were in light to moderate rain for the next hour, though I stayed dry in my minimal rain gear. Thunderstorm cells passed around us. There was much thunder which I am now almost traumatized by since it always leads to more fires out here. However, nothing was going to stop us from reaching Canada now. I don’t care what we had to dash through or around, we were going to make it.
Most of the thunder was a distance away, but we had one strong bolt of lightning followed less than a second later by its thunder. That was pretty close for comfort, but we were in and out of trees half way up a ridge. Not the best or worst place for us to be. Perhaps we should have stopped for a bit, but we were motivated on to get to camp so we hurried forward.
Luckily, that was the only close lightning of the storm, and after an hour the rain started to taper off. We crested our last rise of the trail before Canada and started a descent to Hopkins Lake where we had decided to camp for the night. We had thought about pushing further to the last pass, but this was good enough, and seemed fitting to camp next to an alpine lake in a bowl for our last night before Canada.
We got to camp late again, but it allowed time for the rain to stop so we wouldn’t have to set up in it. There were several other hikers set up already, and it took some wandering before we found a couple sheltered spots in the trees to set up in.
When I opened my pack, I found everything soaked. Though the rain wasn’t even hard or persistent enough to wet under pine trees, it somehow worked its way through the waterproof Ultra pack material and into my gear in the short time. My down sleeping bag was more wet than I have ever had on trail for my entire 12,000 miles of backpacking. However, it was due to the decision I made to not bag my gear in the nyloflume sack I had stuffed in the bottom of my pack. I haven’t been using it on this trail due to the rarity of rain, and didn’t want to deal with it daily, wearing it out. I paid for my decision though, but there was nothing to do but deal with it.
It was getting dark and we had dinner from our tents. My bag was wet through, and cold and clammy on the inside. What a way to spend my last night on trail. But it is the last night, and I can put it in a dryer tomorrow. It was not too cold, and I can survive until morning, so there is nothing to do but try to go to bed and deal with the consequences of my decision.
