A Quest For Canada

I would like to say beforehand that this film is a documentation of just one experience on the Pacific Crest Trail an experience that can be similar to others but not replicated unique to my time on the trail my goal at the beginning of this adventure was to document The Human Experience on trail the pain and the joy the discomfort and the reward I expected to find and through hiking and how those emotions are shared with the people you share the trail with while I feel I may have fell short of these goals at times I am proud to be able to share with you the amazing journey that is the Pacific Crest Trail now I could have cut half the scenes out to make the film shorter but selfishly I don't think I can part with any of the memories that are embedded within them I could have made it into a series I suppose to make it more digestible but that wasn't my experience The Experience I'm sharing occurred day after day until weeks blurred together and the time between borders grew into its own lifetime so the film remains one continuous documentation of a walk on the Pacific Crest Trail a quest for Canada foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] 500 miles before no no [Music] foreign [Music] this is my life ready oh yeah that's the stuff so cold uphill [Music] it's not the desert but it's so hot [Music] [Applause] onward [Music] s [Music] the photo you're looking at is of two brothers about to start an adventure they're both a bit nervous one of them's a bit carsick and neither of them know exactly what to expect with hopefully everything they need and nothing more packed onto their backs it's the 14th of May 2021 after our flight from Austin the day before we find ourselves sitting atop this unassuming Hill an hour east of San Diego divided in half by the U.S Mexico border it's home to the start of an expedition traveled by foot across the country from border to border two thousand six hundred and fifty two miles hundreds start at one side or the other every year but approximately only sixty percent see the end it's a challenge and a goal that I'd had my sights on for about three years and having just finished up my time in the Navy I can't think of a better opportunity to send it [Music] the first days on trail are just like the first days of most things I suppose there's excitement and then there's an awkward period in this case we both knew how to hike and how to camp but there's all these inefficiencies and small details that you overlook you have to learn to trust yourself and to trust your gear yeah there's so much floating in here I'm drinking my other water first [Music] it's actually not that bad foreign 27 miles in by the end of day two and our bodies started to show the radical change in lifestyle that we had taken on aches and pains in your shoulders and back as well as blisters on your feet might leave you wondering if you'll even make it to the resupply in Julian but you've been dreaming of this and there's no way you're going to end it this early [Music] it's pretty good foreign ERS and miles [Music] thank you foreign [Music] [Music] foreign like most Adventures things were going to get harder before they got easier and on our fourth day into the desert Cole's IT band was having a hard time adjusting to the miles that we were putting on our legs with it becoming painful to walk we found ourselves waiting out the day after hiking just 10 miles despite a strong urge to push for Julian and our goal for that day we made camp and let our bodies rest an important detail I think as some push for an Unwritten expectation of 20-mile days the physical stress of that can provoke injury and bring some through hikes to an early end the next morning we made the four miles to the highway where we hitchhiked to Julian we were quickly picked up by a trail angel a term designated to the community of people to provide an array of services for through hikers called Trail magic out of the kindness of their hearts now while hitchhiking is Taboo in the states it's pretty much the main mode of transportation for through hikers going to town and kind of expected by the locals as they see hikers seasonally every year Julian has a great introduction to Trail towns as your first real resupply hiker hunger set in quick for us and thankfully the deli Brewery and pie shop are all within a short walk of each other Julian also hosts a small PCT gear shop called two foot Adventures where we picked up some gear to try and help with Cole's IT band anxious to get back on trail we only spent one night in Julian before hitching back but not before doing some much needed laundry that's disgusting yeah it's so gross despite our efforts with the compression knee sleeves and the massage ball coal was still experiencing pain in his knee starting with the day that we left Julian the miles that we made were completely dependent on the distance we could cover before the pain started to set in [Music] I think both of us were starting to get pretty nervous about the future of our trip but we would do what we could with what we had steak ground is too loose I'd like to see you get yours up without any problems [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] on the 10th day we reach somewhat of an iconic spot on the PCT Mike's place from what we'd seen from previous hikers and with Kohl's aching me we were both pretty excited to take an afternoon off at Mike's place however to our disappointment Mike's place was bacon all we ended up finding there was some much needed water tanks but even though Mike's place was vacant it was still a very special spot on trail for Cole and I because just moments after we had gotten there a huge group of hikers came from down Trail and even though we knew there were a lot of people attempting the same Journey we were this was the first real group that we had ran into and introduced tidbits blue cowbell Emma later known as Terminator Rambo Rudolph and Lieutenant Dan and just a couple of days later we would meet two more hikers from the group sunshine and day wall this new group of hikers were kind enough to let Cole and I hike to Paradise Valley Cafe with them and to colonize surprise later at Paradise Valley Cafe we would be invited to share a cabin with some of them in the town of Idlewild and being able to say yes to stuff like that is one of the best things about the trail don't confine yourself to a specific schedule allow yourself to do things as they happen or stay in Idlewild was everything that we needed sitting on the west side of Mount San Jacinto it was an exciting preview of the Alpine environment that we were going to be hiking into in the next couple days [Music] [Music] happy birthday to you [Music] [Music] what are we on Mile when 151 loses balance so we never taught him to escape but he's learning innocent they're smart dogs on the other side of town from where we were staying there was a little gear shop called Nomad Adventures while we were there Cole decided to trade out his Solomon hiking shoes for the more popular Ultra lone Peaks with some new gear the best resupply that we'd had thus far and our new Trail family we felt prepared to take on Mount San Jacinto at nearly 11 000 feet it was the highest elevation that either of us had hiked at before amazing birthday guys this is definitely oh my gosh we spent two days at the cabin in Idlewild before returning to the trail at mile 151. we expected to lose our new hiking group that afternoon when Cole's knee would flare up however we were happily surprised that the new shoes that Cole picked up seemed to have fixed his knee problem this is an important detail for those planning a through hike knowing what gear works best for you before stepping off can make all the difference switching to a different shoe cured the pain overnight and probably saved Cole's hike and it was just in time too because the pace with the trail family would be a lot faster than the pace that just the two of us had maintained [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] the first day approaching Mount San Jacinto we would hike 19 miles and well into the night many miles [Music] a PCT doesn't actually reach the summit of Mount San Jacinto it breaks for the West looping around to the other side however there is a five and a half mile side Trail that'll take you directly to the summit and back down onto the other side to meet back up with the PCT when we reach the junction tidbits Cole and I broke off from the main group to push for the summit [Music] [Music] thank you [Music] we would later link back up that evening at a campsite on the North Side of the Mountain at nearly a 20 mile day and an 18 and a half mile water carry for me heading down Mount San Jacinto was one of the harder days on trail all the downhill pounding on my knees and dehydration quickly brought on a splitting headache and exhaustion as you zigzag down the switchbacks you'll quickly find yourself back in the low desert angel [Music] but what's better at treating dehydration than pizza and beer and thanks to Blue we were able to have just that that night at our campsite underneath the Interstate 10 Bridge but as it would turn out that night would sort of be our farewell to bloom unfortunately the next morning he would be leaving us and after our goodbyes we would be setting off into the desert moving from water source to water source on our way to our next resupply point at Big Bear Lake Big Bear Lake would turn out to be much like Idlewild with the trail family taking a zero a rest day with zero miles hiked and a small tourist-based town we'd do laundry and move from Diner to diner restaurant to restaurant taking it easy before setting back out into the desert [Applause] oh my gosh you're all right I so one of the things that became very important in our day today was foot care and one of the most common things that people experience on the trail are blisters and as you could see from pretty much the first week of our hike blisters were something that we had been dealing with pretty much the whole time now there are a couple different strategies when dealing with blisters involving different tapes and mole skins but for Cole and I we would pop them in the evening let them dry out overnight and then the following morning wrap the blisters and any hot spots and athletic tape in an attempt to reduce the friction and unfortunately at least for us it seems to only get more painful the farther into the desert you get and at this point I had introduced stretching and massaging the bottoms of my feet in the morning in the afternoon as often as I could with the massage ball we had picked up in Julian this seemed to serve as a pretty good warm-up for my feet before I loaded them that day with the weight of the pack and the miles that we would hike and maintaining your physical health isn't the only thing that could have a major impact on your hike I had started the hike with a z-packs or call 62 liter although the pack has an interesting Concept in its design with its ultra light carbon fiber frame I found it to be a little bit too weak for the weight that I was carrying and it eventually snapped sending little splinters of carbon fiber into the back of my arm and putting all the weight of my pack onto my shoulders but thankfully and I can't overstate how generous people can be on trail cowbell's boyfriend a guy I had only just met who had come to visit her in Big Bear insisted that I borrow his car to drive over an hour to Nomad Ventures at Joshua Tree National Park so that I could get a new pack and when I was able to switch to a Gregory baltoro 75 liter it made all the difference [Music] [Music] as we passed mile 300 we reached the Oasis I felt I so desperately needed [Music] thank you Deep Creek Hot Springs the perfect therapeutic mixture of thermal hot spring and Cool Desert Creek place for an afternoon siesta [Music] food only end up staying an afternoon because the next day we would reach Silverwood Lake which unfortunately would turn out to be the place that we would say our goodbyes to cowbell after a nap at the lake and a lunchtime pizza party we would say our goodbyes oh yeah you made in trail Jesus and that put our Trail family at just four with tidbits sunshine and Cole and I Rambo Lieutenant Dan and AWOL had all either slowed down or chosen to make other resupply stops and we lost them around Mount San Jacinto and Baloo had decided to get off Trail just after Interstate 10. shortly after Rudolph would take an extended break off Trail we'd seen Emma on trail here and there but nobody had seen her since the hot springs and now cowbell at Silverwood Lake but what can you do but keep on walking so the four of us pushed on because we had a mission to accomplish that evening [Music] [Music] thank you at Mile 341 just a short walk from the trail would be the famous Mickey D's at Cajon Pass and I thank all of us at that point We're Dreaming of big mess [Music] by that point we were just east of Los Angeles and after spending a much needed night in a hotel room we left the next day passing underneath the Interstate 15 Bridge with only one goal to put more of the desert behind us on our way to Wrightwood [Music] foreign [Music] Wrightwood wasn't like some of the other resupply stops that we've had before where we'd slow down and take a zero we made it in for breakfast and we would be out shortly after lunch because at that point the summer months were only getting hotter and we had adopted a new strategy make it out of the desert as fast as we could that afternoon we were back at it with the weight of a fresh resupply on our backs [Music] thank you [Music] [Applause] are you just filming me getting teeth eating Cheez-Its that's exactly what I'm doing tell you've lost weight while yep definitely lost uh like muscle upper body yep foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] cold camping spot in the bushes about to walk into the sun So Glorious it's a day is day 30 and by the end of the day we will be approaching mile 500. 500. pretty dope nice you gotta cross that line with your second foot there [Music] oh here we go you're gonna cross 500. [Music] [Laughter] yeah what do you feel good it's been reflected you feel like you just walked 500 Miles yeah [Laughter] they're different human beings it feels better than hitting the 300 the day after reaching mile 500 we would reach another unique spot to the PCT so basically the desert kind of flattens out into the Western arm of the Mojave and the first thing that you come up to is this property known as hikertown hiker town is unique to the PCT it's got kind of a Bonanza movie Set kind of vibe going on it's really a good spot for hikers to pull over and take an afternoon off and prepare for the infamous Aqueduct section for us our stay at hiker town was just an afternoon a quick resupply at the general store down the street and an attempt at an afternoon nap because just ahead of us the trail would follow the LA Aqueduct North for 24 miles of open desert with no water sources that's a six liter water carry now most will set out in the evening from hiker town to take advantage of the cool night air for us we hiked 10 and a half hours and covered the entire stretch that night mind you we had already hiked 11 miles that morning to get to hikertown [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign foreign the next day the rising Hot Summer Sun would Rob us of any sleep that we tried to get [Music] um [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] by popular vote we would stay in Tehachapi for a zero before starting the last section of the desert [Music] I once heard a hiker refer to their diet as being a 10 year old with no rules and I think that probably applies more and more the farther you get Pop-Tarts and Oreos chips and candy all became essential items in our recently leaving Tehachapi well rested we knew that the last 150 miles of the desert was going to be some of the most challenging it was mid-june and at this point the heat was starting to become a real concern we had read the afternoon before we left that farther south on the PCT a hiker had tragically succumbed to the heat one woman is dead signed after collapsing in triple digit heat along the Pacific Crest Trail and while night hiking was a better option than being under the sun all day we had learned after the aqueduct that sleeping during the middle of the day wasn't really much of an option either so our strategy would change we would resort to early hiking and afternoon naps to avoid the Heat and exhaustion foreign [Music] foreign [Music] I don't know what the temperature actually is but it's hot let's just talk to [Music] tidbits he's out less than a leader talks to Blade less than a liter Sunshine one later me lesson later crash any water [Music] actually hot water so thankful for every opportunity that I get to walk into a business purchase cold beverage for any time in your house just turn on the sink yeah foreign [Music] [Music] [Applause] thank you [Music] so there's actually a dry stretch on this section of Trail it's about 35 miles long and on foot that could take about a day and a half because of this this section as well as others rely heavily on water caches provided by Trail Angels at no expense to the hikers and really without their generosity these sections would be far more difficult and sometimes impossible [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] spot foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] it might be the most anticipated mile marker on the PCT [Music] it marks your last day in the desert but most importantly it marks your first day in the Sierra Nevadas I had been awaiting the Sierra Nevadas since the day that I learned of the Pacific Crest Trail and if I'm being honest it's kind of the reason that I chose to do it in the first place for me it wasn't just a mountain range it was an arena full of excitement for the unknown a place to test yourself waiting for you just two miles up from the 700 mile marker is Kennedy Meadows a small community overrun with hikers during the summer months and a welcome sight after such a grueling section in past years the General Store had become somewhat of an iconic stop for Kennedy Meadows and it's still a good option for a basic resupply but one of my best zeros on trail was at Grumpy Bears retreat okay it does it's much better here [Music] hosting a bar and grill serving Three Square meals a day laundry outdoor showers and a specialized PCT gear shop just next door it's pretty hard to ask for much more as a hiker Triple Crown Outfitters right next to Grumpy Bears is squared away in every aspect you could do an entire pack overhaul there if you needed to and the expertise of the owners changed the way I hike completely at that point in our trip I had pretty much accepted that I was going to be getting three to five blisters a day for the rest of our trip or until the skin on my feet was gone Triple Crown recommended that I trade in my shoes for a size or two up and wearing Gingy toe sock liners underneath my darn Tufts and this completely changed the game for my feet [Music] with Kennedy Meadows being a stop that pretty much every hiker makes there were so many people there that we were able to either catch back up with or meet for the first time we got to meet Chuck sachibom and Grant we even got to link back up with AWOL [Music] once we checked all the boxes for our zero Kennedy Meadows was a place I didn't really want to leave yet but the pull for the Sierras was Stronger so we set out one foot in front of the other with an excitement that I hadn't had in a while [Music] foreign [Music] maybe 10 miles outside of Kennedy Meadows thank you Alpine forest and 75 degree weather couldn't have asked for a better or quicker transition out of the desert This Is The Life [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] thank you [Applause] third day in the Sierra this place is massive on the third day out from Kennedy Meadows we staged to climb Whitney at the cabtree ranger station on the west side with the plan to Summit at sunrise we set our alarms for midnight at this point putting miles behind you is no big deal but something the desert couldn't prepare us for was the altitude and while it can be felt on the days leading to Mount Whitney it'll hit you on the way up it's kind of eerie how you can see the ridge line up there foreign [Music] and a little bit of light-headedness [Music] definitely really tired [Music] I puke again [Music] [Music] ah beautiful [Music] time [Music] foreign of Mount Whitney was everything I wanted it to be [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] that afternoon we were pretty smoked after nearly 10 hours of going up and down Whitney rather than hike any further that day we decided to pitch camp and put our feet up until the Sun would rise the next morning Whitney is sort of like San Jacinto where the PCT doesn't actually take you up the mountain it stays to the West so like most we had taken the 17 Mile side trail to the summit however for those that choose to pass up Whitney the tallest point on the PCT lies just a half a day's hike ahead at Forester pass and after a high snow season can be one of the more dangerous spots on trail foreign surpass somewhere up there that's super exciting looking at those Peaks you gotta climb every one of them probably [Music] foreign [Music] s [Music] [Music] planning to like hang out for a little bit then I'll just do it there I mean it's gonna be pretty wet the lakes are like right yeah I'm gonna wash socks but uh foreign dwarfed by our previous day on Whitney we made it up and over Forester pass with little to no problem [Applause] there she is we even had time for a cold plunge on the other side before moving for our next resupply point at Independence and entering one of the most beautiful mountain basins I've ever seen so you need the chance it's quick and easy to get no hesitation oh man [Music] thank you [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] pass 28th June headed to Independence [Applause] to reach our resupply and Independence another side trail hike was required a down and back to onion Valley trailhead a 15 mile round trip that would take us up and over cure Sarge pass twice [Music] there we are you see the desert here she is foreign [Applause] once we reach the trailhead it wasn't long for us to find a hitch into town for the four of us we were picked up by a trail Angel who had offered to take us all the way to Bishop a half hour north of Independence he had promised that it was a better resupply and also offered a ride back to trail that afternoon and it was true Independence doesn't have much to offer as a resupply town and Bishop was the better option out of the two with several gear shops and a large Vons grocery store foreign [Music] the low desert Valley the bishop and Independence sit in are a stark contrast from the mountain range we just came down from and an awesome reminder of the environment that we had hiked in in the first 700 miles we would make our Second Ascent of Curious George past that evening stopping just short of the PCT to make camp that night on the days that we only spent a couple hours resupplying I always kind of wished that we could stay just a little bit longer soak up some of the Comforts of town but oftentimes the sunset in the mountains would make up for it [Music] [Applause] it's like the third little reflective pool with a stream little streams running through these Grassy Meadows with purple flowers and just super impressive Granite walls all the way around I just want to pitch my tent and live here for the next four days our resupplying Bishop had prepared us to go up and over one to two mountain passes a day for the next five days and 85 miles or so we thought sometimes the mountains scheduled their own fun all right you ready to go can we pass lead the way [Music] oh my God is that the right Lakes foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign [Music] s would look like something beautiful straight from a novel the afternoons would bring the rain [Applause] did this where this pass at where's this pass at like nine miles off oh and all right all right let's do this [Music] it's the second pass of the day [Music] [Applause] [Music] thank you that sucked um [Music] foreign [Music] thank you [Music] cold it's good though such a beautiful morning [Music] five to 60 degrees right now just spectacular what an amazing place you guys just wanted to say what I've been thinking about for the last half mile is I think the fast-paced b-roll scenes of people walking covering miles adds to the euphoric and joyous Vibes they give off I think a lot of people expect that feeling that they get when they watch those videos to be the same feeling they feel on trail but that's simply not the case there are moments like that when you turn around and you look at things like that they're just beautiful it inspires you maybe you feel Joy looking at that especially in person I know I do but every mile every week 100 miles every day of 20 miles every month of hundreds of miles all 2 652 of these miles are covered at no faster than this pace and on days like yesterday afternoon coming up an extremely long pass it really gets to you it's grueling it's tiresome and it can put you in a really negative spot even when you're around such beautiful Peaks an amazing Force this Trail's got a lot of high and lows and you will walk every step of those highs and those lows regardless of how you feel [Music] look at this guy there he is [Music] 0.9 49 to the last water yeah what about uh which side does this which side of this range does this pass on um that one over there I did okay I don't know what it is about the mountains but it seems like weather can roll up on you in an instant and the Garmin provided forecast that says 10 chance of rain might as well be translated into 50 or 70 percent chance of some sort of precipitation foreign [Music] [Music] we made it over the pass [Music] lots of rain lots of hail oh all of us got me wet it's kind of cold but not too bad almost as if it was scripted the storm cleared as the landscape revealed the beauty that is the Basin that joins Palisade Creek in the Middle Fork of the Kings River that is all worth it a site that I don't believe a camera can truly capture [Music] that night we camped near Grouse Meadows a place that for me made the wet the cold and the achy feet all worth it and somewhere that I plan to revisit as often as I can [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] for the third day in a row a storm would meet us on the mountain pass sunshine and tidbits made shelter while I hiked into the storm alone I wasn't sure where blade was at I hadn't seen him since the start of the ascent up mere pass and while searching for him in the storm I ended up having to take shelter in a small wet cave with another hiker that we had met once before called Curious George eventually the storm let up enough and we were able to push for the top of the pass and of course at the top blade had made it to the shelter and had stayed dry and warm the entire time no hard feelings but he could have made me some of the hot chocolate that he packed from Bishop [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] shortly thereafter tidbits and sunshine made their way to the top of the pass welcome welcome to both of you [Music] [Music] all right [Music] but that's what I was excited for right a place to test myself excitement for the unknown I guess one of those unknowns was how close thunder sounds at 12 000 feet the weather cleared as it had the previous two days and we continued down the trail foreign [Music] [Applause] it's like the first real River Crossing [Music] well this morning is I think July 2nd yesterday would have possibly been July 1st at that point it was safe to say that a trend had started and with our next resupply point about only 40 miles ahead none of us wanted to get rained on any more than we had to foul weather is a much bigger deal when you're living out of a backpack imagine the inconvenience if your bag soaks through and your sleeping gear gets wet and then what if the sun doesn't come out long enough to dry it yeah there are some steps that you can take to prevent that those only work so long when you're getting rained on every day plus Foot Care can be a lot harder when your feet are constantly wet and at this point blade and I's feet we're looking broken in [Music] what's the name of this Lake Valley keys Sally keys hikers beware [Music] two Gators and one tow sock [Music] or blade it could have been blade he didn't have anything taken [Music] it's on him one of those gators didn't stay clipped to the front anymore this Blade's worst nightmare [Music] in a while [Applause] [Music] damn [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] look you can like there's like you can see the edge right there yeah you can that's pretty gross [Applause] [Music] our next free Supply stop wouldn't be a town it would be a resort and quite possibly my favorite stop on the PCT Vermilion Valley Resort [Music] [Music] but the way to Vermillion Valley would be bittersweet because we would be losing a member of our Trail family tidbits had decided that he needed to pick up the pace and would be skipping the resupply point at Vermilion the four of us had hiked 747 miles of this Trail and of course we wanted to stay together but with him wanting to push ahead and blade and I wanting to slow down and possibly spend a couple days in Yosemite Valley later on trail we weren't sure if we would see him again so for now this is where our adventures would split and sometimes that's just what happens on trail with the intention of catching up to tidbits later on trail Sunshine was also in need of a resupply and would accompany blade and I to the resort after we set our goodbyes and wished each other happy trails we set out on the side Trail to Vermilion Valley Resort [Applause] spot [Laughter] all right well let's be fun yeah yeah my blade I hope to see you again yeah see you later Max yeah Happy Trails yeah I gotta get going this way otherwise I'm gonna turn around all right um that's fast up up the the loose rocks yeah yeah golden oh Golden Boy golden tone like that was playing Ponyboy yeah this point boy yeah that's what it is foreign so that is saying that this Trail has less switchbacks and will save us time rather than using a different one yeah because I think the one on the other side of the lake I forget which one of these two it is but maybe people take that one because it's shorter but then you have to do more switchbacks to get there got it it was a long slow March out of Eden no just what we believe [Music] [Music] sweet [Music] a lot of sense Cole you finally made it to Paradise [Music] thank you it's great miscellaneous miscellaneous all the seeds that I'll never want to eat why are there a bunch of seeds of that I told myself I'd be healthy is that why the Crunch bar and the Nerds are in though yeah doing that whatsoever and one pop tart oh you gotta change that [Music] my calories yeah I didn't put any Pop-Tarts in my bag so yeah we were like we're gonna go somewhat healthy with arms I'll change it real quick this is the good base but I'm gonna need to buy my face good base [Music] [Music] for me Vermilion Valley Resort was what I wanted so many other resupply stops to be like sitting deep in the Sierras on the west side of Lake Thomas Edison it's a mountain lodge with good food campfires and a free beer upon arrival their resupply is a bit limited due to their remote location but they pretty much carry all the essentials however in our experience the hospitality of the owner and the staff more than make up for anything that they don't carry and the overall atmosphere of the place had me quickly contemplating taking a zero day while living our best lives telling stories of the Sierras with fellow hikers the three of us set out the next morning for the short hike to Mammoth Lakes after a big breakfast and closing out an even bigger tab but this time we were accompanied by a fellow hiker that we hadn't seen since Bishop sachibom [Music] is it Lake time oh yeah yeah [Music] headed to Mammoth foreign [Music] on the day leading to Mammoth Lakes Sunshine sachibom blade Chuck a hiker we were just reunited with the day before and myself across the 900 mile marker [Music] the popular ski town of Mammoth Lakes is accessed from the PCT at Red's Meadow Resort where a bus runs to and from the town daily although we had just left Vermilion Valley the day before it wasn't likely that I was going to pass up an opportunity for Town food at least for me Town Days on trail sort of developed into a holiday and at Mammoth Lakes we would take another Nero outside but yeah they were here in the mountain range it was not leaving out of Red's Meadow Campground sachibom had introduced us to a new group of hikers Grant who he'd actually met in Kennedy Meadows rally Quick Draw and polar bear all of whom we would end up hiking with to Thousand Island Lakes and then on to Tuolumne Meadows [Music] night time night time chicken Stars [Music] I caught a heart on the Seven Seas filled with these memories [Music] night time the night time it starts taking storms [Music] singing stars [Music] blade and I had had a plan to visit Yosemite Valley since before we set off in May and Tuolumne Meadows was the place to do it with a bus running daily from the camp store and Grill down to the valley but unfortunately in doing this it would officially Mark the end of the trail family that we had set out with from Idlewild while blade and I would head West to the valley Sunshine would continue North on the PCT hoping to catch back up with tidbits so that afternoon at Tuolumne Meadows we said our goodbyes after walking 790 miles together over the last 45 days through the desert across rivers and over mountains [Music] [Applause] the next day blade and I boarded the bus for Yosemite Valley Meadows my name is Eric to Yosemite Valley [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] our first afternoon in the valley consisted of routine River plunges off of the El Capitan Bridge into the Merced River and watching day turn into night in front of one of the most iconic and magnificent Granite walls in the world [Music] Wade and I both climb and to see El Cap in person gives you a new and renewed respect for what's possible in climbing and so on our first day off from hiking we decided to go on a hike up the Yosemite Falls Trail yeah that didn't last very long I'm sure if it was a different set of circumstances we would have made it to the top but with 900 miles fresh on our feet and it being mid-july we decided we didn't need the extra switchbacks in our life plus I'm pretty sure being in the valley in mid-july is probably the closest experience one can have to being inside of a microwave we ended up scrambling to a spot about halfway up that looked like it could offer us a shower arguably a cooler experience [Music] [Music] for the rest of our stay blade and I really tried to capitalize on the term hiker trash for two days we didn't really leave the deli we just lounged around binge watching Game of Thrones only leaving to get pizza and find a place to stealth camp it was well worth it we needed the rest and being in the valley is cool enough on its own without doing all the trails plus we got to meet a couple of other PCT hikers that we would see again later on trail crunchy bean and purple eggs right up here this is a Crest Trail yep right across the road [Applause] [Music] thank you [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] so this could be a problem not really sure where the fire's at [Music] yeah not very big [Music] blade himself how do you feel after passing the most extreme awesome pass in the whole Sierra Nevada same this is the smallest pass in the whole series [Music] is there something cool or significant about this spot really you should just keep walking what's going on here I do my legs might get too stiff [Music] onward over a thousand miles into this heading out today 503 am [Music] heading to North Kennedy Meadows I don't know why I am so hyped right now it's early and it's cold but I'm cruising [Music] [Applause] as I stated before all aerial videography was filmed in the 2022 hiking season which was a year that experienced more snow than my fellow hikers and I had in 2021 and while conditions are obviously different I think it displays an interesting contrast in trail conditions year to year [Music] as we hustled down the mountain range to catch the shuttle from Sonora pass to North Kennedy Meadows two new hikers joined us Augusta and her daughter Catelyn who had been on the PCT since Tehachapi [Music] foreign [Music] North Kennedy Meadows is a small secluded resort with fishing hiking and horseback rides it's equipped with A well-stocked General Store for resupply and a restaurant we ended up staying in the bunk style lodging above the restaurant and it was beginning to look like it was going to be a refreshing break off Trail [Music] foreign [Music] but it was here that it seemed that the West Coast Fire season was going to take its first effect on our trip eating breakfast the next morning I read updates on my phone of a wildfire moving to intercept this on our path Tamarack fire had already caused evacuation in some small towns and Parks and possibly sections of the PCT just 40 miles ahead of Sonora pass none of the PCT was officially closed yet so it seemed like time was of the essence if we were going to make it past the fire before it grew too big and closed sections of the trail for the rest of the season with a feeling of uncertainty blade and I accompanied by a few other hikers took the shuttle back to Sonora pass that afternoon so breaking Trail news update it's [Music] Sunday the 18th 18th of July just after seven o'clock today's the day we find out if the Trail's gonna be closed yesterday at North Kennedy Meadows we read the there's a wildfire about 40 miles ahead of us that they had evacuated the town of Marquis and the surrounding roads no word the Trail's been closed ta recommended this you stay off of it but no word that it's officially been closed yet we got off the shuttle from North Kennedy Meadows at three 12 miles to Camp last night today's a 20. to the Emmett pass this is the first road that's supposed to be closed so if there's gonna be a trail closer sign that's where it's going to be came over Sonora pass yesterday and could see the plume of smoke rising from the fire that was pretty big it's kind of concerning you're not going to do anything dangerous but if we can continue to maintain our continuous footpath [Applause] than we're going to I'm certainly going to try [Applause] but we'll see we'll see what happens it's just a matter of time before they close the trail so we just gotta get through this section before they do we're gonna find out today later that afternoon we reached the saddle that overlooks the four miles leading to Abbott's pass and what we saw on the other side washed away our hope of making it past the fire [Music] [Music] it's about two miles away foreign unable to see exactly where the fire was in the valley we decided that it wasn't safe to proceed down the saddle so we would have to act on our contingency plan and backtrack 27 miles back to Sonora pass officially moving south can't help it a fire's fire [Applause] but luckily for us on our way back we ran into Augusta and Catlin Who convinced us to Camp with them that night and take another look at the conditions in the morning it's the 19th July we're hiking northbound we left the saddle above Emmett's pass foreign three in the afternoon due to a wall of smoke it looked like it was starting about a mile down from the saddle the trail leads to Highway four and we didn't really have a plan for getting off of Highway four but we've since been told that we can get a ride from the highway by shuttle service organized by the sheriff so [Music] with a little bit of backtracking yesterday a little bit of backtracking this morning our plan is to hike five miles down to Highway four ahead of its pass and get a ride from there to South Lake Tahoe and overnight the Smoke on the saddle improved significantly foreign for talking us out of our 27 mile back track we're doing it no more backtracking for us [Music] actual fires up there even though we got the window our back Smoke's starting to fill in foreign fire is approximately eight Trail miles north of here it started as a spot fire on July 15th and it's quickly grown alternately no longer available Trail officially closed from here to Highway 88. alternates no longer available the third grader right that it looked like it and before the rest of our group even got to the highway a trail Angel pulled up looking for hikers in need of a ride [Music] um with the incredibly well-timed generosity of another we crammed in and set out on the road to South Lake Tahoe unfortunately ending our continuous footpath across America times in California an extra hitch later and we made it to a cool little hostel in Lake Tahoe [Music] as far as resupply towns go Lake Tahoe is definitely worth a zero which is exactly what we did foreign [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] as we hiked on from Lake Tahoe the days grew hazier and greater until it was impossible for us to know whether the smoke we were breathing was from the Tamarack fire to the South where the Dixie fire to the north [Music] awesome a common resupply strategy and through hiking is to have a friend or family member ship pre-packaged boxes of food and supplies to you for things such as medications this can be a great option because plenty of businesses along the PCT are willing to hold packages for hikers but for us it wasn't long into the trail before the things that we thought we were going to be wanting to eat were not what we were eating at all and we wish that we had just saved the money on shipping my enemy [Applause] and cheese in here dang that's unfortunate leaving Donner Ski Ranch we knew that we had another big hurdle coming our way we had heard that the Dixie fire a little over 100 miles north of us was growing into a monster and had already closed sections of the trail with some hikers already choosing to go around it we weren't yet sure where we would get off to make the jump but with few roads between us and the fire it would probably be soon [Applause] thank you [Applause] like creepy Cabin in the Woods [Music] [Music] the wood Locker yeah kind of creepy though [Music] thank you [Music] so this blanket of smoke has been covering everything [Applause] just totally exhausted I definitely started when the smoke on top of that it's been a sore throat for several days and today's the first day that I started developing a golf pretty ready to get out of the smoke tomorrow's a short day 12 miles to Sierra City from Sierra City we jump up to an old stations foreign [Music] [Music] while the trail wasn't closed at Sierra City Highway 49 was the last road that was open to get off Trail before running into the Dixie fire so while it wasn't urgent at that point we had little choice but to find a way around it [Applause] [Music] trying to plan travel Logistics in a place that you've never been is never fun and perhaps being somewhat removed from society for a little while at this point definitely didn't help we didn't really have any idea how we were going to get north of the fire but with Sierra City not having any public transportation our first task was to get a hitch somewhere West that somewhere ended up being Grass Valley California and one more hitchhike later got us to Yuba City where we were able to get a Greyhound bus to reading after a late night in reading a local bus service could get us to the town of Bernie then for the last leg of our side quest a Bernie cab would take us to Old station and drop us off just a short walk from the trail a quick shortcut through some nearby lava tubes and we were back on the PCT [Applause] this is the sanctum if we start to hear a phone ring we should run the opposite direction this is easy compared to what we've done in the past yeah foreign [Music] the journey around the Dixie fire put blade and I on the north side of the halfway mark to Canada while that's an exciting feeling at first it can turn into admiration for just how long the trail is and the size of the task that you've taken on foreign [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] thank you PCT Trail angel [Music] probably pretty close [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] you ready to start your fourth Celeste [Music] op all right into the Wilds we had known from the start that blade was probably going to be leaving the trail early to go back to school for the fall semester and he decided that at Mount Shasta he would be heading home just a four days hike away [Music] [Applause] foreign [Applause] [Music] this is officially your last camp on trail yeah the next one will be at a post office yeah but it'll be off Trail yeah last camp on the PCT nice one what are you looking forward to the most leaving Trail [Applause] being clean all the time [Music] not having to sleep in my own filth yeah yeah not uh opening the your quilt every morning to get that whiff of dirt and sweat pristine hiker air coming back at you yeah do you know how far you hiked 1275 and a half miles you did you count it yeah yeah I did the math earlier 1275 and a half yeah that's over half with the fires and everything it's not quite half it's almost half pretty good what do you think was the worst part the end of the desert the end of the desert yeah the worst than the knee pain I don't know that was pretty bad but eventually went away yeah but probably after Tehachapi yeah that section of Joshua trees nothing else yeah yeah being thirsty and having to ration sweat was pretty uh intense yeah what was your favorite section oh it's yours yeah very particular moment or just the series it was just all the series like I greatly enjoyed all of the series yeah when we first got into it like that day out of community matters it was pretty nice it was like a really big change yeah I was looking up after that section because that section of Joshua trees which is the worst section was just like two days prior to that yeah yeah so it was greatly looking up [Applause] well damn are you gonna miss it yeah I'm sure I'll miss it but um I don't know I got a lot to look forward to at home [Applause] it is perfect mastered the ramen bomb yep it is [Applause] on Blade's final day on trail and the day leading to Mount Shasta we would hike to the post office in castella and make camp in preparation for the morning bus ride into town [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign [Music] okay we're gonna go see you when you get home yep did good he's safe [Music] [Music] and just like that blade was gone foreign just me on this quest for Canada with almost everyone that we had met ahead of me I was prepared to hike for Mount Shasta alone but seemingly out of nowhere another fire stood between me and Canada the hay press River complex fire with some quick research and hikers already having to be evacuated from the next Trail town to the north it seemed like there was little option but to go around it for Mount Shasta so with one long taxi ride North I went from Mount Shasta to Syed Valley leaving just 36 miles between me and the California Oregon border [Music] [Music] foreign for me the last few miles of California were euphoric so much had happened since we set out from the Mexican border over 1600 miles ago it was not only exciting but hard to imagine that there were still two states in between me and Canada [Music] [Music] as well as an undeniable excitement that both Oregon and Washington combined we're only a little over half the distance of California which meant reaching Canada wasn't only more possible in my mind but in reality a more probable outcome [Music] at this point you've worked out all the Kinks you know what your body can do just keep going keep doing what you've been doing keep your body free of injury and if the pnw allows you'll make it to Canada [Music] I am so close to Oregon [Music] just a this Trail [Music] of course we finished California on an uphill that's so excited to be out of this state it's been great it's been fun but this is a hell of a benchmark [Laughter] there it is [Music] damn officially [Music] officially in Oregon [Music] foreign [Music] such a beautiful morning just a day after crossing the Oregon border you can celebrate the completion of California with a real bed and town food in the town of Ashland I wouldn't end up staying long in Ashland after all I had a brand new state to cross and just up ahead a few people that I hadn't seen in a while [Music] for the next two days I would briefly get to catch back up with AWOL and Chuck neither of whom I had seen since the Sierras at this point on the trail everybody's pretty much hiking at their own pace so it's not uncommon to see hikers in passing day to day or week to week or at common Gathering spots usually involving a hot meal [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] to Crater Lake National Park I would be introduced to princess and later Kate and cowboy [Music] foreign [Music] Thursday the 12th of August two days away from three months a landscape in southern Oregon seemed to be a lot flatter than that of California and it seemed as if my pace quickened maybe even subconsciously eager to get to Washington just a little bit faster [Music] [Applause] so basically it's the 15th of August and I'm at Crater Lake that's pretty much what's up I hiked all night yeah from about nine nine o'clock to to 1am and hiked up to the Watchmen overlook that looks out over the west to east side of the lake the smoke is still thick enough at Sunrise that I hardly see I can see the reflection of the other side of the lake I can't see the other side of the lake so that's dope it's questionable oh well you don't know unless you try [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Applause] it's also chilly see my breath it's like nine o'clock guys have like I've hiked like 10 yards so this is what I expected Oregon and Washington to be like just rainy and gloomy [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] such a good one it's like 60 degrees out here that's the general store [Music] I'd hiked in with cowboy Kate crunchy bean and purple eggs we shared a couple meals together and it was a welcome feeling to be with a group after hiking solo since blade left they would end up having plans in bed and I would once again be leaving solo from Shelter Cove headed north towards another obstacle up ahead the Lions head fire had started and I wasn't sure yet what effect it would have on my path but for now the sun was out and the weather was nice so why not put some more miles down on the way to Washington foreign [Music] thank you [Music] the bane of the PCT foreign [Music] Trail recipes is a pack of chicken flavored ramen noodles and one pack of Chick-fil-A sauce I think it's probably good but maybe only if you've been on trail for at least 100 days [Music] [Music] [Music] best part of Oregon by far [Music] the Lions had fire was coming up and I was running out of food so rather than hike hungry for another day over fields of lava rock I decided to Hitch from McKinsey pass to sisters and then take a bus to bend where I could formulate a plan to get around the fire the plan right now is to leave Ben tomorrow go to Government Camp and see how far south I can get hitching to start back up starting from Government Camp Cascade logs would only be two and a half two days so potentially just two and a half days left of organ I get farther south to where I'm wanting to get it can be three to four days that's kind of surreal kind of surreal that could almost be entering the last state on this trip I ended up getting in touch with a trail Angel offering rides to and from Trail a Green Cab called Uber ducky he agreed to take me north of the fire though our first attempt was halted by car trouble the next day he drove me around the fire it would have been much harder and taken far longer without him [Music] thanks Uber ducky looks like it's true kind of got involuntarily vortexed and Ben back in the woods now three and a half days from uh Washington why would you look outside yourself when you have a world inside one two three four [Music] I bet blade is dreaming of Idaho and mashed potatoes I'm about 20 miles from Timberline Lodge it's like 11 35. I'm thinking get to Timberline Lodge close to Timberline Lodge tonight breakfast there tomorrow [Music] and they sing the mountains why would you look outside yourself when you have all of the world inside would you look outside yourself why would you look outside yourself when you have all of the world some look outside yourself [Music] is a space that creates your horizon there's a space that creates it just kind of like hit me all of a sudden like wow this is the last stretch before Washington like when I hit town again it'll be Cascade Locks and it's not even a long stretch it's like three days that's crazy Washington is like the last state the last Big Stretch it's like just up ahead so it's a surreal experience thinking of the trail of the future Trail like what's to come when you're like in the desert or in the Sierras is like Sublime like you can't wrap your head around how long it is because you think how long you've already been going and you're like wow I'm like a quarter of the way through and like how much walking you're gonna do and how long it's going to take you and how big of a journey it is and the same I think goes for thinking back on it even though you did it even though you accomplished that already I still can't comprehend how far I've walked truly special about to make a very anxiously awaited breakfast buffet at Timberline Lodge reservation in 15 minutes there's the front [Music] look at here 550 that's a breeze foreign that was one of the best views so far and then all of a sudden just Gray [Applause] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] foreign onto the highway to Cascade box with Washington sitting just on the other side of the river [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] well [Music] I was gonna leave Cascade Locks yesterday and I didn't drink any water the whole day but I drank a lot of beer and I didn't make it out it's eight o'clock in the morning I'm gonna go get some breakfast and then uh head for trout lake The Bridge of the Gods to those driving past you it's probably no more than an inconvenient toll bridge on the way to wherever and you know more than a glitch in their thoughts to avoid hitting but for you in those steps over the Columbia River you own the moment you are living [Music] it's the culmination of months of physical and mental effort that fuel your feeling of Pride and accomplishment for yourself as well as the anxiety of the first few steps in a new state a feeling that you've only had twice before but this time different because you know it's the last time and with the realization of that the anxiety turns to excitement it starts from Washington here it comes here it comes ready ready [Music] [Music] foreign for most 500 miles is out of the question but for you at this point you know it's only a matter of weeks before you'll be at the Canadian border and your body and your mind are yearning for it Washington holds over 27 000 more feet of ascent than Oregon did and with that the promised beauty of the Cascade mountain range thank you that is if the Fire season allows for it the fires I had passed to the South had only gotten worse and eaten up more of the trail an unfortunate nearby communities I was thankful to have been there when I was and hopeful that the remainder of the path ahead of me would remain open [Music] little toe update so you can see my middle toe this is missing half toenail [Applause] little toe is missing pull through now foreign [Music] do 25 miles today yeah looking forward to Trout Lake it's the first resupply in Washington start busting them out get through here [Music] look at that containers [Music] that's first September this is the month I should finish in I plan on getting to Canada somewhere around September 22nd it's 38 degrees [Applause] I'm in shorts a light jacket I have a deadline to make this morning I gotta make it 10 miles bye 10 30 to catch the shuttle the trout lake I make that time pancakes and coffee boy pancakes and coffee let's pick up the pace My First Sunlight of the day right up here oh it's beautiful there we go perfect I can already feel the warmth for anyone wondering when you get to places like these Forest roads how you get uh a ride in such a random spot is this um there's really kind people that put things like this up a bus would arrive at the Forest Road intersection on time as advertised letting off a crowd of hikers returning the trail including crunchy Bean purple eggs Kate and cowboy all of whom I hadn't seen since Shelter Cove from the beginning of the ride into Trout Lake it was obvious that kindness was a staple of the small mountain town with no lodging plans I was offered a bonk at Camp Jonah a Christian Camp and retired school that had just finished up its summer retreats and was now somewhat of a hiker hostel with free showers and laundry [Music] just a short walk from the town Cafe and General Store [Applause] after just one night Trout Lake definitely hit my list of best resupply towns on the PCT shortly before heading back to Trail AWOL arrived at Trout Lake and we'd catch back up and even hiked together a bit on our way to White Pass she was the only hiker that was still around from blade and I's early days in the desert everyone else was either no longer hiking or so far ahead or behind that I probably wouldn't see them again foreign [Music] just now leaving camp this is the uh definitely the latest I've ever left but you know a lot of times it's just really good to enjoy moving North the trail would wrap around Mount Adams showing off its leaky glaciers perched high on the Mountainside [Music] damn [Music] foreign [Music] thank you [Music] [Music] just because [Music] foreign [Music] spot what how could how could there be a better day amazing Camp spot with a beautiful sunset clear stories guys beautiful sunrise and a short day ending in pizza and beer time to leave this beautiful place I don't wanna so I just had to check on the map just now because I couldn't believe it Trail actually goes through snow the very first snow I'm gonna walk through on the whole Trail foreign [Applause] [Music] foreign [Applause] problems for me getting to Canada [Music] well good morning where am I at I'm at the Cracker Barrel the famous or inFAMOUS Cracker Barrel possibly Infamous because it's not actually a Cracker Barrel it's just a convenience store the sky is just a Cracker Barrel got a shower yesterday Donald 356 miles to Canada I still stand by my previous conclusion that the trails definition of sublime because thinking back on 2000 200 almost almost 2 300 miles is uh hard to wrap your head around even after doing it's wild but it really boils down to is just how far can I go before I have to have pizza and beer what Wilderness Area do we got now [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] the smoke was to myself meaning it was behind me and as far as I knew the trail ahead was clear it was a straight shot to Canada [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign foreign this is Washington this is the Washington I expected but even in the Rainy Mist sometimes you never know what you'll find in the mountains [Music] that was truly awesome ice ax and his buddies up there just multiple pop-up tents beer coffee muffins brownies fruit they serve breakfast for hikers they're gonna serve lunch in a couple hours or actually in 10 minutes uh they're gonna sort of dinner with margaritas just uh camping out having a good time wow that is maybe the best trail magic I've come across so far and that is a really nice thing to find especially on a cold foggy day like this you know you make a plan my plan like 22 miles make camp tomorrow morning like four miles well the weather moved in a bust out a little over four more miles snowballing pass fingers crossed the end at snoquality passive room available called the end got a room two nights [Music] I would zero at Snoqualmie Pass visiting with a friend from The Real World before disappearing back into the mountains [Music] it seemed like for the March out of Snoqualmie that the Washington weather would pick up right where it left off how amazing it is to go to bed getting rained on and shiver all night to wake up to Sunshine and clear skies let these towers turn to rivers that these instincts let the dust settle at the stormy weather Rod out disappear when the sunlight shines let it all come clear [Music] foreign [Music] wake up peel the tent away that looks like this [Music] could be worse this sucks foreign 19 miles to town it's not even cold out of the clouds and down to Steven's Pass a hitch would be required from the ski resort to the Bavarian Village of Leavenworth 4 500 feet below the mountains touring all the Bavarian restaurants I would take a zero with cowboy Kate crunchy bean and purple legs who I had now caught up with about to leave Leavenworth the next four days are 100 chance of rain it's gonna be cold and it's gonna be wet for four days and uh everyone I know is gonna wait it out but I'm gonna go I'm gonna do it I wish I could tell you I knew this was a terrible plan I guess this is what I asked for that was the last time I picked up my camera that day [Applause] jeez what a bad plan the Right Moves definitely to stay here in Leavenworth yeah I ended up having to come back around noon Friday is uh when I got to the trail I mean five miles in and uh I can already tell my rain gear is starting to get soaked through so I only made it nine miles in uh I guess in the back of my mind I knew that that was the point at which uh if I was going to turn around it had to be then I thought about for a little bit wrestled with it and decided that that was the move to make because that stretch is going to be over five days and the rain was going to be for four of those five days and uh maybe the Sun comes out Monday or maybe it doesn't and then maybe I'm wet and my sleep system is wet which would make my dry clothes wet for five days and uh heading back one mile came into came to a uh a trail intersection and saw some other guys that come up this alternate Trail and told me that instead of hiking eight miles back on the PCT I could hike about five miles I figured shaving three miles off of my Trek Back put the possibility of getting back before dark getting into town before dark so I took it took the side Trail led to Forest Road walked the Forest Road before I even got back to the highway a car came coming down the Forest Road picked me up took me to the highway and then I spent probably what felt like an hour but probably a half hour um hitchhiking on on Highway 2 a couple miles east of the ski resort at Stevens Pass and that's when I got real cold I'm gonna finish a little later than I wanted but that's how it goes that's part of the adventure I wish I could remember the man's name that picked me up off the highway he had almost a full truck of PCT hikers in need of a ride off the mountain [Music] when I got into Leavenworth it was late and all the hotels were full but thank God AWOL had just gotten into town and she let me stay a night in the cabin she had rented for two days we waited for Sunshine to be forecasted in the mountains on the third day that's what we got and we hitched back to the trail I'm kind of glad I made that first attempt to get back on trail I think it would have nod at me if I hadn't and it made me somewhat wary of the conditions my fellow hikers and I might face if we didn't get to Canada soon as winter crept closer to the Border well headed out of Leavenworth today take two we'll see what happens Trail's much drier I was walking on a river last time I was here trying to take advantage of the good weather while I got it feels good to be back on Trails starting to feel stuck there in Leavenworth that's all good because we're back now small group I had hitched from Leavenworth with began the 107 mile hike out of Stevens Pass headed for the small mountain town of stehekin [Music] it's like that all the way around hope it doesn't rain God I don't want the rain [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] foreign yesterday afternoon was another suck Fest it definitely started raining enough to get pretty wet and cold he got below freezing all the condensation and rain that had gotten on the tent froze over I can't tell you how happy I am to wake up and see the sun is out all right that's that was ecstatic the joy that comes over you waking up to see the sun my whole body will warm up and I'll be able to set my tent my sleeping bag everything out and dry it out it's gonna be a good day talking to a few other hikers up here that have gotten weather forecasts looking like there's gonna be another storm I'm not equipped to handle winter storms which is what it's described as a couple inches of snow at elevations from six thousand feet to higher right now I'm at 6 200 feet the guy with the forecast said that it looks like rain on Sunday going until the forecast ends and it's probably going to make my turn around to get to the border for the last stretch get pushed back for an unknown amount of time just want to get to the Border foreign [Music] with a population of about only 75 stahekin offers a top off on supplies on your way to Rainey pass in the town of Mazama or for those receiving a resupply box it's the last stop on the way to Canada so we're at over 50 miles to the Rainy past that gets me to his armor stuff decided to completely skip stahekin because as it is I'm not going to make a Terrain pass by tomorrow which is too many miles to do with over 50. I'm gonna try and do 224 mile days that way I can try and wake up early Sunday to get the Rainy past at a decent time before the rain starts better get moving a lot of miles to speed today [Applause] [Music] [Music] about to finish up 15 miles before lunch five thousand feet of elevation gain complete oh boy do my legs hurt [Music] after learning of the impending wintry mix headed my way a 29 and a 25 mile day would get me to rainy pass and lucky for me the Fall colors attracted a swarm of sightseers making getting a hitch down to Mazama easy work split into by a river coming from high up in the mountains the Zama is a small town perfect for one last free Supply and to wait out the storm it hosts a single General Store and Cafe with some of the best pastries as well as a Hidden Gem of the PCT Raven's Roost hosted by Carolyn ravensong Burkhardt the first woman to solo through hike the PCT in 1976. it's sort of a hiker Haven For Those About to push for or just returning from the border or in my case waiting on a storm while there I ran into a familiar group Cowboy Kate crunchy Bean purple eggs and Bennett I offered my congratulations because they had just reached the Canadian border and their Adventure was coming to a successful end although the weather was perfect in Mazama reports from the trail made me glad that I was in the comfort of town AWOL had made it to stahekin when the storm hit and confirmed that the weather was too bad to push for Canada I ended up waiting three days in Mazama and on the fourth morning decided it was time to push for Canada it's Wednesday the 29th a little chilly at 40 degrees but up on the mountain it's more than likely more than likely a chilly one still supposed to be snowing and raining for two more days today and tomorrow followed by clear skies Friday my goal is to hit the Canadian border on Friday foreign back on the PCT shout out to Ken picking me up 60 miles to Canada 20 miles a day three days including today so but first of October should be the day that I am done on the way up there was a visible new snow chilly it's in the 30s get on with it oh man there it is foreign [Music] into uh nine lives in Teva they turn back they actually look pretty miserable I said last night was not a fun night in the storm I am hoping tonight is not as bad as whatever they had last night I'm gonna spend at least tonight out here keep on going to cut a thought running around my head foreign [Applause] the last 40 miles of this thing and I'm all in one stretch my highest mileage day is in the 30s but the reasoning would be for all my is wet my quilt is soaked and I know it's possible I know I can do it foreign I hiked in the frozen rain until I reached Hearts pass the last Forest Road that the trail crosses before Canada sheltered in the doorway of a pit toilet I ate lunch as the rain grew heavier and I began to weigh my options heavily considering making efforts to get back to town but then out of nowhere a familiar face came around the corner Emma the same Emma that blade and I had met back at Paradise Valley Cafe and shared a cabin with in the town of Idlewild she was staying in a friend's van at the Forest Road Campground I guess I looked pretty cold because she offered to let me dry out in the van with the weather holding steady four more hikers ended up joining us throughout the afternoon and the van ended up being our room for the night kindness like that when you need it the most whether it's a little bit of Trail magic a ride or shelter for the night leaves a lasting impression of the good in people and one that you'll want to pay forward zero five twelve 30 miles to Canada so if the plan today taking off this morning is to Canada in 30 miles by a decent time this afternoon [Music] [Applause] [Music] as the sun rose revealing clear skies and white mountaintops I knew that reaching Canada wasn't only a greater possibility but going to be under some of the best conditions I could ask for the only thing left was to do the miles [Music] about 11 miles out from Canada tell you what it doesn't feel like it but I think I'm gonna make it [Music] two miles from Canada I don't know how I feel about that yet it doesn't feel like it I think maybe it just hasn't hit yet like I can't really believe that it's only two miles away I mean I can see mountains on the on the Canadian side just doesn't feel real maybe it won't really set in until I see it [Applause] foreign [Music] [Music] two miles out from the terminus starting to feel a little funny I don't know I can't believe this is about to happen not sure if this is actually real oh good lord I just got a glimpse of it holy is this it [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign term this has been a hell of a trip [Applause] all right four miles to camp 30 miles to Hearts pass and then we're out of here [Music] [Music] thank you [Applause] [Music] thank you for watching if you made it this far you should probably just quit your job get off your couch and go for a through hike it's really not that hard just get yourself to the terminus and let it go from there

Channel: Foot & Tire Overland

Views: 524,192

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Id: kBJQVs-ePk0

Length: 191min 30sec (11490 seconds)

Published: Thu Dec 08 2022