Posted: 8-4-14
Oh how our plans have changed. Just when we get momentum going we seem to run into more roadblocks. Just yesterday morning we were hiking, as usual, headed into the small town of Belden to grab a quick lunch and some milkshakes before getting back on the trail and finishing our hike to Chester. The day before, on the horizon, we noticed what looked like a mushroom cloud that was sitting atop of ridge that we first took to be a large cluster of clouds. As we got closer we realized that those weren't clouds but in fact a large smoke plume. Once we got into Belden we looked up the fire reports and trail closures and found 8 to 10 portions of the PCT that were currently or soon to be closed due to the fires. On top of that, the area we are about to hike into was on a severe weather alert with more thunderstorms and intense lightning strikes eminent. After our last brush with danger in a thunderstorm we decided to play it a little more safe this time around. And thus a new adventure began.
After careful reconsideration we decided that the remaining part of California and Southern Oregon should be skipped since it might all be ablaze soon. This was a bit heartbreaking to us because there were a lot of great stops and amazing terrain left in California that we had hiked so hard to get to. But considering that there wasn't a continuous 100 mile stretch between Chester California and northern Oregon where we wouldn't need to reroute, we thought it would be best to move north.
So after arriving in Belden and getting an amazing milkshake and some fried food, we made a four-part, 60 mile hitch up to Chester. We found a cheap motel where a lot of fellow PCT hikers were staying, cleaned up and stayed the night. The next morning we caught a shuttle over to the much larger town of Redding where we rented a car to take to Portland. We're currently driving out of California and on our way to Oregon and should arrive at our friends Mikey and Krista's place this evening.
They just moved to Portland a month ago but were kind enough to offer up their place to stay and a ride back to the trail near Mount Hood. We left the PCT at mile 1335 and are getting back on approximately mile 2100.
It was interesting running into other PCT hikers who are also reevaluating their strategies. Most people were just recently updated on the trail closures and finding out the magnitude of the wildfires. It seems like the majority of hikers are hitching or finding ways either to Reading or Ashland Oregon which are the large towns on the border of the fire closures. Some are trying to wait them out and continue on the trail; others are hiking around the burn areas where they can. It's tricky in spots because new fires are sprouting up almost daily and there aren't guaranteed reroutes to avoid them. One ambitious group of hikers that was staying at the same motel that we were decided to leave the trail entirely, get road bikes, and continue up to Portland via route 101. This sounded like the most interesting option that we heard but we weren't about to buy bicycles. Redding wasn't a particularly nice place so we were happy to get out of there as fast as we did and are really looking forward to continuing our trek.
I think we have a solid plan and although it sucks to miss the portions that we're skipping, we will get to hike through the Cascades now which is awesome! We're starting at the timberline Lodge close to Mount Hood, so we'll get to do the last hundred miles or so of northern Oregon. Transporting from the hot desert like climate of Northern California to the wet, extremely green, and mossy Pacific Northwest will be quite a change. We will also get to walk by Mount rainier and as an offshoot we might try to do the 100 mile Wonderland Trail, which the circumnavigated Rainier. We will likely end near Snoqualmie Pass on I 90, the very pass that Mike and I both drove through every time we were visiting each other in Washington. This is ironic and kind of fitting, as we will hopefully find a ride back to Seattle from some friends (hint, hint) :). This new stretch should be about 500 miles, slightly shorter then our original plan, and should take us about a month based on our current hiking rate.
We'd like to thank Amber and Ray for their generous care package that we received this morning. Although the treats you sent us were meant for the trail they have turned in to road trip food but they are just as delicious in the car. Just a heads up to Barb and Mike's aunt Tina, we left Chester before your packages arrived but we had them forwarded to our next stop at the Cascade Locks so we're looking forward to getting them there.
Although we're excited to be leaving all the smoke which makes it impossible to see anything in the distance, we are sad to be leaving Northern California behind. The last few days of hiking have been hot, hard and dry, but they've had their benefits as well.
The last few days we've been averaging about 22 miles a day. We really got into our stride and are able to pump out big miles consecutively. After two 23 mile days in a row we were pretty beaten and exhausted but our spirits were revived upon our arrival to the middle Fork of the feather River. We got to go for a refreshing and cleansing swim in the warm waters and had arguably our best campsite to date.
Not long after we arrived in Belden and the rest is currently being written. One last thing worth mentioning was the small town of Belden itself. In our guidebook, Belden was described as a rave town. We weren't sure what to expect based on this description. It's a 5000 foot dissent into the town, and once we got on top of the ridge and started our descent we were greeted with the vibrations of bass. The farther down we traveled the more intense the music started getting and we figured out that there was a music festival currently underway. Once we got to the bottom of the climb we could feel the bass pumping through our bodies. This was quite a scene to enter as it was a full on hippie jam electronic music fest. There were hula hoopers, passed out hippies and partiers strewn across the ground everywhere, hookahs, and plenty of drug usage. This was sensory overload and the music was terrible so we move through as fast as we could and unfortunately didn't take any pictures. This was an enticing scene for some through hikers, who stayed to join in the festivities, however it was not what we were looking for.
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