Berries, Beer, and Rainier – White Pass to Snoqualmie Pass

The crown jewel of Washington state – Mount Rainier. If you’ve been keeping track, then by now you may have noticed the PCT doesn’t actually go over any high peaks. Rather, the trail just gets close enough for a good view. Mt. Rainier is one peak I was happy to admire from a distance as we pushed deeper into the Cascades…

Day 145 – 14 miles/2210 (8/20/22)

A chill morning was in store at the Cracker Barrel convenience store. Maggie and I hung out for a while, charging electronics, and talking with hikers over breakfast. We eventually packed up and left around noon. We walked the half mile along the highway back to the PCT. Feeling hungry and accomplished with our effort so far, we stopped for lunch at a trailhead picnic table. Getting out of town is always the hardest part… Moving on trail again, we found a bag of plums at an info sign – what a juicy little treat! We hiked 14 easy miles through the woods to camp. Highlights along the way included Pacific coralroot orchid (Corallorhiza mertensiana), and a sizeable Nootka cypress. With heavy packs weighing us down, we made sure to take a lengthy break by Pipe Lake.

We walked on and got to the Bumping River around 6 pm. A handful of hikers already set up on the opposite river bank. They pointed us downstream to a log crossing so we could keep our feet dry. It was a crowded little camp spot next to the river, but we found a large open camp 100 feet further down the trail where no one else joined us.

Day 146 – 25 miles/2335 (8/21/22)

We tried and failed to get up early. It seems with no heat to beat or snow to traverse, there is really no need to get going early, other than to end the day early. We were on trail at 7:40 am, and started up a 2,000 foot climb to start our day.

It was soon becoming apparent we were rising above the forest as views of the mountains to the south were revealed. We crossed into Mt. Rainier National Park, marked by a very official looking sign.

Near the top of the ridge, we turned west where we got a full frontal view of Mt. Rainier. This has got to be one of the most epic mountains in America. A lone 14,000 foot volcano, heavily glaciated by persistent winter storms that hit the PNW. Rainier’s east face was shining like a brilliant white pyramid, almost too bright to look at, in the morning light. We would stop several times to gaze upon the mountain’s majesty.

In between berry picking and staring at Rainier, we made our way north along the ridge. We dropped down to Dewey Lake for lunch, one of the larger alpine lakes we had come across. The Canada jays had no fear, and they flew close to our picnic area in search of scraps. Mergansers paddled across the lake, their bright red heads standing out on the deep blue water. The morning was cool enough that we didn’t feel the need need to swim, so we packed up and carried on over the next hill. Approaching Chinook Pass on this beautiful Sunday afternoon, the day hikers started filling in the quiet gaps in the trail we had become so accustomed to. The car traffic at the pass was especially jarring – loud exhaust systems and car alarms drowned out the silence.

We were happy to continue hiking to Sheep Lake, where the crowds thinned out and the noise was out of earshot. We grabbed water for the final stretch and the last substantial climb of the day. We saw the last day hikers, a couple with an infant, atop Sourdough Gap. With the wonderful view, we took pictures for each other and parted ways with the day hikers.

Maggie and I cruised on the ridge just east of Crystal Mountain ski resort, the sun now behind Mt. Rainier. The bright white was now an ominous shadow on the horizon. The last few miles, we passed through some burn scar.

I was feeling beat from the mileage and vert, and the end of the day dragged on. We made it to camp at 7 pm. The tentsite was pretty full, but everyone was nice and they made space for us. We chatted a bit over dinner, and everyone got to bed by 8:30.

Day 147 – 24 miles/2359 (8/22/22)

We woke up and watched the other hikers pack up while we made breakfast. It was almost stressful seeing how rushed they appeared, haphazardly stuffing things into their packs as we casually sipped on hot coffee and tea. We got going at 7:40 am and continued through the burn scar we entered the day before. It was pleasantly cool with a few morning clouds, making the burn scar tolerable.

Wild strawberries were fruiting. Maggie picked a few, and while they were small, they tasted wonderful, ripened by the sun. We got a few more views of Mt. Rainier, seeing more of the north face as we marched toward Canada.

The trail continued along the ridge, and we found the forest again. The trail dropped down to Mike Ulrich cabin, a ski and snowmobile camp, where we stopped for lunch. Most other hikers had the same idea, but there was plenty of space outside in the shade. There was modest trail magic inside the cabin! We grabbed a couple fun sized candy bars and an apple from a cooler, then enjoyed a long lunch under the trees. We had done almost 13 miles before lunch, pretty good progress for us. We got going again and found another burn scar. The fire weed was tall and thick, and the fuchsia flowers added some lovely color to some otherwise bleak scenery.

Huckleberries were numerous in the sunny fields, and we got our fill while we hiked. Salmon berries made an appearance again, and while they are visually appealing, the taste isn’t especially pleasant.

We returned to the woods and grabbed a bunch of water for the rest of the day and the next morning since we would have to dry camp. There were a couple of small, but challenging climbs at the end of the day, exacerbated by the extra water weight.

After searching a while through the woods, we found a small tent site next to the trail where the trees opened up on a narrow ridge. We had an awesome view to the east, the Enchantments calling to us on the horizon.

We were rewarded further by a nice sunset and loads of huckleberries! Only one other hiker joined us later in the evening, not that there was space for much more than that. We listened to the wind stir through the tree branches as we dozed off.

Day 148 – 23 Miles/2372 (8/23/22)

We woke up with a wet tent. The westerly breeze had been blowing in bits of the Pacific Ocean all night. There was however a wonderful sunrise!

Maggie and I left the exposed camp site and passed through a lot of boring forest. There was no shortage of hard little ups and downs near logging areas. It was uninspiring, to say the least. We stopped for a water break with a few hikers, including Aquaman and Straps. We had been planning to stay in the Washington Alpine Club (WAC) bunk house at Snoqualmie Pass. Straps informed us WAC was closed due to norovirus outbreak! There were tons of comments on Far Out of hikers reporting they had gotten norovirus, so it seemed wise to book a hotel room to isolate from the outbreak.

Maggie and I debated a shortcut – by taking a forest road down to Kechelus Lake, we would hike about four fewer miles and avoid a fair amount of vert. We decided to take the PCT, at least until Maggie rolled her ankle again. I’ve lost count at this point, but suffice to say Maggie was hurt on more than one level. She brushed the dust off and we made it to Stampede Pass. In a reversal of bad fortune, we stumbled upon trail magic!

Overhill and Torch, 2021 PCT alumni, were serving up beer, chips, oreos, nectarines, and donuts. Maggie and I sampled the full selection and helped our trail angels properly dispose of some Coors Banquets. After an hour of chilling, we were buzzed from the beer. The PCT sounded worse than the shortcut, so we took the shortcut down to the John Wayne trail along Kechelus Lake.

We walked with Spicy for a while, a Dutch gal who had traveled the world as a yoga instructor. Hearing about all these different ways to live definitely sparks your imagination. Maggie and I camped at Roaring Creek back country camp. It was a nice spot with picnic tables and a pit toilet. We were the only ones in this quiet camp. At least it was quiet for a few hours…

I woke up in the middle of the night, the moonless sky and tree shadows concealing the world around me. I heard a stick break far uphill from camp. Then another. And another, closer, bigger now. CRACK! I sat upright in the tent, heart pounding faster than Blue Man Group drumming… SNAP!! Whatever was breaking sticks and branches was probably within 50 yards, and it was clearly not trying to be stealthy. Maggie was sleeping soundly, and I fIgured I would let her sleep until the danger felt seriously imminent. I held the emergency whistle on my headlamp close to my mouth ready to blow should I need to scare off a bear. POP!!! We had left our food inside our backpacks next to the tent. Maggie stirred a few minutes later, and I told her what I heard. The thought of a bear taking our packs into the woods and tearing them apart filled us with fear, so we snatched our packs and threw them in the tent. Was it the right decision? Probably not, but it made sense in the moment. Crack… The breaking sticks were further now. The sounds slowly faded into the dark. Naturally, we couldn’t fall back asleep, too fired up on primal fear. About half an hour later, we both heard the creature breaking sticks on its return trip back uphill. Thankfully, that’s all we had to deal with, and eventually we both got a little more shut eye.

Day 149 – 12(-4) miles/2394 (8/24/22)

Maggie and I slept in after losing some sleep over the mystery creature. We were packed up and moving around 9:30 am. Our detour took us on five more miles on the gravel path along Keechelus Lake. Drowned stumps were visible in the reservoir bed, looking like an alien landscape.

The walk was exposed and hot, but at least it was flat. Along the way, we found ripe thimble berries and a gorgeous foxglove (Digitalis purpurea)

The heat was broken up by a cool breeze blowing straight down the path. We turned the corner and found the source of the cold air – Snoqualmie Tunnel, an old rail road tunnel. We relished in the natural air conditioning for a few minutes before turning back towards Snoqualmie Pass.

The last stretch required a road walk for 2.5 miles. There was some road work and plenty of cars whizzing by, but nothing sketchy. At last we made it to Snoqualmie Pass. We had a quick lunch at Laconia Market with Aquaman and Straps. They were talking about their plans for the rest of the trail, and Straps mentioned they would be getting to Stehekin on Labor Day weekend. To most people, this would be inconsequential, but us hikers were planning on getting a resupply box from the post office. Timing it wrong could mean an extra unplanned zero day if the post office was closed Sunday and Monday. Maggie and I realized we were in the same boat, and that we wouldn’t be able to take a zero until Stehekin… Such is life on the trail! Now came the fun part – we had to find our Snoqualmie resupply boxes at the Chevron. It was chaos, boxes piled up in every corner of the convenience store. At least the guy running it kept a ledger and numbered all the boxes, and after half an hour of searching, we did find our packages.

Maggie and I checked in to the Summit Inn. We did laundry with Aquaman and Straps, or rather, they did our laundry. We lounged, then wandered across the street for dinner. We saw Crash and Puff (last saw them in southern Oregon). Crash had gotten norovirus, forcing him to stay at the pass for several days. The rumors were true that norovirus was spreading amongst the hikers… We hung out a while longer and got beers with Starboy and Dusty before retiring in our hotel room.