thru hiking

Lost Mysteries

August 4, 2021 by Rachel Lanman 20 Comments

A poem by Rachel Lanman

When the forest burns, so does it’s mysteries. The cool dark places where deer hide, now too hot and exposed. The smell of sweet pine replaced with the acrid scent of rot and ash. It gets stuck in your nose and lungs. Green to black, life to death.

When 500,000 acres burns, it’s not just death, it’s annihilation. With whole generations of bear, deer and birds unable to escape, succumbing to smoke and heat. A collective and final exhalation of breath. Sound to silence, life to death.

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Familiar Faces and Places (PCT Day 131)

July 26, 2021 by Jon Lanman 1 Comment

I awake to the smell of smoke. We slept near one of the snow lakes, and this morning the smoke has blown in. I’m not sure where the smoke originated but I assume it’s from the bootleg Fire which is currently consuming wildlands and woods to our west.

We eat breakfast and drink coffee next to a small lake near our camp. The setting feels more like home, with trees scattered around us and huckleberry bushes standing petite and low to the ground.

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Where Have We Been? (PCT Day 130)

July 25, 2021 by Jon Lanman 3 Comments

Today is July 25th and we are now in Oregon, just south of Crater Lake. Tonight we’re camped next to one of the Snow Lakes, which is more like a small pond. Today was one of our prettiest days in Oregon yet. We passed by miles of huckleberries and green forests then climb upward at the end of the day to walk along a ridgeline, obtaining our first scenic view in Oregon. Now we lay under the stars as I reflect on where we’ve been.

It’s been hundreds of miles since we last made a post, and I apologize to all of you who’ve been following along on our adventure. When we last left off, we were in South Lake Tahoe. Since then we’ve been through a number of small towns speckled throughout Northern California, and benefitted from the kindness of strangers on several occasions.

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Over Selden Pass (PCT Day 74)

May 30, 2021 by Jon Lanman 8 Comments

We start our day near Muir Ranch. Last night we crossed the river to check out the Blayney Hot Springs, and camped over here. It’s a wet morning, with dew and condensation on the tent that’s also dampened the outside of my sleeping bag. I hate it when that happens.

My sleeping bad is low on air. It’s been leaking air lately. I had to blow it up 3 times last night. As I lay still in the dewy morning air, I debate wether or not to blow it up again. I then decide not to and flip the valve to let the remaining air out. It’s 7 am and I rise and get started on the day, starting by filtering some water from the river.

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Mather Pass and Palisade Lakes (PCT Day 71)

May 27, 2021 by Rachel Lanman Leave a Comment

After nearly 12 hours, we emerge from our tent. Apparently, adjusting to physical exertion at elevation is exhausting. We are feeling rested this morning, and ready to tackle our fourth pass in four days.

I make us coffee and breakfast and then after packing up, we immediately ford the South Fork of the Kings River. It’s a cold crossing and I can hear my own voice in a high pitched exclamation above the roar of the river.

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Slowing Down in the Sierras (PCT Day 70)

May 26, 2021 by Jon Lanman Leave a Comment

The original plan for today was to hike over both Pinchot Pass and Mather Pass (only 8 miles apart) to the Palisade Lakes. That’s where Chef and Sriracha are heading. But after yesterday, Lupine and I have our reservations. Or, at least, I certainly do.

Yesterday was only about 12 miles and I was exhausted. I started the day feeling great, charging ahead over Glen Pass and then down the snow field to Rae Lakes. Then I hit a wall. The elevation sapping my energy, all I wanted to do was nap. Then as we descended, my sciatica began to fire up shooting jolts down my leg. Aside from the sharp pain, it also rubbed on my mind, wearing me down. I thought I was doing better… But am I?

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Kearsarge Pass (PCT Day 68)

May 24, 2021 by Rachel Lanman 2 Comments

For the last few nights we’ve been in Bishop, staying at the Hostel California. It’s a funky house full of temporary vagabonds and passers-through. It’s a place of young people, not all exclusively young.

The walls are adorned with autographed pictures of known rock climbers, likely signed as they stayed here for one of their trips to the playground of the Sierras.

Each night we hear laughter outside our window in the courtyard as the smell of marijuana drifts upward. Our room has four bunks, and a private bathroom. It’s nothing fancy, but comfortable enough. Downstairs in the living room, hikers are passed out on the couch, shoes still strapped to their feet. I prefer to assume they just got off trail and couldn’t make it any further, or spare the extra calories to unhitch their shoes. But, from the smell of the courtyard last night, I suspect they forgot how to untie them, or simply forgot to care. Nevermind where their room is.

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Forester Pass (PCT Day 64-65) – UPDATED

May 20, 2021 by Jon Lanman 10 Comments

I updated this post with pictures

We wake to see a number of our fellow hikers have already left, looking to cross Forester Pass early. I don’t blame them. Forester Pass is the highest point of the trail at 13,200 ft, and our first major crossing with snow. On top of all that, there’s rumor of some cold weather moving in today, and snow forecasted for tomorrow. So, many hikers are planning to cross Forester then Kearsarge Pass as well to escape off trail into Independence, CA. The stretch from here makes for a 21 mile day with plenty of elevation.

We’re not certain of our plan yet. We were hoping to reunite with our friends, saving them tent spots next to us last night. But, there’s still no sign of them. It would be super human for them to be ahead of us after climbing Whitney yesterday, so we assume they are a few miles behind us. We will likely see them today.

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Rock Creek to Tyndall Creek (PCT Day 63)

May 19, 2021 by Jon Lanman 2 Comments

We start out at Rock Creek, crawling from our tent into the cold. It’s so cold with the wind, before the sun sheds it’s rays on us we skip breakfast and coffee opting to have it further up trail. Lupine heads up the trail as I finish packing my bag.

In normal years, Rock Creek is one of the first river crossings that can be tricky due to rushing waters of snow melt. But this year is not normal. Snow pack is far, far below normal. I skip across the rocks with ease, admiring the golden brown rocks underneath the water.

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Poison Meadow Spring to Rock Creek (PCT Day 62)

May 18, 2021 by Rachel Lanman 3 Comments

When we awake it’s still cold. But, with muscles ready to move, I poke my head from the tent. The ground is frozen and frosted. I look to see small sheets of ice clinging to Sriracha’s tent, just a couple feet from us. Our camp site last night was cozy, given it’s size. We crawl from our tent and cook coffee, talking with Sriracha and Chef as the sun begins to warm us, thawing out the ground, slowly drying our tent, still wet from last night’s rain.

We take our time to pack, knowing we have fewer miles today. Lupine and I are planning for about 15 miles. Sriracha and Chef however are planning for 20, because they want to get as close as possible to the Mt. Whitney cutoff. Tomorrow they will get up early and summit, then try to catch up with us in a day or two.

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