The Women Behind the Curtain

If you were wondering how we kept our blog updated during the hike, we didn't!

A huge thank you to Liz Parker (Emily's mom) and Sally Bauernfeind (Chris' mom) for their amazing behind-the-scenes blog work during our hike.

Liz chillin' on Newcomb Hollow beach in Wellfleet.

We mailed handwritten notes on napkins and scraps of paper to Boston where Liz painstakingly transcribed our entries. Sometimes our handwriting wasn't so great. In fact, Chris got straight C's in handwriting throughout elementary school, and his was easier to read than Emily's! Needless to say it was a tough job. Sometimes she had to call on others to help decipher our scribbling. She even called REI at one point to inquire about "spracks." They rightfully informed her about "sporks," an eating utensil that's a combination of a spoon and a fork.

Sally with her granddaughter Elsie, all decked out in pink.

Uploading pictures, slideshows, and general blog maintenance, that was Sally's thing. Numerous times, she took phone calls in Kentucky from Chris... "Can you take off that picture of my disgusting foot? We've been getting complaints." Or "I don't like the way the site is so busy with all the slideshows." And "The pictures need to be rotated," etc., etc. She never complained, but just kept uploading the pictures from the cards I was sending her, and kept everything in order. She even fixed the SPOT page without my asking.

Our blog was a great way to keep our friends and families informed. Their efforts also left us with an indelible memento of our trip that we can cherish forever in cyberspace. Thanks so much to Liz and Sally! Not only were they computer whizzes, they were tremendous cheerleaders and a groovy support team.

-Sunfish & Beetle

Border Celebration

Stehekin to Canada

We made it!

So we're back in Boston... but there's 1 more trail entry that I must write, for all you readers out there who have enjoyed the last 5 months.

Before I start though, I have to say that I just uploaded all of the Washington pictures (while watching Game 2 of the Sox-Angels ALDS), and am already starting to get emotional about the walk. It's so strange to be back in the real world.

That being said, here's a recap of the last section, between Stehekin and the border of Canada:

We caught the last bus out of Stehekin Saturday evening. As the only patrons on the bus, we got a personal tour of the area, and even got to ask questions along the way. Getting back on the Trail just before sunset, we didn't get very far, and camped a mile in, just up from the banks of Coon Lake.

In the morning, with 90 miles to go, we got up early and started the day as we had the last 4+ months... coffee, breaking down the tent, filling our packs with our stuff, and taking that first step of the day. It was cold. Cold enough that I wore hiking pants, rain pants, 4 layers on my torso, 2 sets of gloves, and a toque on my noggin. Eventually I warmed up, and after we put in over 12 miles, we had lunch at a creekside campsite, soaking in the sun.

Moving north, we left North Cascades National Park, and came to Hwy 20 / Rainy Pass. There, we found a 'magic' cooler with fruit in it, and had a pear each. After progressing to Porcupine Creek to fill up our water bottles, we decided that I'd push on by myself the next 3 1/2 miles to Cutthroat Pass and set up camp, making both of us happy... I get to up my heart rate while Emily gets to arrive with camp set up.

SPACE

Unfortunately though, due to my fault, she passed camp without me realizing it, and the next 2 hours were spent trying to find each other. Funny how, after almost 5 months, we lost each other for the very first time with only 3 days to go. While she was hollering my name on the north side of the ridge, I was screaming bloody murder on the south side. After I got no response numerous times, I couldn't help but have thoughts of very bad things happening to her. She was either 1-attacked by a bear, 2-off the trail after slipping, maybe with a broken ankle, or 3-a rape victim. It was a very difficult couple hours for me, and after almost panicking, coming close to hitting the 911 button on the SPOT, and muttering things to myself like "Oh my god what have I done?", I collected myself, took a deep breath, and broke down camp to go find her. While walking up to the pass, we found each other, and embraced in a sobbing hug. That night, we appreciated the tight confines of our tent, sleeping as close to each other as possible.

SPACE

The next day, we decided it best to stay together. We walked, walked some more, and walked some more after that. 25 miles down, up, down, up, and finally down under a moonlit sky to Harts Pass, where we were pleasantly surprised to find a campground with a pit toilet that was actually clean and pretty nice!

SPACE

In the morning we awoke to find it had snowed. Only a dusting, but a definite reality check for us that winter was right around the corner. It was another cold day, and I found it hard at first to get warm, even with all my layers on and walking. Emily started the day with her down jacket on, but quickly warmed up, and had to shed it. All day actually we were putting on and taking off layers, having a hard time thermoregulating with the varied terrain, clouds, and whether the trail was under a tree canopy or not. One minute we'd be cold, the next boiling lava hot and sweating. During lunch we ran into 3 fellow thru-hikers: Bubble Party, Hungry, and Hemlock. They were on their way back to Harts Pass, after having reached Canada the day before and deciding to stay in the States. After congratulating them on their accomplishment, we parted ways, vowing to stay in touch in cyber space. Snow began to fall off and on in the afternoon. We had wanted to camp before dark, but because of the gray skies, and that we were left with little flat ground when we started looking for a campsite, that didn't work out so well. We finally found a flat spot, up on a ridge at 7000 feet, and pitched our tent while it got dark and snowed on us. While staying in the tent, we cooked just outside the vestibule, and stayed warm inside our sleeping bags. Sleep came shortly after dinner.

SPACE

With only 8 1/2 miles to the border, we set the alarm for 6:00 and enjoyed a lazy morning, eating breakfast and drinking coffee while still inside our bags. We reminisced a bit, talked about what we were feeling, and what the hell we were about to do: finish this walk we started 5 months and 1 day ago. We emerged from the tent to find about an inch of fresh snow on the ground, which was just enough to make the surrounding scenery absolutely beautiful without hindering our progress. Needless to say we were on a high that morning as we walked north.

SPACE

We arrived at the northern terminus just before noon. It was in a small clearing in the middle of nowhere, and had the same style monument as the one at the Mexican border. What does one do when finishing a journey of this length? Well, we hugged, we congratulated each other, Emily cried, I smoked a cigar, we drank some champagne, we took pictures, we broke out the Canadian flag, we sighed. Now what? 8 more miles to the closest civilization: Manning Park, BC. It was there that my parents, George and Sally, met us, which was only fitting since they saw us off at the start. Time to celebrate!

SPACE

Wow, I can't believe it... we really did it. We hiked the entire length of the PCT.

SPACE

-Sunfish

Skykomish to Stehekin

First, a word about the trail angels who kindly put us up in their home in Baring, WA. The Dinsmores have been taking in hikers for several years. During our stay, we showered, did laundry, got online for e-mail and banking, watched some movies, cooked hot dogs over a roaring campfire and crashed on inflatable mattresses along with 8 other hikers. The Dinsmores' quiet generosity is amazing, and much appreciated.

Clean and well-rested, we were eager to set out on the trail early the next morning thanks to a ride from a fellow thru-hiker turned trail angel named Scholar. (Unfortunately, she had to cut her hike short because of a foot injury.) Chris and I had 98 miles to cover and a deadline: we had to get to the Stehekin Post Office before it closed for the weekend. In addition to the distance, the guidebook also noted that this section is second only to the High Sierra in difficulty. That means this was not the section to expect to pull big miles. Chris did some number crunching, as he often does, and we realized it was absurd to try to get to the PO on Friday so our hopes of finishing a day early had to be revised. It was a relief to both of us once we made the decision to arrive in Stehekin on Saturday, meaning we did not have to hike 30 mile days over rough terrain.

In fact, it would have been impossible to do such long days during this stretch. As it was, we hiked from the dark predawn hours until after sunset most days and only covered between 21 and 24 miles. Colossal climbs were partly to blame. One day, we climbed a total of five thousand feet only to end up at roughly the same elevation as we started because of equally steep descents. Downed trees were another hindrance. The US Forest Service has yet to clear the trees after massive floods in 2003 from the Glacier Peak Wilderness. Since then, they have been re-routing thru-hikers and equestrians to another trail. We opted to continue along the unmaintained PCT, like most other hikers we spoke to, for a couple reasons. One: the re-route sounded just as overgrown and dangerous. An equestrian friend doing the trail this year lost both her beloved horses - Harmony and Jer - on a steep and shrubby section of the re-route. They died after one misstep in thick brush, falling 1500 feet. Fortunately, she is OK but for being broken hearted over the trauma and loss. Two: the re-route is about 10 miles longer!

Our decision turned out to be the right one. Yes, we had to wade through long sections of overgrown brush and scale fallen trees whose trunks were taller than I am. But the scenery was truly spectacular - Glacier Peak jacketed in thick, white glaciers; tasty blueberry bushes turning crimson with the changing season; clear streams aplenty and stunning blue skies. Indeed, the weather has been beautiful, well beyond our expectations of solid rain. Every sunny, warm day in Washington has been a gift and we've been relishing each cloudless day this stretch with the plentiful vistas undisturbed by fog.

So after a couple days of trudging up and over steep ridges, scrambling over masses of fallen trees and bushwhacking through overgrown brush, we find ourselves in Stehekin. We only have a half day to enjoy this vacation community nestled at the head of Lake Chelan. But we are taking full advantage of this last town stop by doing laundry, showering, picking up our last resupply box during the one hour that the PO is open on Saturdays and indulging in several pastries from the renowned Stehekin bakery.

It is hard to believe this is our last town stop and even harder to believe we will be finishing the trail in four days. Part of me is ready to just stop walking and get the trail over with. Another part of me realizes I am in the midst of a life-changing event and I need to soak in each vista, each gulp of fresh air, and each of these extraordinary moments with my husband.

Next stop - Canada!

Snoqualmie Pass to Skykomish

Walking into Snoqualmie Pass on Friday, we hadn't seen another thru-hiker since getting back on the trail a week earlier. We were feeling like we were the last ones on the PCT, a lonely feeling. But as we entered the Pancake House, we saw familiar faces, as well as hikers we had not met before. We caught up with:

Fix-It -He's a carpenter in Portland, Oregon in the real world

Creamsicle- Named this by another hiker because he bought a giant box of these and passed them out somewhere in southern California

Scuba - He got this name for his diving to the Deep Creek bottom looking for lost sun glasses

Jessica - Never got a trail name

Dutch - He had a group of '08 hikers at the kick-off party believing that Euchre was a Dutch word meaning "to cheat" during a card game of the same name

Ancient Brit - Just an old British guy

Pickle Monster - He apparently really loves pickles

Wonka - Someone thought her laminated picture of Thoreau hanging off the back of her pack was Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka in the movie

Good Spot - He constantly is looking for that "good spot" for lunch or camp

After having breakfast and lunch without leaving our booth, we decided it was time to get walking. However, the next 40 miles of the PCT was closed due to fire. The USFS rerouted us along roads and out of the way 20 miles, but thankfully, another hiker knew a better way. Via Snow Lake, Middle Fork Snoqualmie River, and Dutch Miller Gap, we made our way around the closed section to the PCT at mile 2438.0, where we continued north.

Not without getting rained on for most of Saturday though. It was our first real day of rain in Washington, and hopefully our last. Our alarm went off just after 5 am right about the time raindrops started hitting our rain fly. We had a decision to make. Do we enjoy being warm and dry and sleep longer or get packed up before it really starts coming down? We chose the latter and began our day in full rain gear. It rained steadily all morning, let up for a few hours around lunch time, then began drizzling again around 3 pm. As we were arriving at Deep Lake, it became stormy with gusty wind and heavier rain. We wasted no time with getting inside the tent and even cooked in the vestibule.

Sunday dawned cloudy, foggy, and overcast. Nothing to do but get hiking though, and after going up and over Cathedral Pass, and Deception Pass, the skies began to clear. The rest of the day was beautiful and I was even able to take advantage of being near Seattle, flipping between the Mariners (MLB) and Seahawks (NFL) games on my walkman.

With only 10 miles to go to Steven's Pass, we treated ourselves to breakfast in bed on Monday morning. To our oatmeal, we added the freshest blueberries one could get, picked from a bush outside our tent. Scrumptious! We got on the trail by 6:30 and enjoyed the gorgeous morning walking to Steven's Pass/Hwy 2. Hitching to Skykomish was a piece of cake and that's where we are right now. 179 miles to Canada!

Way back in Southern California, in the first few days or so, I equated the PCT to a marathon , breaking up the trail into 26.2 100-mile increments. If we stick to that, and pretend it's the Boston Marathon, at this point, we're running down Beacon Street, seeing for the first time the Citgo Sign and nearing Kenmore Square. We are so close we can taste it.

-Sunfish