Category Archives: Training & Hiking – kinda stuff

Hey Howdy from Oregon !  I had no idea that waking up in OR yesterday, Monday, would feel so amazing.  What’s different? the ground is still hard dirt.  The water is still clean and clear.  The skies are still blue.  The skyline is ….oh, that’s the difference, most of the mountains are gone out of the skyline…. It’s a welcome change.  Many people are doing the ‘Oregon Challenge, hiking the 457 miles of the state in 2 weeks or less, which breaks down to 32 mile days without a break.  I’m not sure why anyone would want to rush through such a beautiful place, but I suppose it’d be great to look back and brag about it.  I have many friends in OR that I hope to see, or at least wave to as I pass on by.

It took me 16 weeks, 3 pair of shoes, 15 lbs, 17 wedding gowns, and countless gear replacements to get here.  And I feel fantastic about it !!
Finances are squeezed, so I’m GREATLY appreciative of the contributions I’ve received as of late.  Right down to all of the messages of encouragement that pop up weekly.

What’s next?  Two states and less than 1000 miles left to go.  I’m already starting to fret about where my life is going after this.  Will my job still be waiting for me? Will I live in Newport or Portland or Metaline Falls?  I dream of backwoods and big cities.  It’s all so wide open, much like the trail I follow every day, at least it has a definite direction though…. I try not to think about it… but it’s darn difficult.

For now though… I”m back on the trail tomorrow…. And Washington bound.  Nice…. and …. slow. =-)

It seems like so much has happened in the last two weeks that I don’t know where to begin or what’s most important to share.  How about some random thoughts, those are always fun… (and I’m so good at random!)

- Just outside of Burney  Falls State Park, I woke up to find ants in my tent.  LOTS of ants.  It seems they summited my tent, chewed their way through the nylon and marched on in.  More than 30 holes, some that are going to be difficult to patch, and this leaves me a bit worried about the wet weather ahead in OR and WA…. I may have to carry my  two man tent, which weighs twice what I have now.

-More wonderful people on the trail.  Eric a section hiker from Seattle.  ‘Sister Sue’ from Portland and her two beautiful daughters K8 and Lori, we not only enjoyed a nice day of hiking together, we all camped on a shelf with a KILLER view of Castle Crags after a bit of a rough hot climb.  Two beautiful and wonderful women from Mt.Shasta and Portland, that gave ‘Frost’ and I cookies and water on the trail.  The people out here are such a delight.  Oh, yeah… RANGER REX ! I don’t know who you are, but I’ve met people on the trail that said you told them about me…. Thanks man !

-The gown I wore last is probably the first one that I’ve let drag through the dirt for the entire section.  Most of the trains pick up so much crap I usually get tired of it and pull them up.  This one worked out well, and kept me cooler by doing so.  It rained for an hour the other day, seemingly trashing the train, but by the time the sun returned and the gown dried, it didn’t look so bad…. what’s up with that?  I can’t get these gowns dirty enough!

-Poison Oak !  I’ve managed to avoid it for the most part.  A few bumps here and there.  But it’s everywhere on the trails of northern California, and boy-o-boy do I have it !!!  Ankles, knees, waist, stomach, wrists, elbows, arm pits – all places I have it.  Add to that 5 days of an upset stomach and it’s amazing I”m still having fun out here.  There’s a clinic here in Etna, so I popped in for a pricey visit, and I’m hitting the trail with drugs, glorious drugs… The doc there thinks I have giardia, but I’d argue that point.  This next section will tell… hopefully when I arrive in Ashland OREGON !!! I’ll be in better shape.

-Northern California continues to amaze me.  The other day I hiked quite a long day mainly because I didn’t want to stop at a southbound section of trail.  I refused to wake up and hike south on my Northbound journey… silly I suppose.  The next morning I pulled out my maps and realized I had pages and pages of southbound… This was time for ‘mind over matter’ – remembering that I’m still knocking miles off of my  2660 mile journey.  All of this southbound, I assume, was to  get give us more amazing views, so it suddenly seemed worth it.  The Trinity Alps and Russian Wilderness were stunning !!!  STUNNING !  I was a little upset the trail wound away from Mt.Shasta, where Black Butte stood nearby… It’s a geological wonder and I’d hoped to see more of…. I suppose I’ll just have to return someday.

- I hiked a FOURTY ONE mile day !  It was a first and likely last, but I did it.  Coming out of Castella I hiked a 15, 41, 22, and 22… the last two 22′s were rough, but with my new shoes, my feet are happy.

-Jingle cows?  the day I hiked the 41 I thought i was loosing my mind or fatigue was setting in… I heard dull wind chimes a half mile prior to running into a herd of cows… all with bells.  They weren’t too bright as they ran down the trial in front of me.  I obviously scared the crap out of them, as they fouled up the trail, and I played hop-scotch around their messes.

That’s all for now I suppose.  I leave Etna today and hope to get to Ashland by Monday – 125 miles away. (25 miles a day to get me there), where I’ll be taking a zero to spend time with friends.  California has been wonderful and diverse, but it’s still 1700 miles long and I’m ready to get into another state… There’s a 4500 ft elevation gain over a hot 8 mile stretch, that’s nearly a mile to climb, ugh, we’re not looking forward to it…. But that’s 55 miles away, and i’ll try not to think about it… we’ve done it before, just not in this heat and lower, hotter, elevations.

Thanks again for the support from everyone !