Miles Hiked 168.6
PCT Mile 677.0
Elevation feet 6,345
Miles Hiked Today 6.5
July 23, 2026
Yesterday, July 22, was a zero day. I spent the day looking for and buying a few supplies in Bend, Oregon. Today, it’s back on the trail. John, another hiker with whom I’ve been camping at night, decided to get off the trail, so I’m on my own again.
The same trail angel, who picked me up at the PCT trailhead two days ago, is going to give me a ride back to the trail today. Two other hikers are joining us as well.
The trail angel, Devil Fish, stopped at the motel at 11:00 a.m. . Then we went to get the other two hikers. It’s about an hour drive out to the trail head, so we had a nice long ride. We reached the trailhead at 12:30 p.m., and I was on my way south by 12:45 p.m. .
The trail picked up right where it left off two days ago. There I was walking on lava rock again. The good news is the lave rock stopped after a couple of miles, and the trail was mostly dirt and some infrequent sections of stone.
The weather forecast for Bend was to see the temperature up to 92° today. However, at the trail it was much cooler and a light breeze made it very comfortable.
The plan was not to go too far today. The late start made a big mile day not possible. About 4:30 p.m., I started looking for a tent site and by 5:00 p.m. I had found one and started putting up my tent.
The short day was nice, but tomorrow things will be back to normal, and I’ll try to put in 15 or more miles.
