Miles Hiked 238.1
PCT Mile 480.3
Elevation 2,969 feet
Miles Hiked Today 21.3
There were a lot of hikers camping at the dirt road trailhead last night. The place had yet to clear when I left camp at 7:00 a.m. Some northbound hikers told Halloween and me about an alternate route for the PCT. We both decided to go ahead and try it.
The alternate route involved 11.7 miles of road walk. I was able to move fast but the hard asphalt did hurt my feet. About 4 hours later at the PCT trailhead, I met Halloween who was resting before getting on the trail. We both set out together heading southbound. The plan was to go about 10 miles and camp at a dirt road. Unfortunately, this involved over a 2000 ft elevation gain in our hike.
The climb to the intended campsite was brutal. It took longer than anticipated and I arrived just before 6 p.m. Halloween followed 15 minutes later, and two other hikers were already there.
I did a lot of miles for the second day in a row. I’m going to be doing shorter mileage tomorrow. Cascade Locks is only 25 miles away, so an approach plan has to be set.
