Day 113: The Trail Already Traveled

(Mile 1835 to 1861.5, Thielsen Creek = 26.5 miles)

Not much to report on the day.  It was a fairly peaceful one and went by relatively quickly.  We are above a creek below Mt. Thielsen tonight.  Rocks are giving way and tumbling as I write.  Even the mountains change.

Sunrise over Crater Lake.

I guess what was different about today for me was that I am seeing places that I have seen before and traveling on trail that I have traveled before.  I felt at home on our first full day in Oregon, but I really feel at home now.  I have been to Crater Lake a couple of times, and I have climbed Mt. Thielsen and swam in Diamond Lake.  I have always said that one of the things I was looking forward to most on this trip was stringing together all of my previous Oregon hikes.  Standing on the rim of Crater Lake looking north towards Thielsen and the Three Sisters, I felt a joyful contentment ... lined with a bit of kid-at-Christmas excitement.  I am HOME.  And I cannot wait to see all of the familiar places.

Found it! Thanks for the water, Wired!

It's funny.  Oregon does feel like home to me.  I know it better than Iowa or Michigan, Wisconsin or Minnesota.  I think this happens to many of us who move as adults.  We find ourselves learning more about our new areas than those where we spent 3/4 of our lives.  It makes me wonder about everything I missed in the places where I grew up.  Maybe our worlds are just too small when we are young.

Mt. Thielsen... I climbed this a couple years ago...

Which reminds me.  I was talking to Virgo the other night, and he said something about how the Trail is all about the people.  The people we meet, cross paths with, spend time with.  The people.  I thought about this for a moment.  The people.  ?  I was a little surprised, although I probably should not have been.  I am sure it is about the people for many hikers.  For me, it is the places.  The people are important, sure, but secondary to the places.  It's the Kings Canyons, the Muir Passes, the Crater Lakes, the windy ridges, the sunsets, stars, and sunrises, the special creeks, rocks, and trees.  These are what I will carry around with me.  The people?  A few.  But I am slow to make friends.  With people at least.

:)

Night.

Day 111 & 112: Let the Oregon Magic Begin!

(Mile 1802.5 to 1829.3, Crater Lake + 1.2 = 28 miles; 1829.3 to 1835 = 5.7 miles)

Stormy morning.  These clouds are for you, Steve Shunk!

111:  We started the day in the tail end of a storm and are ending it under a cool, starry night at Crater Lake.  28 miles before 7 PM!  This is not a record in miles, but surely in timing.

Thank you, Jim Knight, for the care package!  I love the Friends of Silver Falls. :)

112:  Well, I got too tired to write any more!  It'll be a short one tonight, too.  It's an hour past hiker midnight.  But!  We are on the rim of Crater Lake tonight, and it is absolutely gorgeous.  I do love Crater Lake.  Perhaps more than Yosemite?  Shhh!  I think I love the simplicity of it.  It's about the lake.  Sure, there are a handful of other pretty areas, Annie's Creek is very nice, but it is still about the crater and the lake.  I will never forget when I first saw the lake over the rim.  It was my first summer in Oregon, and I was on one of many solo roadtrips around the state.  I pulled over and leapt out of my car.  The feeling is hard to explain, but was an overwhelming joy.  The same one I had upon first seeing Kings Canyon in the Sierras and my first spectacular northern lights in Sandstone, MN. 

Medals from Gym Jesters gymnastics club in Michigan!  We LOVE it.

 As for the Oregon magic I intended to write about...both Gumby and I received amazing care packages here.  She got one from her gymnastics gym--we LOVE our medals!--and one from her significant other.  I got a package from a volunteer I work with at Silver Falls, Jim Knight--along with a letter that had us both in stitches.  And then!  Wired (2011thru-hiker) left me a note at the store that has directions to a water supply she left us.  Heck, yes!

Handstands for Crater Lake.  Our first Oregon resupply.

We wound up neroing, but we have had a good day at Crater Lake.  We've caught up with a bubble of hikers, and it's been good to feel like a part of a larger community.  It's been a cross of Mellow Yellow's group and Siddhartha's.  Which happens to include a number of women!  We had a ladies' lunch today--seven of us women traveling sans significant others.  Pretty inspiring, eh?

Sunset at Crater Lake.

And now, to sleep.  We have big miles all through Oregon.  Tomorrow is no exception.   Although today apparently was.

Thank you, Wired, for the water, notes, and reroute info!  We are so hooked up!

Day 110: Unnerved

(Mile 1775 to 1802.5 = 27.5 miles)

Well, we are in a saddle, and it is just starting to rain.  And thunder.  And lightning.  And I do not like it one bit.  Weathercarrot was right!  Fortunately, we set our tents up, and I set mine low for wind.  We'll see tonight how she holds up in a little weather.  I am fine with rain, I am just not super eager for a storm. 

These two were trail angeling by horse!

Today was a pretty good day.  We got good miles in and ran into lots of hikers.  Including The Bobcat and Weathercarrot, Peels, Smiles, Mud Flap, Shameless, Action Pack, and... Mellow Yellow!  We caught up!  And I actually got to hike with him for the first time.  It was refreshing to see so many people. 

1800 miles!  Just 863.5 to go!

(The rain on my tent is like being in a popcorn popper.  Unnervingly loud.)

Wait a minute, is the Forest Service using the Comic Sans font?!

Speaking of unnerving, fires closed Hwy 140 today just hours after we passed it.  A fire near Fourmile Lake.  Siddhartha texted to ask about trail conditions; we didn't know a thing about a fire.  And we passed Fourmile Lake.  A fire just north of Crater Lake has the trail closed for now and perhaps another near Jefferson Park.  It is fire season in Oregon.  And we are in the center of it!  It is interesting, for sure.  And just a bit unsettling.  Hopefully, this storm is fire free and settles down in time for a few hours of sleep...

Day 109: Farewell, My Friend!

(Mile 1750 to 1775 = 25 miles)

I just received news this morning that Kindergarten Cop is leaving the Trail.  His mother passed, and he needs to be home with his family.  It is one of the great fears of a thru-hiker, that something will happen to a loved one back home while s/he is out on the Trail.  It can be days later that we hear news and with every day comes guilt and pain that we were out here while loved ones were in need.

Kindergarten Cop always took photos of flowers for his wife. Bouquets, he called them. These Bleeding Hearts are the first I've seen on the trail. For you and your family, KC!

I will miss Kindergarten Cop immensely.  Although we have not been traveling together lately, we keep tabs on each other and are thrilled when our paths cross.  I actually feel a sense of loss realizing that the last time I saw him will be the last time I see him for awhile.  Not forever, though!  I am sure to head out to the Blue Ridge Parkway to pay him a visit in the not too distant future.

KC is one of the few close friends I've made out here.  We clicked almost instantly.  We are, in many ways, much the same.  He is a big bull, and I am a little one.  He is a big alpha male, and I am a little alpha female.  We both love life, laughter, people, and experiences.  We were two peas in a pod.  And he could read me like a book.  A friend, mentor, kindred spirit, and guard dog. 

What man! There is little Kindergarten Cop cannot do or has not done. Send photos of your handstands, KC!

Kindergarten Cop asked me to say "Farewell!" to all of you, too.  He seems at peace with leaving the Trail and is eager to get home.  We will all miss his smiling face, bear hugs, and wild stories.  Safe travels, KC!  We'll be thinking of you with each headstand and handstand, lifting rock and root beer barrel.

Day 108: Salvaging

(Mile 1727 to 1750, Hyatt Lake = 23 miles)

Well, we salvaged this day with a solid 23 miles.  And we're at a campground, Hyatt Lake Recreation Area, and just took incredible showers.  Salvaged indeed.

Who knew Southern Oregon was so gorgeous?!

Salvaged from what?  Oh, it wasn't going poorly, we just didn't get out of Callahan's until 10 AM.  Little tasks like uploading all of Halfmile's maps that my phone in its brilliance mysteriously deleted.  So, we missed our first four hours of hiking, but still managed to get here despite the loss and the heat.  Tomorrow, we'll be back on track.

Ahh, what a little smoke does for a sunset. Gumby on the trail ahead.

A few updates:  The hiker who was bothering us is back on the trail.  He was a day ahead of us, but it seems he may actually be closer than we thought.  Sigh.  Just when we were forgetting about everything.  And there are fires all over the place!  Part of the trail is closed north of Crater Lake and another may close near Jeff Park--a huge disappointment!  Otherwise, all is well.  I am ridiculously happy to be back in Oregon.  It doesn't really make sense, but I am a bit more at ease, as if a weight has been lifted.  I cannot wait to get into familiar territory!

But it is late once again.  Night!