The second half of our hike through Washington was magical. The landscape was unbelievable, and knowing our adventure would soon be over, we soaked in every mile and hiked with excitement and gratitude for the trail. We’d hiked out of the big bubble and were with our choice group. We truly couldn’t have asked for a better end to the trail.
Despite the magical experience, simultaneously, the trail kicked our asses. Leaving Snoqualmie, we hiked some of the toughest trail yet, and we knew it would only get more difficult as we continued north. We hiked up and up and up some more, across narrow scree littered trail, and along steep cliff-sides. Once again, we felt transported to another world when we looked out across the landscape. The sky was every shade of blue and gray and misty clouds danced all around us. Bright, almost neon, wildflowers painted the mountainside, but the valleys below billowed with darkness.
Our next stop, Stevens Pass, was only three days from Snoqualmie, but we were already ready for the short break we got, as the elevation change over those three days was an absolute butt kicker. We were knackered. We had a resupply box waiting for us at Stevens Pass, but we were way hungrier than we planned, so we ended up hitching into Skykomish to eat a few meals and add to our resupply. The local outfitter owner brought us in and out of town - thanks Anthony! Skykomish is a cute little all-American, leave your doors unlocked, little pink houses kind of town. With an incredible deli. Their breakfast burrito was huge and heavenly, and a few hours later when I ate my second one it was just as huge and heavenly.
We only stopped in town for a few hours, and by 2pm we were hiking again - straight towards a huge plume of smoke. There were two wildfires burning ahead of us several miles from the trail. Thankfully, other than some smokey air, they only effected our hike by adding a little extra excitement. It was so cool to stand on the mountainside at night and watch the fire burn. The return of the mosquito plague didn’t allow us to stay and watch very long, but the few minutes we could tolerate were incredible.
We spent the next few days hiking through the breathtaking Glacier Peak Wilderness. This section was definitely one of our favorites of the entire trail. Not only was it one of the most beautiful areas we hiked through, it was also one of the only sections that felt untouched, still wild. For days, we were afforded incredible up-close views of Glacier Peak - this alone was awesome, as Glacier Peak is very remote and otherwise difficult to access. The mountain herself was magnificent, but even more so were the vibrant Kinnikinnick-covered mountainsides that stretched seemingly forever, contrasting the dark cloudy sky.
The beauty of this section almost distracted us from the pain. Section K, the 107 miles between Stevens Pass and Stehekin, is said to be the most difficult of the entire PCT because of the ridiculous and constant elevation change. The hundreds of blow-downs and sketchy river crossings only added to the difficulty. There were a couple days in this section where mile after mile we had to pull ourselves up and over massive downed cedar trees. Our arms, unused to hard work, quickly turned to sore useless noodles. Luckily, that was after we needed our arms to potentially save our lives when, one night, we had to hastily flee our campsite.
Night was beginning to fall as we finally reached the top of one of the gnarliest climbs of the trail; it’d been a long tough day of hiking, and we were totally smoked. We gathered our water for the night and then began searching for a campsite. To our delight, we spotted a single site out on an exposed ridge with huge views of the incredible landscape surrounding us. The sky was mostly clear and the wind was negligible - it was the perfect night for a spot like this. We quickly started on our nightly routine, eager to relax and indulge in this incredible setting. It wasn’t long before we were lounged on the dirt, halfway through our freeze-dried dinner. At this point we noticed some large concerning clouds begin to roll over the mountain ahead of us. We decided we’d keep an eye on the situation as we finished dinner, assuming the clouds would dissipate and all would be well.
Unfortunately, they didn’t dissipate - the clouds only continued to accumulate. As we took our last bites of dinner, powerful strikes of lightning began to crack in the air around us. Considering we were on the highest point in the area, surrounded by our metal tent poles, it didn’t take long to decide we needed to flee. We shoved as much as we could in our backpacks and scooped the rest in our arms, then took off along the ridge and down the mountain, like two frenzied Gypsies running for their lives. Luckily, we only had to travel a half mile to another campsite - this one much lower and much safer. Wet from the rain, but thankful to be safe, we re-pitched our tent in the dark of night. When we finally lay down that night, we looked at each other and, in unison, expressed our burning desire to reach the northern terminus and get the heck off this trail.
A couple days later we arrived at the High Bridge Historical Cabin where we’d get on a shuttle that would take us into Stehekin. Stehekin is a small isolated community set perfectly on the northern shore of Lake Chelan, accessible to the outside world only by boat or floatplane. We instantly fell in love with this place. The setting, the people, the simplicity, and oh my god the bakery! A hallmark movie set, but better. We spent the remainder of the day trying as many baked goods as possible, doing our town chores, and hanging out with many of the incredible people we’d met on the trail. We sat for hours on the patio of The Inn overlooking the lake, singing along to live music and basking in the good company.
The next morning we made another trip to the bakery, and once again ate our weight in sweets. If “eat a cinnamon roll from the Stehekin bakery” isn’t on your bucket list, it would behoove you to add it immediately. We also stopped at The Garden - a beautiful garden/hobby farm owned by one of the locals. After admiring the perfect rows of flourishing produce, we made our way to the market where we bought and immediately devoured fresh picked blueberries, goat milk yogurt, and a heaping portion of goat cheese.
We were miserably full as we began hiking again. So full and miserable, in fact, that we walked right up on a bear without noticing until we were a bit too close for comfort. Luckily, he was occupied munching on berries and gave zero fricks that we were marching through his territory. Stehekin was our final stop of the trail. We’d reach the northern terminus in just three days. As us and our potbellies waddled along, it was all starting to feel a bit bittersweet. While we were very much looking forward to finishing the trail, it was going to be tough to part ways with such a profound journey and all the wonderful people we met along the way.
Despite it being challenging, Chris and I both agree the sections between Snoqualmie and Stehekin were the best of the entire trail. Part of that, I’m sure, is the fact that we were just days from finishing, but no doubt it was some of the most magical country we’ve ever been in. With our hearts full, heads clear, and bodies screaming for rest, we were ready to take on our last few days of life on the PCT.
Hump on!
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