Total Miles This Hike: 35.55
PCT Miles Covered: 1736.1
I have FINALLY started hiking, though I might have picked a difficult spot to start. I knew I had to be up very early today so last night before bed, I actually moved everything outside out of the bunkroom and set up in one of the hammocks they had in the back yard. This way I could get up without disturbing anybody. I was up at 5:15AM and was walking to the bus station by 6AM. Got some Starbucks on the way (last chance for coffee for a while), and made it on the 6:40AM bus to Sisters, which is the next town up. The bus lets you off near a McDonalds so I figured I would grab some food as well, and by 8:15AM I was by the side of the road with my thumb out. Only took about 10 minutes until a car with two older women pulled over. They said they could only bring me half way to the trail but I still took it. After getting out of the car it took about 5 minutes for a guy named Kenny to pick me up blasting Jimmy Buffet in his pickup truck. He was a very energetic older hippie, and even offered me weed for my hike which I politely turned down. Slowly we made it up the hill and when the road hit its apex there is was. The Pacific Crest Trail at Santiam Pass. Nearly 300 miles north of where I expected to start, but that didn’t matter. I was finally here.
This section of Oregon has some big mountains, but the trail somewhat skirts them all as it winds its way north through the state. I was headed south though. Pack on, and I was walking. The first 5 miles were relatively flat but the mosquitos were already out, so it wasn’t completely smooth sailing. About 5 miles in I hit the trail into Big Lake Youth Camp. A kids camp that you can send resupplies to, get water at, or even get a free meal (for a donation) if you hit it at the right time. I saw no need in going in as I just started my hike. The next section (rest of the day) was through a burn area from a previous fire. In the last couple years there have been so many fire closures on the PCT in Oregon that I wonder how many of these I’m gonna have to walk through.
About 10 miles into the day, fully exposed I had to start conserving water. This was a long waterless stretch except for Big Lake Youth Camp which I had passed up. After the burn zone I then came to the lava beds. This whole area of the Cascades are made up of dormant volcanos, and in many spots you will see where the lava flowed downhill hundreds or thousands of years ago and made these veins of igneous rock.
Nothing grows in these areas because there is no soil, just rock. Despite more time being at full exposure to the sun, the walk through the lava beds at least allowed for some breathtaking panoramas.
I literally had a quarter of a liter of water when I got to MacKenzie Pass which is the other road out of Sisters. I flirted with the idea of hitching into town to just get something to drink and hitching back out, however in just 1 more mile I would get to my first real water source, and a staple that we hikers live on here in Oregon: Pond and Lake water. Yum. Actually with a filter giving me piece of mind that I’m not gonna get girardia, some of these ponds taste better than water out of the tap.
On the way into this “Lake” however, my prayers were answered in the form of my first trail magic on my first day.
Lava Lake Camp is a campground accessible to cars, and somebody had left a whole bunch of gatorades on the trail into the lake for PCT hikers. Finally hydrated between the gatorade and the lake water, I set up camp and was ready to pass out. The lava walking had my feet a bit torn up and I will have to monitor them tomorrow, and the sunburn hurt like all hell as I tried to lay down. I don’t care though because I am back out here finally...
Keep on keeping on
Patch
Keep going Todd...we’re following
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