Day 162 – Mile 2593.8 – 2619.0

Rainy Pass to Tentsite (5)

Miles to go: 36.2

Canada: 2655.2

I hardly slept at all last night! Was it nerves or excitement? I don’t understand because I was drop dead tired.

And so the final stretch begins. The couple I bumped into at High Bridge were driving to the coffee shop in Mazama whilst I was walking back to the Lion’s Den for my ride back to trail and they also offered me a ride back to Rainy Pass. I jumped at their offer as it would get me there half an hour earlier than expected and wouldn’t be so cramped.

As we went up the mountain we drove into thick low cloud, but it looked like it might burn off later in the morning as it was just over the mountains and not in the valley. This morning turned out to be one of the most beautiful mornings on trail so far. The vivid yellow of the ‘Golden Larches’ brightening up the hillsides. I’m assured people come from miles away to hike these mountains at this time of year just to be among them.

Within the first mile or so I lost a pair of nearly new gloves as they fell out of my unzipped pocket. Hopefully I won’t need them and they are found by someone who will use them. The profile of todays route was; a big climb, around the ridge for a while, a big descent then flat through the valley floor before a final big climb to my campsite on a ridge. There’s supposed to be water at this tentsite but I can’t find it. I should be ok as the next water is just 6miles away.

There aren’t ‘rich pickings’ for campsites tomorrow towards the end of the trail. I’ll either have to settle for 25miles again or ‘do a 30’ leaving just 6miles to the border then another 8miles into Canada to ‘Manning Park’ and the first road. Let see how I feel. I hope I get a better night’s sleep than last night because I’ve felt rough all day.

Water filtered: 504.0 litres

PCT Miles hiked today: 25.2

Nights under canvas current streak: 1

Max streak: 18

Total nights under canvas: 120

Total nights in a building: 42

Lake swims: 1

Showers: 38

Trail Magic: 19

Thought for the day: I bought a mini bottle of Prosecco to celebrate if I make it to the border.