PCT Daily Post

To celebrate two years (!!) without alcohol, here’s a collection of photos from the last year showing things I’ve done that I couldn’t have accomplished if I was still drinking.

650 miles in the desert while hungover and dehydrated? No way. Honestly, even starting the PCT would have been an insurmountable challenge.

Getting to be completely present and an auntie to a sweet baby? Not a chance.

Graduating Basic Alpine, becoming a Backpacking leader, and taking new students on backcountry trips? I wouldn’t have trusted myself.

People ask me all the time if I’ll ever drink again. I try not to think more than 24 hours at a time, but every morning for the past 730 days I promise myself I won’t take a drink, and so far I haven’t missed it one bit.

I’m so grateful to be alcohol-free and to inspire others by being completely transparent about my journey. I can’t wait to see what the next year has in store. #alcoholfree #2yearswithoutalcohol #sobriety #soberjourney #getoutside #pct ...

A heartfelt message from a very grateful human. Thank you for everything. Here’s to the next chapter. ❤️ #pct #thruhike #love ...

My first big outing after my injury was an incredible success. We bagged a really fun peak (Big Craggy, Bulger #5, 61st tallest peak in WA) over a 10 hour day, ascending the mountain from the SE ridge and descending to the west ridge before dropping back into the basin. It was a super fun mix of forested off-trail adventure, steep snow, and very steep talus and loose dirt. Those Bulgers never come easy!

We then hung out in Mazama for 2 days, spending as much time as we could at the local crags. I had a blast and did some of my best climbing to date.

The best part? My foot doesn’t hurt! Biggest thanks to @blazephysio for the rehab routine and continuous follow up. Without her, I would not be able to get back to doing what I love and so quickly.

This trip confirmed I am still on track to return to the PCT in a couple weeks and I am SO stoked. 👏👏

#pnw #getoutside #bulgerlist #bigcraggy #climbing #peakbagging #peakbagger ...

(Prefacing this post by saying that Yosemite NP is an egregious example of the atrocities committed against and land stolen from the indigenous people who were settled here thousands of years before Euro-Americans “discovered” the valley. Please see the link in my bio or here https://www.uky.edu/~tmute2/GEI-Web/password-protect/GEI-readings/spence-dispossessing-the-wilderness1996.pdf for an eye-opening document on how Yosemite came to be and forever changed my perspective on wilderness and the places we now occupy).

Words really can’t do justice to the beauty I was privileged enough to see over the last two days. From sprawling alpine meadows to towering walls of granite, I was in awe the entire time.

Did we get lost in the endless one-way streets in the valley? Absolutely. Did I constantly compare the crowds, lines and infrastructure to the empty North Cascades NP back home? You bet. Did I have to do all the easy trails and avoid the ones that really called to me (600+ stairs, strenuous, etc)? Unfortunately yes.

But waking up early to beat the crowds and see the sun come over Half Dome is something I’ll never forget.

Knowing the history of the park, it was often bittersweet experiencing the beauty, knowing that it was stolen with violence and disregard. I still haven’t found a way to come to terms with that history, but I did my best to leave no trace and honor the sanctity of the space.

My foot was a little angry the first day (not sure why), but today it held up relatively well for 22,000 steps!

I have now arrived in Reno to spend some time with my dear friend and her new baby, and I am already feeling so relaxed. My road trip has come to an end and what a journey it was. Thank you for following along ❤️ ...

Days 5&6
The last two days have been truly incredible. I’m finally settling into my new groove as a nomad, traveling the Eastern Sierra until I need to rest, then finding a spot to set up my home for the night.

When I started the trail, a friend said that my backpack and my tent would become my home. I haven’t felt that more strongly than in the last week. What is more freeing than not knowing where I will lay my head for the night? Then finding beautiful locations that change by the day.

I’ve had the privilege of sleeping among giant Jeffrey Pines, in the shadow of Mt. Whitney, at almost 7,000 feet above a lake, a stone’s throw from a natural hot spring.

I’ve heard cows mooing in the distance, birds singing me to sleep and waking me in the morning, and a mountain lion screaming (ok, that last one I didn’t quite enjoy).

I will spend the next 2 nights in established campgrounds exploring Yosemite, and while I’m absolutely stoked to experience that beauty, I’m a little sad to be saying goodbye to the isolation I’ve experienced this last week.

I hope everyone, especially women, get to experience this once in their life. It’s empowering, it’s beautiful, it’s confidence-building, it’s raw and it’s intense.

Grateful today for this journey I’m on. ...

Days 3&4
On day 3, I had the privilege of starting my day by spending time with the oldest living organisms on Earth: the bristlecone pines. Not only did I enjoy their stark, gnarled beauty, but I left feeling inspired by their resilience in thriving in the most harsh conditions. Even with roots exposed, alkaline soil, and bark almost completely stripped away, these trees continue to grow and endure the challenges throughout centuries. It is incredibly humbling to stand next to a living thing that has weathered so many years.

After spending time with the pines, I headed to Keoughs Hot Springs where I had managed to book the last dry camping site for the night. It wasn’t a great camp spot, but I loved going back and forth between the cool swimming pool and hot spring all afternoon. I even got a shower!

After a not so great night of sleep, I made my way to Bishop, which is my favorite town so far in Owens Valley. The laundromat happened to be next door to the coolest coffee shop and restaurant. I spent several hours there, seeing hikers I haven’t seen since the first 100 miles. I even got to give some a ride to the bus stop!

My next stop was the Owens Valley Paiute-Shoshone Cultural Center, which is an amazingly well done museum and art gallery. I learned so much regarding not only the stolen land in the valley, but the stolen water through the LA Aqueduct that continues to this day. Having walked 30 miles along the aqueduct, it is heartbreaking to know just how tragically this stolen water affected so many peoples and their livelihoods.

Next up was Convict Lake, so named for a group of prisoners who escaped and made camp by the lake before being caught and hanged. This lake is absolutely beautiful, and I was lucky enough to rent a kayak to explore the whole area. The water was in the 30s, and the overcast skies and slight wind reminded me of home.

I had planned on exploring the nearby hot springs after the lake and was grateful for the chance to warm up! The Owens Valley is a highly geologically active area, with many places in the earth where hot water rises to the surface. Locals have piped in the water and made stone tubs (continued in comments) ...

Day 2: After having cold coffee and a banana, I drove up the Whitney Portal Road to its end, the trailhead for climbing the mountain. It was funny to see how many van conversions were parked up there. The store was closed, so I drove back towards town, not really sure what I was going to do with the day. As I neared the main strip, I saw the familiar sight of a man with an ultralight backpack and the dangling plastic emblem of the PCT attached to the frame, his thumb requesting a ride back out to the trail.

I pulled a U turn and did everything my mom has told me not to do: pick up a hitch hiker alone. Just one of the many things the trail has changed my perspective on. Snakecharmer was very grateful for the hitch, saying he had waited 4.5 hours to get into town last time and only waited half an hour for me to pull over. Snakecharmer has been hiking with very familiar faces since Julian (Chowdah and Snuzz). It’s funny how small of a family the trail really is. We enjoyed more talk about the trail as we wound up the 20 mile steep, narrow road to Cottonwood Pass.

I dropped off Snakecharmer and wished him well, then headed back into town, now craving a hot breakfast and another cup of coffee.
I pulled into the Alabama Hills Cafe and got a yummy veggie skillet. As I was sitting there, thru hikers continued ambling in. I was surprised to see so many; Lone Pine is a hard hitch in and not far from Kennedy Meadows.

A man ambled over to me and politely asked if he could sit with me since it was a long wait for a table. I said sure, as long as you’re not weird. It amazes me I have friends sometimes. Sensei introduced himself and we enjoyed talking about the trail and “real life” over breakfast.

I then made my way to Manzanar, an incredibly sobering and extensive complex left from the Japanese internment camp from WWII. I took several hours to do the auto tour, and it’s truly shocking to see how US citizens were treated during this time. Many buildings and concrete foundations are still intact and it’s hard to see how so many prisoners survived and even thrived in the conditions.
(Continued in comments) ...

Day 1 of the impromptu, almost-completely-unplanned road trip!

This morning was really hard. As much as I wanted to leave Grumpy’s after sitting there for 4 days, I also knew leaving meant saying goodbye to my friends for about 5 weeks. It also meant seeing them off into the Sierra, the one section I was so unbelievably excited for.

We managed to fit 5 of us AND 5 packs into the ole clown car. Someone really does need to let Ford know what it’s capable of.
After lots of tears at the trailhead, I had the privilege of watching them walk into the very beginning of the mountain range. I’m truly so thankful I was able to see them off and help as much as possible before they left.

My plan as of the morning was to drive back to Highway 395 and then head south to Red Rocks Canyon State Park, a very little known and little used area with several very short trails and a campground. However, when I got there, I knew this plan would have to change. It was 99 degrees, the visitor center was not open, and the campground was completely exposed. I did a small 1.2 mile loop to see a popular canyon and was unfortunately reassured that I made the right decision: my foot protested quietly with every step in the sand and stiffened up when I got back in the car. The rock formations made of sandstone were beautiful and it really reminded me of Utah.

I decided to start my journey north on 395 and figured I could go to the second place on my list: Alabama Hills. This area has tons of dispersed camping and is surrounded by BLM land. It has piles of cool rock formations and even mini arches. I drove to another small loop trail, this one probably less than a half mile, and again my foot was a little angry with me. I’m officially glad I stayed behind.

I found a perfect spot with a direct view of Mt. Whitney and Lone Pine Peak, and the site even has a snowmelt river running alongside it to provide background noise. I’ve never been this close to the Sierra and they are truly stunning in every sense of the word. I am currently enjoying an ice cold NA beer, fresh California cherries and a deli sandwich while I watch the sun set behind the peaks. Maybe this won’t be so bad after all. ...

Day 48: 644.9 to Walker Pass at 652.1.

We always end up breaking down camp and getting started earlier than normal on a town day 😂 with our planned nearo only being about 8 miles and most of it downhill, we cruised down to the highway by 9:15, earlier than our planned ride from a trail angel.

As luck would have it, a very famous trail angel, Pancakes, was driving other hikers into town just as we walked up to the monument. Perfect timing! Pancakes hosts 15-20 thru hikers per night at her home and feeds them multiple meals, as well as making the 30+ mile round trip drive to the pass and back every day. We couldn’t believe her generosity and made sure we compensated her for her time and gas.

Ridgecrest is a hot, desert town, with the military base being the only reason I can see why someone would live here.

It’s about 1pm, and I’ve already had a good meal and resupplied for the 3 day stretch to Kennedy Meadows. I also got my hair buzzed again, and the hairdresser was a very nice lady from Vietnam. I cherish the 6 weeks I got to spend in that country, and we spent my entire haircut talking about Da Nang, the crazy drivers and how good the food is. I thanked her in Vietnamese when I left, and she had the biggest smile.

They say this trail is about the people, and that cannot be overstated. On and off trail, I continue to meet kind and generous souls who are slowly restoring my faith in humanity. Slowly. #pct #pctclassof2022 #pct2022 #thruhike #thruhikersofinstagram ...

Day 47: 630.8 to 644.9.

The wind howling across the saddle all night kept most of us up. Even though our tents were tucked away nicely, I think we all worry about having the gusts blow them down or snap a pole.

Having the opportunity to see the lunar eclipse with zero light pollution was magical.

We got up early and loaded our packs with 5.5-6 liters of water, our last big water carry. We then had to go up about 1700 feet to ascend the ridge and reach the other side. The trail was very gradually cut into the side of the mountain, and allowed for a steady pace as we gained elevation. As we neared the top, I dropped my pack and ascended the last ~100 or so vertical feet to tag the summit of Skinner Peak. My friends don’t understand this extracurricular activity, but they are always nice enough to wait for me or send me off with encouragement!

The rest of the day was very easy terrain, and we even got trail magic TWICE from a group of Jeepers. Ice cold beers and sparkling waters were such a treat for all of us.

However, the afternoon was overshadowed for me by increasingly intense pain in my left foot. My Achilles and plantar fascia had been mildly bothered after the pavement and flatness of the 30 mile day on the aqueduct, but nothing I found concerning. However, this section has been a perfect storm of very heavy packs, lots of elevation gain and loss, and long stretches of sand that make it hard to gain a solid footing. Hoping that calling it an early day today, starting anti inflammatories, and elevating as much as possible can get me into town without doing too much further damage.

This is the challenge of thru hiking, in that I’ve only taken 6 days with no mileage since March 31st. Injuries WILL happen at that rate, it’s just about managing them and balancing the damage being done vs getting back on trail. I feel fortunate in that I have had no physical injuries prevent me from putting in the miles up until this point, and I am ok taking some days off if I need to, especially before the Sierra. I am so grateful to my body for how well it has carried me through these miles, and I need to give it the respect it deserves. #pct #pctclassof2022 #pct2022 ...

Day 46: 608.9 to 630.8.
Today was a big undertaking, with even bigger views. As is the theme for this section, our agenda was dictated by water sources. An amazing trail angel (who is also a former thru hiker) maintains two very important water caches on this stretch with hundreds of gallons each. We chose to do a 22 mile day instead of dry camping between the sources, reducing our water carry and allowing us to tackle the mileage with lighter packs.

The scenery definitely changed today. While the desert flora are still present in large number, including huge Joshua trees, the mountains are getting sharper, the valleys deeper.

We were so lucky today with mostly overcast skies that kept the 97 degree heat at bay. We were dripping sweat, but the terrain was manageable and we were able to drink enough electrolytes to stay safe.

Although there was a section of trail that was about 6 miles of uphill in the sand, the sunset we just experienced eliminated any thought of the bad. That’s the trick with backpacking: I would say it’s about 80% suffering and 20% incredible, and those incredible moments are beyond anything else a human can experience.

I’m falling asleep below a Joshua tree, with the moon rising over the southern edge of Death Valley. My feet ache and I’m exhausted, but I’m also right where I’m supposed to be. #pct #pctclassof2022 #pct2022 #thruhike #thruhikersofinstagram ...

Day 45: 592.9 to 608.9
Not going to lie, the morning was hard and it really sucked. I knew I was dehydrated even though I had strictly followed my 1 liter for every 4 miles rule. I was just sweating too much, and camping without a water source was using water that I hadn’t accounted for.
This, plus relentless and steep uphill sections, made for a very slow going morning. Thankfully one of the Aussies had electrolyte pills and this helped a ton. We made it to the spring after passing the 600 mile mark and I quickly chugged a liter full of Gatorade powder.

We hung out by the water for a good break, having lunch and enjoying being out of the sun. We even got to meet a family of 5 that I had been following on Instagram! The parents and their 3 young kids have been hiking since early march, and I’m just so impressed with how happy the kids were and what it would take to keep that operation moving. The kids had big smiles on their dirty faces the whole time and you could tell they were all so happy out on the trail.

After lunch, I felt a million times better and the trail eased up on us, bringing us gently into a pine forest that felt more like home, even though sage brush and manzanita trees were interspersed throughout. The soft pine needles were spongy under our feet and we were surrounded by giant granite boulders as the hills continue to morph into the Sierra.
#pct #pctclassof2022 #pct2022 #thruhike #thruhiker ...

Day 44: mile 572.9 to mile 592.9
I slept like a baby through the night; I think the constant wind is like a white noise machine for me and I love feeling all cozy and curled up in my sleeping bag.

It was a very chilly morning when we hit the trail around 6:45am, one of those rare occasions where I start the day in my thermal leggings beneath my shorts.

The wind quickly died down and the temperature started climbing as we wound our way around small ridges towards yet another wind farm.

This section is all about water; as the driest section yet, we have to carefully plan our day around where the next water source is and calculate how much to carry to camp and hike with. Today’s water source was Golden Oak Spring, a lovely trough below a piped spring that was very cold and inviting. We took our lunch in the shade by the spring, then loaded up our packs with 5 liters each, as our next spring was not for 20 more miles. Again, that’s 11 pounds of JUST water in addition to our base weight!

The afternoon was hot (Goosebumps measured 80 on her thermometer) with exposed climbing through old burn beneath the wind farm. There was also an unmapped detour that added a mile or two to our already planned 20 mile day.
By the time we arrived at camp, we were tired from our heavy packs and thirsty from rationing water.

This section is definitely the desert giving us one final test before releasing us to the alpine. #pct #pctclassof2022 #pct2022 #thruhike #thruhikingwomen ...

Day 43: mile 558.5 to mile 572.9.

After a huge pancake breakfast and saying goodbye to our cute little Airbnb, we got picked up by a trail angel and made our way back to the wind farm. I was NOT excited for more wind: hadn’t we been blown around enough?!

But it turned out to be a pretty glorious day. The sun was shining and the wind was minimal, at least for a wind farm. The rolling ups and downs brought great views of mountains we had already conquered and the terrain we would be up against next.

After 8 miles through the last of the wind farm, we dropped to the highway and located our water cache, our last water source for 16+ miles.

After having lunch and filling up with 4 liters of water, we took off with our heavy packs for the worst part of the day; a 2,000 foot climb to the top and where we would camp for the night. It was one of those climbs where the switchbacks were a nice gesture, but the steepness was unrelenting all the same. Views opened up into the Mojave and we got our first glimpses of what look like REAL mountains in the distance to the north. I was so stoked to see something that wasn’t the desert that the climb went really fast for me. We found a great secluded camp spot in the trees that blocks most of the wind that rushes over these ridges.

I just made some VERY spicy ramen and am all cozied up in my tent while the wind whips above us. Feeling very grateful to be on the trail today. #pct #pctclassof2022 #pct2022 #thruhike #thruhikersofinstagram ...