PCT mile 2536-2550 - 14 miles
Elev 4520-2325
Yesterday was our 1 month on the trail milepost!
Rain woke me in the night last night.. I hadn't pitched my vestibule on the tent so there was potential that wind would blow rain in on me. Quickly, I was outside with my tiny LED searching for a rock to anchor my line for the vestibule. That done I got back to bed. It rained enough to create condensation in my tent so in the morning I had to just roll it all up wet, inside and out. I really hate that. Rain makes everything heavy plus there's the worry that at some point I have to stop and try to dry out my stuff. So...I was grumpy and short tempered.
With our Packas on (it's like a poncho for us plus a pack cover) we took off up the switchbacks at 6:45.
There was lots of brush even though the trail crews had been out brushing this section. I resigned myself to being wet today from mid thigh to my socks.
There are also logs over the trail so some fancy footwork was required and Peggy had to take off her pack on one challenging log to shove it under and then follow after. We finally made it to the top and noodled around up there until the trail went to the other side and moved down into alpine meadows and we saw the another side of Glacier Peak.
The following are a series of photos of the alpine meadows, rocks, streams from the glaciers and flowers blooming in their short summer season. It was still drizzling and cloudy.
Even though it stopped raining it was still overcast with slight clearing. At a wide spot in the meadow we set up our tents and dried our wet stuff. It took about 1/2 hr. and we were ready to move on. I worry when my tent & bag are damp, that it will be hard to stay warm at night if I can't get my stuff dry. So now I have no worries!
Mist was rising up through the valleys to creep over the ridges above, we hoped it wouldn't rain again too much. Two folks hiking south passed us otherwise we were the only ones out here.
A fat marmot stopped in the trail 15 feet in front of us munching flowers and greenery.
He wasn't concerned with our presence at all so I made appropriate marmot noises and he ran off.
Walking along on the grassy slopes, the trail almost covered with grasses hanging over, I stepped in a big marmot hole, twisted my left ankle and fell on my side. I heard a crunching sound and thought "Noooo!" I stood up, carefully tested the ankle and walked it out slowly. (it wouldn't bother me again until the last section and then only because the trail was like a ditch sloping in and making me walk on the inside of my foot).
Once down into the forest it was quiet and shady, no more rain fell but things were moist. We has some big trees that we had to get over such as this one that Peggy decided to shove her pack under. I climbed up and around but sometimes that's more work!
We knew we would be walking the new 5 mile addition of trail that opened last year leading up to the new bridge over the Suiattle River. It has taken years to rebuild this section of trail after storms had taken out the old bridge. For a long time hikers had posted photos of crossing this swift, cold, glacial river on a big old log. Most sat down and scooted across it but some walked across, amazingly. We were looking forward to seeing the new trail, bridge and the section that went through old grove trees.
We had 8.5 miles to the river where we planned to camp but when blueberries present themselves you have to honor their effort and enjoy them.
So we picked!
Then we hiked through thimbleberry, salmon berry, willow, anything that could choke the trail we waded through, on into the forest. This forest is different than others, a quiet is here, maybe it's the deep mat of needles and tiny hemlock cones that we're walking on. Deep moss on each side of the trail and we see some sunlight filtering through, maybe we've ditched the rain after all!
Soon I see really huge trees; Douglas Fir, Red Cedar here and there. It's deeply quiet when we stopped for 2nd lunch to rest among the trees.
Moving on we have 6 miles of fairly even forest trail to walk on, we both are craning our necks looking up.
We came to the trail junction where the new trail joins and it's just amazing to imagine all the work that went into remaking this trail so far from civilization.
At this point we only have 3.5 miles to the bridge but we're both anticipating "The Grove" which showcases old growth Douglas Fir, Red Cedar, Hemlock and, we're told Sitka Spruce.
As we crossed a small bridge we were suddenly there in the grove.
I loved touching them, this is a huge Douglas Fir.
This is a magnificent place, I feel as though I'm in the presence of The Ancients. We never did see a Sitka Spruce.
Hiking 1.5 miles further we came to the new Suiattle Bridge, it was a work of magnitude as you can see.
Steel beams must have been airlifted in, I'd love to read the story of this bridge project.
We camped below the bridge by this glacial river and had a good night's sleep because you couldn't hear anything but the river!
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