Endless P Summer

Patagonia, AZ

Day 1 25 miles AZT mile 23.1

Back in the proverbial saddle again! The first day on trail went pretty well. Traveling last night went smoothly, after flying from NY to Tucson with a quick layover in Chicago we got to our hotel around 11:30 and to sleep shortly after that. I made arrangements with a local trail angel for a ride to the border and he was at the hotel promptly at 6am. The ride didn’t go that well though. This guy was having some sort of meltdown and was venting all his frustrations at us. He seemed to be pretty upset that I didn’t return a text and email that he thought he sent to me but I never received. After his 5-10 minute tirade we sat mostly in silence for the next couple hours until we got to the border. The ride wasn’t all bad though, there was very little traffic and we made good time. Plus I pointed out a few beautiful red tailed hawks perched along the roadside.

We got dropped off at the parking lot for the Coronado National Memorial and from there had to walk a couple miles south to the Mexican border and the beginning of the Arizona Trail. After a couple high fives and the obligatory border pictures we were on our way, hiking north 800 miles to Utah. This was the prettiest US/Mexican border I’ve seen and it was also a bit challenging right away. Over the first 6 miles we climbed 3000 feet to put us up over 9000 and then walked a long a ridge for awhile. We even walked through a little snow for a bit. There were a few others starting out today and we walked with Quiet Earp off and on. Unlike his name implies, he was talkative, sharing stories of his hikes and adventures. Queen B and I put in a full day and this evening found ourselves walking into a beautiful Arizona sunset before picking out a flat spot to cowboy camp in Parker Canyon. A great first day!

Day 2 27.4 miles AZT mile 50.5

I slept like a rock for most of the night even though it was somewhat chilly this morning. For the first couple miles I was too lazy to get my gloves out of my pack so I just walked with my hands in my armpits. As the trail started to climb and the sun came up over the mountains I warmed up quickly. For most of the morning we were climbing and dropping and it was a beautiful day. It was nice to see that this trail gets some use as we met up with a handful of other hikers at a little creek this morning; Tally-Ho and Rose, and Porchlight and Wild Feather. It started to get cloudy and for most of the day the skies were overcast and the temperature was cool, ideal for walking, until it started to rain anyway. More like a light drizzle this afternoon that really wasn’t too bad. The trail leaves Coronado National Forest and pops out onto a road for a few miles and then through the town of Patagonia. Our plan was to stealth camp somewhere along the side of the road but as we walked we noticed it was all fenced off and private property. There was an RV Park that had tent sites for short money and since I didn’t want to get shot by a rancher with the ‘shoot first, ask questions second’ mentality we ponied up the few bucks to tent at the RV Park. Plus it had a shower which was nice, even though a it seemed like overkill after only 2 days.

 9 Comments

 Posted on March 11, 2018 by

 arizona trail, Hiking, Thru hiking, travel

     , , , , , , , , , , ,

Arizona Trail Pre Hike and Gear List

I’m on the brink of a bit of an adventure. Starting in a couple days I plan on hiking north on the Arizona Trail for the next month or so. The Arizona Trail or the AZT is a national scenic trail that stretches 800 miles from the Mexican border to the Utah border. Right now I’m on a train from Boston to NY where I’ll stay with Queen B and then tomorrow the 2 of us will fly to Tucson. We’ll spend a night in Tucson before a trail angel gives us a ride to the border on Friday.IMG_4688.jpgGrand Canyon, Arizona 11/17

Our plan is to get as much(hopefully all) of the trail done as possible by mid April. We have a flight from NY to Kathmandu on April 16th so we’d like to somehow get to Vegas by the 13th or 14th and then secure a flight back to NY from there. Originally I was supposed to take a bus today but because of a nor’easter in the Northeast of all places, all of the buses were cancelled and I had to get a last minute train. Hopefully nobody gets murdered on this thing because they’d probably ask me to solve it since I watched half of ‘Murder on the Orient Express’ last night and obviously am the most qualified.

Anyway I’m a fan of the state of Arizona and what better way to see it than walking through it? I put together a gear list because people always ask me about gear. I’m by no means an expert on this stuff but I’ve got a pretty firm grasp on it, just don’t expect exact weights and prices and stuff like that. Or even the correct names.IMG_4540.jpgQB and me in the Grand Canyon 11/17

I’ll start with clothing, from my head to my feet.

Baseball hat: a couple years ago I picked up a yellow mesh and foam SnapBack at a Durango thrift store for a buck. It says ‘Harriman Masonry’ on it and often times people ask me if I’m a mason, which I’m not.

Buff: I carry a “Virginia is for Outdoor Lovers” buff with me that I got for giving an interview to a Virginia tourism company while hiking the AT. I use it to cover my face in cold weather or to cover my neck from the sun or in addition to my baseball hat to cover my ears if it’s cold and sunny. It’s versatile and light.

Winter hat: I always bring a lightweight thin winter hat. If it’s real cold I add my buff to it.

Gloves: high visibility fleece lined waterproof bright green gloves.

Sunglasses: Suncloud glasses with the wicked important Croakiesmy nephew Will doing his best Uncle Endless impersonation

Hiking shirt: I picked up a super fancy short sleeve button down rayon shirt from Salvation Army for a couple dollars. The Aztec design is really cool, these will surely be all the rage soon.

Long sleeve hiking shirt: I carry a long sleeve nylon/spandex base layer shirt to keep me warm on cold days or to keep the sun off me in blazing heat. Color white, plus lots of stains. I got it at Marshall’s about 10 years ago probably in the $5-10 range. I don’t know what brand it is but it used to have the number ‘8’ on it.

Down jacket: Marmot Down Jacket, bright green highly visible down jacket. I think I linked the right one. Roughly 10 oz.

Rain jacket: Outdoor Research Helium II. On my short list for favorite piece of gear.

Shorts: I picked up a pretty skimpy pair of running shorts at a Wal-Mart in Steamboat last year. I think they’re unisex but for some reason they were in the ladies section. Short shorts are better for a longer stride and showing a little more leg never hurts while hitchhiking.

Rain pants: Patagonia Houdini pants. QB talked me into buying these last year. I’m not too crazy about them, they’re wicked light but feel like they’re made out of tissue paper. I got a decent sized tear in them last year and now have a nice silver duct tape stripe on my butt. These are wind pants, not rain pants so they won’t keep you dry in anything heavier than light rain, but they’ll keep me a little warmer.

Underwear: Under Armour, one pair.

Socks: Darn Tough Socks. Comfortable and cozy. One time I got away with one pair for a few weeks on the AT but 1 pair of socks is a little reckless.

Gaiters: Dirty Girl gaiters. I went with the giraffe print last year to make me look taller and I’ll be reusing these after QB does a quick sewing repair.

Sneakers: Altra Lone Peak 3.5’s. I love these shoes. I wore the 2.5’s in ’16 and the 3.0’s in ’17. I think the 3.5’s are the best ones yet. Hoping to hike the whole AZT in one pair.

Backpack: Hyperlite Windrider 2400. I’m a big fan of this pack. I loved it on the CDT and the company was very easy to deal with; repairing small tears in the mesh and getting it back to me in a timely fashion. I believe in products made in Maine.

Sleeping bag: Enlightened Equipment 20 degree down quilt. I’m not in love with this thing, but I also didn’t upgrade it in the off season after using it last year. I don’t think it’s anything to do with the product I just don’t like the quilt style, I prefer a cocoon style sleeping bag. Kind of kicking myself for not getting a new fart sack.

Sleeping bag liner: Sea to Summit fleece liner. I hiked over a thousand miles with just this liner on the AT but in colder weather I use it to supplement the quilt. I realize the extra weight of carrying a liner cancels out getting a lightweight quilt.

Sleeping pad: Therm-A-Rest Z Lite silver and gray sleeping pad. I’ve had one in the past and liked it although last year I tried a ridiculously thin 5 oz Mammut pad that just didn’t cut it.

Tent: After 3 seasons with the Tarp Tent ProTrail and a piece of Tyvek for a groundsheet, I’m going with a Big Agnes Copper Spur 2 Platinum. This is a major change. QB and I will be splitting the weight of the tent, poles, and groundsheet so it will not only save weight but will be free standing and luxurious. This tent was highly recommended by my friend Mac, check out his blog and gear reviews here.

Cooking: Except for the first 3 days on the PCT in ’15, I’ve spent my entire thru-hiking career stoveless. This is about to change. QB and I are sharing a stove for the AZT. One of us will be carrying a MSR Pocket Rocket and the other one will be carrying a small fuel canister. We’ll each be carrying our own titanium pots. How I came to have my spoon is a long story but I’ll give you the abridged version: I’ve been carrying the same copper  lightweight table spoon since Julian, CA on the PCT. Because of its shape it’s not the most practical but it’s got sentimental value and I’ve been carrying it for almost 9,000 miles, more than any other piece of gear.

Food bag: Granite Gear ultra light zip sack 16L.

Water: I use a Sawyer Squeeze filter, heavier than the Sawyer Mini but much more efficient, I’ll also carry a couple of Smart Water liter bottles and probably a 20 oz Gatorade bottle to make my instant coffee in. My niece Sawyer helping me navigate

Electronics: iPhone 6 with Lifeproof case. Anker portable charger, iPod Nano, charging cord for the phone and iPod and a micro USB cord for the charger plus a dual port to plug into the wall. And regular apple headphones.

Shit kit: Deuce of Spades trowel, little bit of toilet paper, smallest refillable bottle of hand sanitizer I could find, and a series of zip lock bags to keep clean stuff clean and dirty stuff dirty.

Toiletries: Tiny toothbrush, just the end of a regular toothbrush that I sawed off to a one inch handle. Miniature toothpaste.

Medicine: Ibuprofen to take as needed, Benadryl, immodium(after a wild day in Montana last year, I will always carry this wonder drug), multivitamins, and eye drops. I also have been carrying an Epipen after I had a pretty severe allergic reaction to something in Pennsylvania on the AT.

Trekking poles: Black Diamond brand that I’ve used for a couple thru hikes and have tapped on the ground with millions of times

Miscellaneous: Small container of Vaseline to prevent chafing, superglue, sunscreen in a pill container for easy refill, my passport and a small notebook for a journal plus a pen (I know I could keep a journal on my phone but call me old fashioned I guess). I keep my ID, credit card, ATM card and a little bit of cash in a hair elastic wallet that I now use full time.

I sure hope I didn’t forget anything. Last year my base weight was right around 10 lbs. this year I think it will be slightly higher but I’m not too worried, I don’t think I’ll weigh it but if I do I just might have to revise this. Make sure you subscribe to this blog or at least stay tuned for updates and follow me @endlesspsummer on Instagram for more pictures.

-Endless

 4 Comments

 Posted on March 7, 2018 by

 arizona trail, arizona trail gear list, gear list, Hiking, Thru hiking, travel

     , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Presidential Traverse, NH

New Hampshire’s White Mountains 10/17/17

This post is a few months in the making. I would have liked to have written it immediately after finishing but it I was too tired and then I started procrastinating and time got away from me. You know how it is. Let me set the scene a little. After spending the majority of the summer thru hiking the CDT, and then another 3 or 4 weeks of traveling and having adventures, I knew transitioning back to living in a civilized society wouldn’t be easy. Queen B wasn’t quite ready to be done hiking either so she ambitiously decided to try to hike all 48 of New Hampshire’s 4000 footers in 10 days(and succeeded). Hiking all these mountains is often undertaken as a goal to be completed over the course of a lifetime or at least a few years. 10 days isn’t any kind of record or anything but still pretty badass and spontaneous since she only thought it up about a week before starting. Supposedly she was going to write a guest post about her adventure on this blog but I’m still waiting. Anyway I wasn’t able to get away for the full 10 days but I joined her when I could and over 4 days I hiked 20/48 mountains.

Some of the 4000 footers can be done as just a quick out and back from a trailhead parking lot, some can be done 2 or 3 at a time and then a bunch can done in big traverses. 2 of the more notable hikes in the White Mountains are the Pemi Loop and the Presi Traverse. Both of these hikes summit at least 8 peaks and can be done as an overnight or an ambitious day hike. QB did a modified Pemi Loop during her first couple days on this venture extending the loop to bag 3 or 4 extra peaks nearby. When I joined her at noon on day 5 we went up and down Mt Waumbek, then drove over to Hale and quickly went up and down that one. She was halfway through this quest and had been sleeping in her car or the woods the last few nights so we got a motel room in Franconia, got some rest, and took full advantage of a pretty solid continental breakfast in the morning. With 2 cars we were able to get a little more creative with routes so the next day we dropped one car at the Highland Center then drove over to the Kedron Flume trail and went up and over Tom, Field, and Willey. Back at the Highland Center we retrieved a car and drove over to the base of Mt Carragain then hustled to get up that one to find the summit covered in snow and ice and the views socked in with fog. After we finished Carragain we ate a bunch of food then shuffled cars around in order to do the Presidential Traverse in one shot the next day. leaf peeping with a fresh shave and haircut I was feeling pretty aerodynamic

First things first we ate a bunch of food after hiking all day, then we dropped my truck off at the Highland Center, before driving over to the Appalachia parking lot where we spent the night in QB’s Mom’s CRV. There’s a handful of trails starting at Appalachia and because of that there was about a dozen other cars in the lot. I figured there were definitely other people sleeping in their cars so I tried to be quiet, although that didn’t stop me from setting off the car alarm when I got out to take a leak at 3 in the morning. We got going around 6 am and started up the Valley Way Trail then took a left on Watson Path towards the Mt Madison summit. Once we got above tree line I got cold, really cold(I need to start carrying a thermometer but those things are just such an extravagance). The mountain wasn’t helping as it was between me and the sun on the way up but right as I reached the summit the sun must have warmed me up 20 degrees. From the top of Madison we had a great view of the ridge all the way over to Mt Washington. It was a cold day but it was nice and clear with blue skies and low wind. We took a right onto the Gulfside Trail(which is also the AT) and walked southbound over to Mt Adams, then Mt Jefferson and eventually to the high point of the Whites, Mt Washington. Going up Washington we crossed the railroad tracks, took a minor detour and met one other kid doing a similar hike, John from Maine. At the top of Mt Washington we ate lunch at the cafeteria with John and all of a sudden there were lots of other people around. There’s an auto road and a cog railway that dump loads of tourists on the Washington summit, making it feel a little strange. Whatever, I’m glad there was hot soup and cold sodas and stuff. We took Crawford Path descending the south side of Washington after lunch. The temperature rose and it became quite a comfortable and pleasant afternoon. Following Crawford Path we climbed up and over Monroe, Eisenhower, and Pierce before stopping in the Mitzpah Spring hut to eat some of their muffins or whatever and check the AT logbooks for names of people we knew. From the hut we took the Webster Cliff Trail(still the AT) to the top of Mt Jackson where we ran into our friend John again. The sun was just setting which was really good timing since we were just getting below the tree line. Less than 5 miles later the three of us were out of the woods and back at my truck at the Highland Center. We gave John a ride to his car at Pinkham Notch and he ended up being a wealth of knowledge about Escalante, giving us some good info and tips for our upcoming trip to Utah. QB and I were famished so we stopped at this place Mr. Pizza in Gorham and it sucked. Usually even lousy pizza is decent, especially if I’m wicked hungry, but this place was memorably bad. After supper we shuffled cars again to prepare for our next day then crashed out for the night once exhaustion set in. I think the Presi Traverse is only a little over 20 miles but it’s notoriously difficult. With almost 9000 Feet of elevation gain the traverse is almost completely exposed above tree line. In lousy weather it can be extremely dangerous and often times deadly. I think somewhere it’s listed as the second best day hike in America(don’t quote me on that but that’s all subjective anyway). Whatever you want to call it I personally think a 1 day Presidential Traverse is something of a right of passage for anyone who considers themselves a serious hiker of the White Mountains. on top of Madisonwalking towards Washington

The following day Queen B and I did a traverse of the Wildcats and also the Carter Mariah Range. I was beat! Thankfully I had to work the next day and had a good excuse to return home but QB carried on. She was in full on crush mode and spent the next 2 days finishing up all 48 of NH’s 4000 footers. I’m legitimately impressed. Maybe someday she’ll write a guest blog post on here but until then you can check out her pictures on Instagram @sarahikes or mine @endlesspsummer.

Thanks for reading!

 Leave a Comment

 Posted on January 18, 2018 by

 Hiking, new hampshire, travel

     , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Coyote Gulch, UT

There’s all kinds of ways to explore Coyote Gulch. This is the hike I did on the weekend of 11/3-11/5/17. Starting at the Hurricane Wash trailhead we did a 25 Mile round trip and it was really cool.

Friday morning QB and I found some omelettes in Panguitch, UT then drove over to Bryce Canyon NP. Bryce was cool, a lot to see even on a short walk through the canyon and up along the rim(to see pictures  of Bryce Canyon check out my instagram @endlesspsummer). From Bryce we drove to the town of Escalante and stopped at the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument Visitor Center(that’s a mouthful, from now on I’ll refer to the area as: GSENM). We talked to the rangers at the VC and got a little info about the area plus our permits and wag bags(portable toilets). There’s no pooping in the canyon so wag bags are required, I’ve never used one and hope that streak continues. From the town we drove 4 miles to Hole in the Rock Road and followed it for 34 miles to a little parking area at the Hurricane Wash trailhead. This was a slow going, bumpy, and rocky dirt road. 4wd is encouraged but the Mazda 3 that I rented got us there, fingers crossed we make it back. It’s important to check the odometer on Hole in the Rock Road because the little pull off is easy to miss and there’s no reception down that way. We got to the trailhead at Hurricane Wash around sunset and walked less than half a mile before we set up for the night. Had I known better I would have night hiked further and found a canyon to camp in to keep out some of the wind.

Saturday morning we started walking down Hurricane Wash and it wasn’t long before canyon walls grew up around  us and a trickle of water developed at our feet. After about 5 miles the wash reaches a confluence with Coyote Creek where we took a right into Coyote Gulch. The creek twists and turns for 7+ miles before joining the Escalante River which eventually turns into Lake Powell. Along the way it created huge red rock canyon walls, a land bridge that we walked under and a few natural arches. We also saw ancient ruins of a cliff dwelling just upstream of the  land bridge and about 3/4 of a mile after the bridge there are American Indian pictographs on the canyon wall. Shortly after the pictographs there’s a cairn marking a short trail to Black Lagoon. We checked out this reflecting pool that was home to hanging gardens high up on the wall. For the majority of this hike the trail is  flat and simple until we were about a mile or two from the Escalante River. It gets a little dicey towards the end but there’s nothing too tricky, just be prepared to get your feet wet. There’s a handful of ways to get down to Coyote Gulch and there are ways to do this hike as a loop but we went with the out and back option. We turned around from the river and walked back about 5 miles to Jacob Hamblin Arch. I think this is the most impressive feature of the whole trip. We found a spot to camp next to a canyon wall just downstream of the arch. The weather was decent enough to cowboy camp, so even with a bit of an overhang we have a view of the arch and also a slice of the starry Utah sky. Add in the soothing sound of the creek plus the soft, flat, sandy ground and this just might be the greatest campsite of all time. Jacob Hamblin Arch​ Jacob Hamblin ArchLandbridge! Pictographs or petroglyphs The Black LagoonHanging gardens I want to live in a cliff dwelling so bad but this one is falling apartMilk Jug Arch

On Sunday we got up from our arch view campsite and walked upstream a couple miles back to Hurricane Wash. The trail follows the wash for about 5 miles to the parking area. Slowly the canyon walls got smaller and smaller and the stream dried up and transformed back into the sandy desert. Once back at the car we drove towards some slot canyons a few miles away and spent the afternoon exploring those.

Spooky and Peekaboo Canyons; you have to be really slippery to get through these slot canyons

 1 Comment

 Posted on November 6, 2017 by

 Hiking, travel

     , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Zion Traverse, UT

Let me preface this post by saying Zion is an absolutely magical place and well worth the visit. If you’re a regular reader of this blog you may have noticed I tend to put a positive spin on most places but this time I really mean it. The Zion Traverse aka the Trans Zion trail is roughly 48 Miles that many people run in one shot but Queen B and I decided to enjoy it as a multi day backpacking trip. With good planning it is very runable. I highly recommend this hike. 

Day 1     10/31/17     5 Miles

This morning, after climbing out of Goldstrike Canyon, QB and I started driving towards Utah. We stopped in Boulder City to eat fish tacos at the famous ‘Coffee Cup’ then proceeded to Zion NP, about 2–3 hours away. Pulling off the highway at the visitors center we got permits for a couple nights in the backcountry then drove up to the Lees Pass trailhead. The traverse is a 48 Mile tour through the park that many people run in one shot. Running it sounds fun but this time the plan is to backpack it over the course of 2+ Days. From Lees Pass we walked about 5 miles along the La Verken Creek Trail and got to campsite #6 right at sunset. From the beginning the scenery has been spectacular. The soft dirt path we walked on was nice and easy and well graded and there were views of huge red mountains all over the place. Tonight is clear, cool, and calm so we decided to cowboy camp. Hopefully being Halloween and everything this canyon isn’t haunted. If you ever do this hike make sure to check out the swimming hole at campsite #6 and get here early enough in the day to swim.

Day 2     11/1     25 Miles

Cowboy camping in the canyon was pretty cozy although the cool air woke me up a couple times. I’d rather sleep through the night but each time I woke up I was rewarded with a sky full of stars and some awesome shooters. The light of day didn’t reach us until close to 8am so I ended up sleeping in a little by default. From our campsite we walked about a mile until we reached a side trail to Kolob Arch. This added another mile plus to our day but the natural arch was worth checking out. Once back on trail we climbed a little then dropped into Hop Valley. This place was awesome! We followed a creek as it serpentined through a red rock canyon with cottonwood trees wearing yellow foliage. From Hop Valley we took the Connector trail that had some great views of distant rock formations then walked along Wildcat Canyon. I still have yet to see a big cat in the wild. Eventually we climbed up onto a plateau and followed the West Rim trail to our home for the night; campsite #5. It got breezy and chilly on the plateau so once we got to our site we bundled up and from a cliff watched the sunset over a landscape unlike anything that I’ve ever seen before. 

Day 3     11/2     19 Miles

Right away this morning we enjoyed an impressive sunrise from the plateau then began our descent along the West Rim trail and into Zion Canyon. The fall colors of the park combined with the colors of the canyon were so cool. Early November is a great time to be hiking here; the crowds are thinner, the air is cool and good for hiking, and the foliage is worth seeing. The West Rim Trail passes right by the notorious Angel’s Landing Trail so QB and I decided to take a little detour. Angel’s Landing is an extremely narrow trail to a rocky outcropping in the middle of Zion Canyon. There are chains built in to the ground to make it safer but it’s still pretty gnarly, plus there’s lots of people getting in the way and stuff because it’s so popular. I mean it was scary and everything but it didn’t stand a chance of derailing us and was a great little side trip. From Angel’s Landing we walked down about a million switchbacks to the Grotto in the canyon floor. There was a mile of road to our next trailhead and since there was no trail along the road, we took the shuttle up to Weeping Rock TH. From here we power walked up a ton of switchbacks to get out of the canyon. It was about ten more scenic miles along canyons to the east entrance of the park where we ended our hike. So many tourists just go to the attractions in Zion Valley, while those are cool, there is so much more to see in this park and the Traverse is a great way to experience it. According to the ranger who gave us our permits, the east side of the park is the “Bitchinest!” We got to the East Entrance just before 5pm and got 3 quick hitches back to our car an hour and a half away in Kolob Canyon(1 from a kid who grew up in the town next to me in Mass). It was hitchhiking as it should be, it wouldn’t have worked out better if we had booked a shuttle ahead of time. 

 

 2 Comments

 Posted on November 3, 2017 by

 Hiking, travel

     , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Olympic Peninsula, WA

9/11.    The day after finishing the CDT Queen B and I spent our time in East Glacier relaxing, eating food, hanging out with other hikers and waiting for the train. It was cool because a lot of hikers were either just finishing up their hike or getting into town and about to go into Glacier NP. From East Glacier we took an overnight Amtrak to Seattle. I’ve never taken a long distance train and the ‘Empire Builder’ runs from Chicago to Seattle and I guess has a lot of history. It was a relaxing way to travel. There was a half dozen other hikers so for awhile we hung out together in the observation car. Back in the seat I was able to spread out better than I would on a plane and got some halfway decent sleep. It was something like a 15 hour ride though so even though it was fun and comfortable I think I would still prefer a flight. Supposedly

9/12     When we got into Seattle I heard from Little Spoon and Moaglee who were spending the day in the city before flying to Alaska that night. QB and I met up with them for lunch and got all caught up on each other’s hikes since we last saw them about a month ago. After lunch we had to run a couple errands in town then took the light rail south of the city and got picked up at the train station by our friend Malibu. We went out for Hawaiian food in West Seattle and walked around Lincoln Park. Mali put us up in his van for the night and I slept so hard! Met up with Moaglee and Little Spoon when our paths crossed in SeattleMalibu’s sweet van/spare bedroomMali

9/13     In the morning Malibu cooked a delicious breakfast casserole then dropped us off at the ferry terminal in downtown Seattle. We took the ferry over to Bainbridge Island then did a little walking before catching a hitch for about a dozen miles in a tiny Smart Car. Our next hitch was from Andy, a Seattle Firefighter, who makes a 2.5 hr commute from his home in Port Angeles. It was a great ride! He brought us exactly where we needed to go; the ranger station in PA. We got set up with permits for a couple nights on the Olympic Coast then resupplied, ate a late lunch, and started making our way towards Rialto Beach. A county bus drove us down some windy roads towards Forks for a couple hours before letting us out and we got a ride in the back of a pickup the rest of the way. We got to the beach right around sunset and walked a mile north on the coast before camping. It was awesome! Beautiful sunset and a very nice night camping in the woods just next to the beach. A gigantic shipSeattle waterfront on the ferry going towards Bainbridge IslandRialto Beach 

9/14     Today was a great day. I did a backpacking trip along this coast in the spring of ’14 and loved it. Since then I’ve always wanted to come back. Today we walked north for about 20 miles along beaches, tide pools, and rocky coastline. There’s a bunch of headlands that we had to get out and around which can be dangerous at high tide so using a tide chart and doing a little paying attention was important. In a few places we had to go inland a little bit and hike overland even using some ropes and in a couple places crawling through natural tunnels. The weather was absolutely perfect today, not a cloud in the sky with a cool ocean breeze once in awhile and warm enough to jump into the ocean for an afternoon dip. A few years ago when I was out here I saw a ton of bald and golden eagles. Although we only saw one bald eagle today, there were a bunch of other animal sightings. We saw two black bears at different times walking out on the coast eating seaweed or whatever. A few deer, 4 sea otters, a close encounter with a seal and a bunch of dead stuff that washed up on shore including an octopus, a seal, 2 sea lions, and some kind of shark or something.  Around sunset we found ourselves a campsite in some woods next to the ocean. For the second night in a row I fell asleep to the sound of waves crashing against the shore. A man among buoys​

9/15     From our campsite by the beach we walked about a mile north to Cape Alava, the westernmost point in the Continental U.S. We followed a trail inland for about 3 miles through a forest and came out at the Ozette Lake trailhead. The ranger in Port Angeles the other day told us this was a busy trailhead and we shouldn’t have trouble getting a ride out. Dude didn’t know what he was talking about. After 4 hours of relaxing by the roadside we got picked up by the 4th car that passed us. No big deal, there was a blackberry bush nearby that kept me busy and a huge bald eagle soared overhead. It was another firefighter that ended up driving us about 20 miles to the intersection with the busier rt 112. As we were getting dropped off, the bus to Forks was pulling up. Perfect timing! During the 40 minute ride to Forks we picked up a hiker and immediately I thought he looked familiar. It was Funjumper, I met him in Belden, CA in ’15. He didn’t remember me and may have even doubted that I remembered him until I recalled that he was from Quebec. Anyway he just finished the Pacific Northwest Trail that goes 1200 miles starting in Glacier and ending out here on the coast. When we got into Forks the town was bumping with Twilight fans, they were having some kind of festival for the book series. QB and I got some Chinese food then resupplied at a supermarket before putting our thumbs out to get out of town. After a couple minutes, Stephanie picked us up and drove us about 40 minutes down the coast. As we were driving by the ocean we saw a bunch of cars pulled over and looking out towards the water. From her car we could see whales breaching and raising their fins out of the water. Stephanie pulled over and the 3 of us walked down to the beach to get a better look. We saw a bunch of what we learned were grey whales close to shore and what they were doing was scraping barnacles off their backs on the ground. So cool! I guess it’s very rare. QB and I got a ride a little ways further to Kalaloch CG which was full but luckily had a hiker walk-in site.like 12 blackberries see that fin out there? I swear it’s a grey whale you can walk right under this tree 

9/16     After we packed up this morning we walked down to the beach again to check on the whales. Still there, doing their thing. We ate some breakfast burritos at a gas station, then walked over to get some info at the Kalaloch ranger station. Ideally I’d like to do a traverse of the whole Olympic park but they’re getting some serious rain in the next few days so we might do a shorter hike in case we have to bail early. Since we can only get permits from certain ranger stations we had to hitch south to Quinault. We got a 30 minute ride from Paul and Ron to exactly where we needed to go and got things taken care of. The rangers at Quinault were former thru hikers and much more helpful. From Quinault we had to get back up north to the Hoh rain forest. Oatmeal, a ranger and former thru hiker, drove us for about an hour then Elsie, a Belgian woman on holiday, brought us the rest of the way. I know I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again; as long as there are cars, hitching with QB is pretty easy. From the Hoh visitor center we walked 10 miles along a nice flat trail through an incredible rain forest. It’s green, mossy, and the trees are enormous. I can show you pictures but you really have to see it for yourself. We got to the Olympus Guard Station where there’s a bunch of sites and called it a day. Really hoping the rain holds off or at least isn’t too bad.swam here in the Hoh River this tree fell down and became a bridgesee? 

9/17     This morning we blasted up a long 7 mile climb to the High Divide. The weather was cool and cloudy until we got to the top and it got a bit more rainy and the clouds were moving in. Even with the weather we still had some great views of Mt Olympus and the Olympic range. There is some seriously beefy mountains over here. We hiked through 7 lakes basin and down to a beautiful lush green forest with giant trees. Oh and I saw 10 black bears today! All from a distance but they were everywhere. From the forest we had another stiff climb up to Appleton Pass and up there it started to rain a little harder and get colder. I knew I had hot springs waiting for me at the end of the day but the last 5 miles down from the pass were cold and wet. Not my favorite weather. At the Boulder Creek campsite we met and ate supper with Dustbunny and Tickled Pink, who are about a hundred miles from finishing their thruhike of the PNT. It was fun to hear about their hike and that trail and since they’ve also hiked the CDT and PCT we knew some of the same people. After we got set up and ate we walked down to the Olympic Hot Springs. Finally I could warm up. These springs were awesome! There’s like 7 or 8 rock pools that are built up around natural springs and most are pretty hot. After a cold rainy day this is exactly what I needed. Hoh Lakeso many black bears!beefy Olympic MountainsHigh DivideSeven Lakes Basinloving this forestbut it can be hard to see it through all these treesso green!Olympic Hot Springs

9/18     Overnight it rained and my tent didn’t do a great job keeping me dry. I was cold and didn’t sleep that well but I didn’t have much to do and was close to the hot springs so I could just go relax in those all day. It was really nice. A perfect day to just sit and soak in the warm sulfury smelling water. It’s only a 2 or 3 mile trail from a trailhead parking lot so besides the people that are camped at the Boulder Creek site, a fair amount of people just walk the short hike in from their cars. We met some cool people and had a lot of fun just doing nothing all day. I didn’t want to get out of the hot water and my hands and feet got so pruned up that I worried if they would ever go back to normal. We could have stayed another night but since everything was soaked we made a quick decision to pack up and walk out around 5pm. At the trailhead we got a hitch from a couple from Montana that brought us about a half hour to Port Angeles where we found a cheap motel for the night. Hot springs are good for the soul, but everybody knows that

 Leave a Comment

 Posted on September 19, 2017 by

 Hiking, travel

     , , , , , , , , , , ,

Canada!

Day 130     9/6/17   16 miles

So last night, before going back to the trail, a bunch of us went out to eat at the Mexican place in town and I have to say it wasn’t the best burrito I’ve ever had. The portions were good but then they covered it in like velveeta cheese or something, it was weird. I was talking to a couple there and the guy was a retired firefighter from Ohio. When I explained to them what we were up to he left the tip on our meal so that was cool. Thanks Tom! After supper QB and I hitched back to Marias Pass, where we got off trail earlier in the day, and found a spot in the woods to camp.

This morning we got up and started cruising right into town. We crossed rt 2 and some railroad tracks and got into Glacier NP but since our permits don’t start until tomorrow night we’ll be walking back into East Glacier Village and spending the night there. From Marias Pass the trail kind of parallels the road and the tracks all the way to town. There wasn’t anything too spectacular to see from trail, or maybe there was, it was just too smoky to see  much of anything. About a mile from town I saw and heard a small dark brown bear crashing through the woods 15-20 feet to my right. It scared the bejesuses out of me but I recovered quickly. Once again QB didn’t see it but she did hear it. Current bear score 12-2 in my favor. We got to town and ate a couple times at the Two Medicine Grill, which I recommend.  I did laundry and showered for the first time in a week and got a room half off at the Circle R motel because it didn’t have a TV. Fine with me, I feel like hotel TV’s only play Forensic Files anyway. Smoky!Ran into Recalculating in town and he’s become quite feral since I first met him in New Mexico, his shoes look like they got struck by lightning This license plate has my name on itMe and QB and some tall guy

Day 131     9/7     25 miles

Right away this morning QB and I devoured a huge breakfast at the Two Medicine Grill; omelettes, pancakes, hash browns, even a slice of pie. After breakfast we got back on trail and into Glacier NP starting with a nice stiff climb up to Scenic Point. For a while we walked with Recalculating, who unlike most thru hikers has a wife and 4 young kids at home, pretty awesome situation but not the norm out here. Glacier has been incredible so far, even with a blanket of smoke from the wildfires hanging in the air. I’d love to see this place on clear bluebird days so that’s why I’ll definitely have to come back. The smoke however, puts a whole new paint job on things and makes the mountains and the lakes look really cool. I’ll let the pictures below speak for themselves. Plus I saw a bunch of animals, a moose laying around in the grass and probably about 25 bighorn sheep including a little baby. We’re camping at the Atlantic Creek site and also camping here tonight are Garbelly and Critter who we’ve been keeping in touch with but haven’t seen since Winter Park.A couple of bros just chilling out

Day 132     9/8     25 miles

Today was the day! We hiked with Critter and Garbelly for most of the day and started off with a steep climb up to Triple Divide Pass. Although smoky, this was one of the most incredible passes I’ve ever been up and over. There’s three sides to Triple Divide Peak (just to the West of where we crossed); any water that lands on the west flows to the Pacific, water landing on the east flows to the Atlantic and water landing on the north flows to the Arctic Ocean. So cool! While climbing up the Pass, Critter spotted a moose down in the valley from at least a half mile away, then we had a bighorn sheep directly in front of us on trail and on our way down we saw 4 mountain goats way up on the side of a steep wall. The rest of the day the trail was pretty relaxed but there was lots of water. We stopped to jump off rocks into an awesome swimming hole at Red Eagle Creek. In the afternoon we walked along Lake St Mary which was tough to get a good view of because it was super smoky but it’s obviously a spectacular sight. I got another chance to swim at the bottom of Virginia Falls then we stopped again at St Mary Falls. Because of the wildfire situation, QB and I weren’t able to get our backcountry permits so tonight we had to hitch to Rising Sun CG where we’re camping at the hiker walk-in site. Ideally we wanted to camp in the backcountry for our last couple nights on trail but it’s no big deal, I’m just glad the park is still open and I really hope it stays that way. This campground has a restaurant and we were able to get some good food, plus a couple guys that were eating there recognized that we were thru hiking and bought us dessert. Garbelly and Critter walking through the smokeTriple Divide Pass Cannonball!!!posing so hard Triple Divide Pass Swam where the mountain dolphins live St Mary Falls

Day 133     9/9     14 miles

Before leaving Rising Sun we grabbed some sweet potato pancakes at the restaurant. It’s so tough to pass up a good meal when it’s close by. We had a short 14 mile day until the next campground so we weren’t in a hurry. Once on trail we climbed way up to Piegan Pass and the views were just awesome. I know I said yesterday that Triple Divide Pass might have been the most impressive pass I ever climbed but that title only stood for a day. Today the smoke had cleared some and we had some better views. It really was amazing. It was super windy on the way down but that probably helped get some of the smoke out of the area. We could see cascading waterfalls, aquamarine lakes, and jagged peaks all over. After we got down to the valley it was a relaxing 5 or 6 miles into Many Glacier, another front country campground with a store and restaurant. There’s lots of other thru hikers here tonight also. Garbelly and Critter, Maine Man, Flip Flop, Liam and Kate, Spindrift and James all are camping here and planning to finish tomorrow. A bunch of us went to supper tonight and it was a lot of fun. It’s weird, I felt like there weren’t many hikers around for most of the trail but I’ve seen lots throughout Montana and especially the last couple hundred miles. They say nothing brings people together like a common enemy, like the school kids rallying together against the lunch lady. In this case it’s the wildfires causing the thru hikers to bunch up right at the end. Queen B. MacklemorePiegan PassSwiftcurrent Lake

Day 134     9/10/17     20 miles

What a day! First of all last night was crazy windy, all night long blowing wicked loud. Even with my earplugs in I hardly slept and it seemed like everybody had the same problem. Even with minimal sleep everybody was still pretty jacked up for our last day. We set off with a big crew of hikers; Garbelly, Critter, Flip Flop, Liam and Kate. From Many Glacier we climbed up to Ptarmigan Pass that has a tunnel going 150 feet blasted through the Pass. It was awesome! We all chilled out up there for awhile enjoying the view, then went through to the other side and the trail down was absolutely spectacular! I can’t believe somebody decided to build a trail and this tunnel up here. We walked half a dozen more miles before coming across Dawn Mist Falls and took the little side trail to it. This was the last highlight of the trail and my last opportunity to jump into freezing cold water so of course I did. After the falls it was only 6 or 7 miles until the road and the border crossing at Chief Mountain. We crossed the border, did the damn thing, got our passports stamped, and took a bunch of pictures by the monument. From the border our friend had rides up to Calgary and QB and I hitched south. We got a fun ride from Ina, Karen, and Jules (an AT long distance hiker herself) back to East Glacier. There are lots of hikers in town and after pigging out at the restaurant we hung out with all them out front.  Breaking camp on our last morning Pride Rock?Ptarmigan PtunnelWalking out of the tunnelQB, Garbelly and Critter at Dawn Mist Falls Dawn Mist Falls A bunch of kids walking to CanadaThis trail was overwhelmingly dudes, it’s cool that we finished with 3 women; QB, Critter and Kate

Over the course of 134 days I walked roughly 2800 miles from one imaginary line to another (QB had her total mileage at 2795, I’ll go through my journals later but that seems acurate). The trail was significantly harder than I thought it would be, but also more incredible than I could have ever imagined. Finishing the trail hasn’t exactly sunk in yet and I’m sure it will take a while to digest. I’ll have it forever and I will look back fondly at this summer on the CDT. The fact that there are so few hikers on the trail makes for a  tighter knit community. Probably like going to a small high school or something. I met some great people out here that I look forward to seeing again. Oh yeah, I will definitely be back here too. The CDT introduced me to so many great places that I definitely plan to explore more.

I have so much gratitude for everybody who helped me get through this trail; trail angels, folks who gave me rides, people who took me in and fed me or gave me a place to crash for a night, friends who came out to hike with me, all the support I’ve got from this blog and encouragement from friends following my hike online (it holds me accountable in a way, a good way, and provides motivation to finish this grueling hike). Thank you to my parents and family for their continued love and support and especially to my hiking partner Queen B who made this summer so much fun and without her, I would not have made it.

-Endless

PS All My Love!!! And thanks for reading

PPS from East Glacier we are catching a train to Seattle and hiking for a few more weeks. The train should be fun, I don’t think I’ve ever taken anything longer than the commuter rail from Lynn to Boston. Originally we planned on hiking the last 350 miles of the PCT so QB could finish her triple crown but due to fires might have to come up with an alternative plan. Stay tuned there should be more posts in the next few weeks. And seriously thanks for reading, it has been a pleasure writing this blog and I appreciate the feedback I’ve got. If you want to see different pictures feel free to follow me on instagram @endlesspsummer

 2 Comments

 Posted on September 12, 2017 by

 Hiking, Thru hiking, travel

     , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Lincoln, MT

Day 117     8/24     25 miles 

First thing this morning I put a nice beating on the continental breakfast at the Trade Wind Motel. It was a good one too, they had like 20 different boxes of cereal to choose from. I felt like I was in Jerry Seinfeld’s apartment. So many options but I gotta have my Pops, like 4 bowls of them. After breakfast we hit the trail, actually a road. For miles we walked along pavement and it was not ideal. We crossed under I-90 and it turned to dirt road which was better. This section of trail, about 52 miles today and yesterday, is actually an alternate of the official trail. The regular route is east of here near the city of Butte and a good deal longer. I originally planned on going that way but I heard that was also a lot of road walking and I don’t think I missed too much. Another time. Besides the city of Anaconda though, which was cool, the last two days have been a bit of a slog. I definitely was excited to be back on trail when we got there this evening. Road walking on dirt road is one thing but pavement walking is for the birds, especially highways with lots of cars. What’s cool about taking the Anaconda route is that all of a sudden we’re around a bunch of other hikers. The CDT is weird. Sometimes it seemed as if we would get into these vacuums where we would barely see other hikers for hundreds of miles but lately lots of hikers have been taking different alternates and all seem to be converging at the same time and place. We’re seeing lots of people. Pei Mei and his crew caught up and we walked with some of them today after not seeing them for a couple of states. Shortly after getting back on the official trail QB and I found a good spot to camp and called it a  night. Anaconda Stack, this is one of the biggest smokestacks in the world and is now a state park. Google it for some interesting infoI did this for milesand then some of thissweet coyote fence!this guy George gives water to hikers at his hunting camp 

Day 118     8/25     31 miles

Today was relaxing. Just crushed miles all day and the trail didn’t have anything too spectacular for us but at the same time was pretty easy. While QB and I were taking a little break this morning Spirit came bombing by. We hadn’t seen him since near Breckinridge so we talked for a few minutes and then leap frogged with him a couple times today. At some point this afternoon we caught up to Griggs and walked with him for a few hours. We hadn’t seen him since he passed us climbing up the Argentine Spine. He’s been staying on the official route and absolutely crushing this trail, the only reason we caught him was because we took the shorter Anaconda route and he took the Red(official) route going to Butte. We moved right along while hiking with him but the 3 of us missed a turn and went a half mile the wrong way before realizing our mistake and doubling back. In everybody’s defense the turn really wasn’t marked all that well. Queen B and I walked a couple more hours before finding a campsite. While we were eating gummy bears or whatever, Bones, who we last saw near Breckinridge, walked up with a headlamp on. He was trying to catch Spirit but decided to camp here also. 

Day 119     8/26     23 miles

The trail was a bit bland today. Easy but bland. Although it’s been enjoyable, this whole section since Anaconda has been somewhat dull as far as the CDT goes. We walked a soft dirt path for awhile through a lodge pole pine forest and then joined a dirt road for miles. We walked in and out of the forest and over a few open meadows until we got to MacDonald Pass. Everything was all good today except for one mile that had tons of blowdowns that we had to walk over, under or around. A total nuisance. At the pass we put our thumbs out and the first truck that went by turned around and picked us up and took us into Helena. Hitchhiking with QB is pretty easy. Ted, a retiree and avid hiker, along with his dog Trip, took us all the way to our hotel and even offered us a ride back to the trail on Monday. We’re planning to take a day off here tomorrow and enjoy the capital so we took care of our resupply tonight then went to dinner downtown before crashing out for the night. a view of the valley from MacDonald pass 

Day 120     8/27     0 miles 

Took the day off today to enjoy Montana’s capital city, Helena, and possibly our last zero on this trail. Helena is a nice little city rich in gold mining history. At one time it had the highest concentration of millionaires in the world living in it, or something like that. Queen B and I took a nice little walking tour of the city this morning and it was cool. First of all we switched hotels to one closer to downtown so while we walked there we explored the State House and ran a few other little errands. The other day one of my trekking poles got stuck closed to the point that it was rendered useless. So we had to go to a gear shop and instead of selling me new sticks, they let me borrow some pliers and with a little bit of effort I fixed the stuck one. We also checked out the St. Helena Cathedral, the original governor’s mansion, and a really cool art museum but the name is escaping me right now. It was a regular good old fashioned walking tour of a state capital on a nice 95 degree day. Today also included McDonald’s for breakfast, pizza, gigantic burritos, and ice cream. It was a very enjoyable day off.the State House Red Sox nation is everywhereis this creepy?the original governor’s mansionSt. Helena’s Cathedral, I’m not against incredible architecture. This building is impressive.QB beautifying the sidewalk with a chalk mural

Day 121     8/28     20 miles

This morning we got breakfast down the street and looked over the upcoming section that includes a potential fire closure and reroute situation up ahead. After breakfast we went back to the hotel and noticed some of the other hikers had fresh haircuts. These guys bought clippers in town so we borrowed them and I gave QB a haircut. Not really, I just shaved the lower half of her head, I guess that’s all the rage these days. We then started back to the trail and got two relatively quick hitches back up to MacDonald Pass around 11. Back on trail we met up with Mac, Appa, and JPEG and hiked with those guys for most of the day. At some point we were in Ted Kaczynski’s old neighborhood(the Unabomber). The FBI seized his whole cabin though so there was no sign of the weirdo. This section is pretty dry and very smoky due to the wildfire up ahead. We took an alternate to the west of the trail that had a better water situation. Once back on the official trail we made it to a water source and shortly after that found a place in the pines to camp. This is an old train tresses and looked extremely apocalyptic possibly what the unabomber’s cabin would have looked like, as this was in the area where the lunatic livedJPeg, QB and Mac

Day 122     8/29     31 miles

Today was a hot, humid, hazy, and smoky day to walk to Canada. The water sources were very limited but luckily we came across caches twice. There’s some awesome person in the area that stocks caches at both Stemple Pass and Flesher Pass and because of them I didn’t dry up today. Due to the weather and a bunch of short steep climbs it was a tough day to conserve water. We hiked with Mac and Appa this morning until those guys took a different route towards town. As of right now there’s a big wildfire up ahead causing a trail closure and a reroute so hikers are taking a few different routes to get down into Lincoln. Queen B and I got to Flesher Pass tonight and instead of going to Rodgers Pass(where the trail is closed), our plan is to walk the road from here to connect with the reroute a little earlier. This plan will eliminate some of the highway walking around the closure that will be inevitable. Wildfires and trail closures are a pain in the ass but also part of the hike and not really all that big of a deal for us compared to the people who are living up here and who are actually affected by the fires. Anyway after a long hot day we found a spot to camp about a quarter mile from the road and we’ll be walking that for awhile tomorrow before getting into Lincoln.lots of hikers along this ridge, I felt like I was in the desert in on the PCTa large group of hiking enthusiastscool house!moo!!! I drank a bunch of this gigantic cow’s water

Day 123      8/30      13 miles

Holy smokes!! It’s been a super smoky morning as we walked down from Flesher Pass and even smokier here in Lincoln. We started walking down a trail that Queen B invented, following power lines steeply down to a road after a mile or two. Once we got to the road we walked along it for about 6 miles, took a left and walked another 6 miles to the point where the reroute cuts north. At this point we hitched into Lincoln and we’ll start back here tomorrow morning. We’ve got a big section coming up going through the Bob Marshal Wilderness so we’ll take care of a few chores in town this afternoon and hit the trail hard tomorrow. The sun looks crazy in the smoke, don’t even need eclipse glasses

 Leave a Comment

 Posted on August 30, 2017 by

 Hiking, Thru hiking, travel

     , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Endless P Summer

A WordPress.com Website.