Mile 2653, Day 157

Day 156 – Day 158 Granite Pass to THE TERMINUS!! back to Hart’s Pass (8/31– 9/2):

I woke up on Granite Pass and had a beautiful sunrise, with my first rainbow on trail! After hiking a couple of miles I caught up to Carrots and Bugs, who were just leaving camp. They convinced me to do a big mileage day to camp with them, A-Bear, and Guillermo so that we could all reach the terminus and finish trail together. I had to do a 29 mile day, but it was a great camp spot and it was fun to be with friends again. Unfortunately, when we got to Hart’s Pass we learned that big fires had closed all side trails from the PCT, and now we would have to repeat 30 miles of the PCT backwards to Hart’s Pass after reaching the terminus. In addition, the road from Hart’s Pass was still closed due to recent mudslides, so we didn’t know how we were going to get out once we got there. That news combined with the increased smoke, gave us all some stress over the next couple days. At dinner we were talking about how good it feels to get into bed each night and Carrots said “Usually I go into my tent and eat m&ms until I pop, then I fall asleep”.

Waking up on 9/1 (Day 157) felt like the most thrilling holiday OF MY LIFE. When the morning alarms went off, for once it wasn’t hard to get up. We all yelled out of our tents to each other “it’s terminus day!!!!”. A-Bear told us that he had a dream that his hometown threw a parade for him at the terminus, and even the governor was there! Very high achieving dreams. All morning I just could not contain my excitement. I was reflecting on my journey, and imagining the moment I would reach the end of it. We fist bumped and congratulated every SOBO hiker, as they were taking their ‘victory lap’ back to Hart’s Pass after tagging the terminus. Someone counted 75 people that passed us going southbound after tagging the terminus! It sure was a crowded day on trail. We had a hard time making ourselves stop for water and food breaks, because of our excitement to reach the terminus. I had a lot of anxiety with the smoke from the fires, because it got pretty thick that day and we descended down into the valley where people said it was worse. After 22.5 miles we arrived at our campspot, pitched our tents, then set out to slack pack the remaining 3.5 miles to catch the sunset and eat dinner at the terminus. The five of us hiked in a line for the entire 3.5 miles and literally jogged most of the way there, we made it in just under an hour! A-Bear gave us a countdown of exactly how many miles we had left every few minutes. For the last 0.1 mile we all fell silent, straining to see the clear cut in the trees that separates the US from Canada.

It felt so surreal when I finally reached the terminus and reached out to touch the monument. At 6pm on 9/1 I completed the PCT. It honestly felt overwhelming, despite imagining this moment for the past week. There was so much to process and yet I wanted to enjoy this moment and be present. It felt so special, the group of us who ate dinner, drank celebration drinks, and shared stories about the beginning of trail. A couple of people I had literally just met there at the terminus, most of the people I had known for at least half of Washington, and one of them I had met way back at mile 400 (Guillermo). We all sat facing the monument and just staring up at it. It felt like a weight had been lifted off of me: the anxiety over the fires and smoke, the countless days that felt like a grind trying to get the miles in, and the fear that something (mostly the fires) would stop me from getting to the terminus right at the end. We shared some of our memories from trail, signed the trail log, and took many many photos.

When it was time to head back up to camp I felt like I was floating on a cloud. We had to hike the 3.5 miles back to camp with 1200+ elevation gain, and I swear I couldn’t even feel the ground. My brain was swirling and my Canada playlist was hitting just right. I arrived into camp by headlamp, but we had already set up our tents so it was such a luxury to get to crawl right into bed, it had been a 28 mile day plus the whole terminus celebration. I literally had my best night of sleep of the whole trail. I slept so deeply that apparently there was a deer terrorizing our camp galloping all around everyone, and I just slept right through it.

We slept in a bit the next day because you know what, we’d already made it to Canada! Unfortunately, we still had to hike 27 miles and 5000+ elevation gain to get back to Hart’s Pass, and the worst part is that we literally had just hiked it the reverse way yesterday. We took our last swim of the PCT in Hopkins Lake around 8am. It sure woke me up! The rest of the day became a bit of a slog, as we all just felt a bit unmotivated, but it was our turn for the victory lap and fist bumps from all the hikers heading to the terminus! Unfortunately, once we got up on the ridgeline there was massive smoke plumes and an air of anxiety as all of the northbound hikers hurried through the smoke to the terminus. All day my group felt a little nostalgic and we just wanted to spend as much time together as we could. We did group breaks for all water breaks and meals, and stopped often to talk to hikers we knew. It was a slow day, but for once we had no hiking to do the next day, so it didn’t matter how late we finished. We stopped for a great dinner at the last water source, and celebrated our last meal on trail. I had the most lovely last six miles on the trail. It was a beautiful sunset, easy miles with views, and I hiked with Carrots and Bugs- sharing memories from trail and post trail goals.

Unfortunately, our lightness and excitement was popped just 1 mile from Hart’s Pass and the true end of our PCT hike. We heard from a hiker that the last 12 miles to the terminus had CLOSED around noon due to the fires threatening the PCT. We didn’t know because we had passed that spot heading south before it had closed. Rangers were now out there turning hikers around, and no one else would get to tag the official terminus this year. We were amongst probably the last 50 hikers who got to touch the monument. I know it doesn’t seem like that big of a deal- but in some of my hardest moments on trail, touching that monument was the only thing that kept me going. I was absolutely crushed to hear this news. Almost all of the friends I had made along trail were behind me, including Joe and Diana who were in my original trail family. We shed some tears for all of the hikers who had their hike abruptly ended so close to the finish, and arrived at Hart’s Pass to a very somber and sad mood. Over half of the hikers camping there had gotten turned around or prevented from continuing on. We quietly pitched our tents for the last time on trail, and had a much more subdued last night than anyone would have expected. The positive emotions I had felt over finishing the trail was now mixed with intense sadness and guilt.

I was so lucky that I was able to reach the terminus. All of the decisions that I had made, even if they felt hard or arbitrary at the time, had somehow gotten me there in the nick of time. If I hadn’t been convinced to push bigger days at the end to stick with Carrots and Bugs, if I hadn’t gotten norovirus, if I hadn’t suffered through some massive days to get to Rainy Pass and meet my relatives, I wouldn’t have gotten to reach the monument. I would have missed it by hours or even days. I don’t know how I got so lucky, but I am so glad I did.

---

Week 1 Post Trail in Washington

I spent a great week decompressing, relaxing, and hanging out with Aunt Sparky and Uncle Kris in Winthrop, Washington for a whole week after trail. Can’t forget about the most handsome cat, Snicky too! I got to see the area, try out an ebike, take a yoga class, and start a puzzle. On my way to Seattle to fly home, I just happened to meet up with Joe and Diana and we were able to give them a ride to Seattle. It seems only fitting that I got to end my PCT journey with them before I flew home to Rocklin. We spent the entire 4 hour car ride catching up and reminiscing. We got to spend a half day together in Seattle before I flew home, and boy were we treated like royalty! We had our backpacks with us all day, so random people would stop us to ask questions and buy us food/drinks at the farmers market and drinks at the local bar. That evening I flew home to Rocklin and my parents and brother had a welcome back party where I got to see a lot of family and friends.

---

Trail Reflections

Post trail life is weird. First it’s exciting because of all of the simple luxuries that I lived without for 5 months: toilets, water I don’t have to filter, laundry whenever I want it, fresh food, riding in cars, etc. But then time just seems to melt away, and suddenly it’s almost been a month since I finished trail and I haven’t really done much. Each day on trail is filled with new views, experiences, and challenges that result in a lot of endorphins. Each day ends with a feeling of accomplishment and exhaustion at however many miles I’ve walked that day. Time passes differently on trail as each day can feel like an eternity, but at the end of the day it’ll seem like the miles flew by. Post-trail life seems to fly by in a blur of more mundane tasks sprinkled with fun experiences.

I still have such a mix of emotions about the trail. It’s the hardest thing I’ve done in my life, and I felt the most proud I’ve ever felt of myself when I reached the terminus. I had some of my lowest lows and highest highs on trail. I learned the simplicity of taking things as they come instead of trying to plan, as life on trail is full of surprises. Some days I wished I wasn’t on trail anymore, and other days I couldn’t imagine living life any other way. It is incredibly empowering to be completely self-reliant for five months- living in nature, carrying everything you need, and making every single decision without ‘having’ to do anything. I received true kindness from trail angels, who give food, rides, and even open up their homes to hikers and often accept nothing in return. The thru-hiking community is truly special- I got to meet so many cool people and I made lifelong friends. I’m grateful that I got to have this experience.

One of my favorite things that we say is “the trail provides”. Somehow, it truly does. At my lowest lows, the trail would provide a friend when I really needed it. When I was absolutely exhausted and at my breaking point, the trail would provide a great campsite. When I was completely mentally burnt out, the trail would provide an amazing view or sunset or crisp breeze that would make me feel grateful again. When the heat and sun felt completely unbearable, the trail would provide the most amazing swimming hole. I’m not saying this happens often, but when you really really need something, the trail provides. If you give the trail your all, the trail will provide.

---

Trail Stats: I’m going to design an infographic, but for now I’ll leave you with a few highlights from my stats

• 3/29 – 9/1
• 157 days total
• 22 zero days (hiked 0 miles)
• 35 resupplies
• 30 showers
• 20 hitchhikes (got lots of rides from strangers who offered, but I only counted those where we stuck out our thumbs as hitchhikes)
• 4 pairs of shoes used
• 12 fuel canisters used
• 231 protein bars eaten
• 127 liters of electrolytes drank
• 81 tortillas, bagels, or english muffins eaten
• 76 king size candy bars eaten
• 44 portions of trail mix eaten
• 25 bags of chips eaten
• 11 jars of peanut butter eaten
• 105 degrees: highest temperature (descending into Seiad Valley)
• 12 degrees: lowest temperature (top of Mt. Whitney)
• 29 miles: most I ever hiked in a day