Before I recount my day, I forgot to tell yesterday's story about boobies! So I was hiking through one of those snow covered stretches. I was up on a hilltop and I noticed a creek running through the drainage below. I knew my trail crossed that creek somewhere. I saw a patch of clear ground by the creek, and there were two people sitting there. I figured they were either two NOBO (north bound) through hikers who had found the trail, or SOBO section hikers who could give me valuable info about the snow ahead. I slid downhill, thinking they had seen me too. When I got there, though, the woman was topless and immediately tried to hide behind her man. Now I'd love to tell you that she was Miss Switzerland 2009, whose hobbies include snowshoeing and topless yodeling. Alas, she was no spring chicken. In fact, any spring she might have once possessed had long since sprung. Now don't get me wrong, there isn't exactly a surplus of bodacious funbags out here on the trail. Being thus deprived, I'm not exactly picky. Still, these wilderboobs had obviously had a lifelong battle with gravity, and it was clear they were no longer winning. That's the nature of the PCT I guess; ask for a Playboy Centerfold and you get one from National Geographic instead. Go figure.
On to today. I woke up early and felt good. That came as a bit of a surprise considering the amount of sun glare I took on yesterday. Most importantly my blisters hurt less. With that in mind I tried adjusting my stride. I exaggerated the roll from heel to toe, which took a lot of the strain off the balls of my feet. This kept my feet feeling better all day.
With happier feet I made good time, hitting highway 20 before noon. I stopped at the PCT trailhead there for lunch and noticed that a couple off cars had been broken into. That was a bummer because I usually enjoy these little forays into civilization, but the vandalism only served as a reminder of the ugly side of humanity. I ate quickly and headed up the climb to Three Fingered Jack (pictured). As I climbed I got impressive views of Mt. Washington, which I had skirted in the morning with no snow problems.
There was snow on the mountain, but it is such a popular day hike, and so easily accessible, that all I had to do was follow the highway of footprints. As I rounded the north side of the mountain the tracks dwindled to one or two, and I knew only PCT hikers had made it this far. I admired the view of Mt. Jefferson (pictured) as I hiked on. The trail took me through a burned section of forest where many of the dead trees had fallen across the trail. Progress here was slow and hard won, so I stopped for a breather above Wasco Lake (pictured) before climbing to my dinner destination, Rock Pile Lake. As I made that climb I noticed clouds coming in on a stiff breeze. The lake turned out to be a small ice filled pool nestled in a hollow below Rock Pile Mountain. By the time I got there the temperature had dropped substantially and the wind was whipping fiercely.
After dinner I had to cross a sharp saddle between Rock Pile and South Cinder Peak. The wind here was brutal, and streams of cloud whipped by me and toward the valley far below (pictured). Visibility diminished to 150 yards and I began to hope there was no snow in store for me. I rounded a bend and hit a snow field. Of course. Luckily I was able to guide myself by way of small rock cairns spaced at 100 yard intervals. In this way I made it back to dirt trail. From there I traversed a few snowy slopes. Though they were steep, they crossed the trail infrequently. The soft snow was easy to kick footholds in, and my fingers worked as adequate ice axes. Still, with a 40 pound pack I was getting tired of snow. Visibility was down to 100 yards, and I was hoping to reach a downhill stretch soon so I could get out of the clouds and snow.
The trail had just started a downhill grade when it disappeared in another snow bank. To my laft was a giant cinder peak, which I am guessing is North Cinder. However, after hiking all over for an hour thete is still no sogn of trail. Reluctantly I called it a day early, woth only 28 miles under my belt. I'll have to wait until the weather clears to go any further. Meanwhile I set up camp in the midst of a cloud and hiked 1/4 of a mile to stock my water supply with fresh snow melt. I'm hoping tomorrow proves to be a better day for weather and snow pack!
