Here is Washington part 2 (of 2)!

Mile 2476. I get to the Dinsmore’s trail house today. This is the last ‘big’ trail house on the PCT. Washington is really surreal. For months you read about all of these places, then you start the trail in SoCal and Washington seems like an unimaginable distance in front of you. Getting here was a blur.

But I can still remember very specific details about every single day, I can remember exactly where I met the dozens of friends I’ve made. I can easily recall the miserable days with triple degree heat, the painful descents, the stares from day hikers, the ‘just 3 more miles’ night hiking… everything.

I’m taking my last chances to get as much swimming in as possible. This lake was fed my snow melt, but I had to go in. Had the whole thing to myself!

I did 28 miles and 7,800 feet of climbing this day. I’m on the push to Stehekin, the last resupply before Canada.

Self portrait.

Saw this person walking the ridge, hadn’t seen anyone for hours and there was no trail up there. I never saw them after this photo.

A typical campsite in Washington. Most of California I cowboy camped (no tent). I started doing that in Washington, but I’d been woken up several times with rodents crawling on me. Something about WA this year and the mice.

Mile 2515. I have maybe another week on the trail and it’s really starting to hit me. The desert was a distant past. Even NorCal seems like ages ago. I’m not sure what has possessed me to walk marathon distances day after day, week after week, month after month, but I feel more lucid than I have in my entire life.

Somewhere between mile 2515 and 2544. This is what I pictured WA to look like. The trail is very remote up here. There were a bunch of trail bridges washed out in some storms in 2001, they still haven’t been replaced.

Glacier peak.

Micah lake. Again, I told myself I would take every opportunity to swim in crystal clear alpine lakes. Unfortunately for me, this one still had ice on it. Yes, it was cold.

Something like 8,500 feet of elevation gain today.

Crossing Suiattle creek.

Bridge creek (near Stehekin). I kept telling myself that I was going to take the last few weeks/days slow. I don’t know what it is but once I was in the routine of doing 25-30 mile days, I just couldn’t stop. It just felt so. damn. good. to do big miles. I always thought that maybe the trail could just be a little longer… give me 500 more miles please!

I camped 8 miles from the High Bridge ranger station where the shuttle picks us up for Stehekin. I run into Birdfood, Watermallon, Freindrick, and 1/2 n 1/2. Bambi and Summit aren’t far behind. People often ask me if I did the trail alone. I never really know what to say to this question… yes, I went into the trip solo but I made dozens of hiking buddies that I traveled hundreds and thousands of miles with. The people hiking the PCT have a very strong sense of camaraderie. Thru-hikers are instant friends.

I woke up at 5 am to get this. Stehekin. At last. The much, much anticipated Stehekin bakery. The much anticipated resupply. Stehekin… it’s been on our minds since Campo. It’s strange to be here. I’ve seen the photos, studied the maps, read the blogs, but now I’m experiencing it.

Stehekin is only accessible by a 4 hour ferry ride… or the PCT. Atlas and Why Not are at the bakery. I run into Moxa who I camped with on night 2 – and hadn’t seen since. What a bizarre experience this whole PCT thing is.

Caitlin sends me $20 to spend on meat and beer. Stehekin has a resort with really good food. I’m sitting with two Germans and a Dutch guy (Friendrick, 1/2 n 1/2 and Watermallon). This is our last real meal before hitting Canada. We all get the prime rib. And beer. Lots of it. There are 10 of us in the gazebo by the lake. We build a fire and reminisce about the trail. Where did Snailtrainer (the hilarious English guy who seems to pop up randomly everywhere on the trail) lose his tooth? How the hell did we make it this far? All of the characters on the trail. What ever happened to the guy carrying the 25 pound steel drum? Saw him last at mile 80. Bambi, who started in early April says that everyone he started with save for 1 person had quit the hike.

Up early and out of Stehekin. 193 miles to go.

It’s cold and I love it.

The northern Cascades.

Second to last day on the trail and it is absolutely gorgeous.

One last trail magic cache. This time it’s a case of Rainier and several tins of spam. Sure, why not. Watermallon and I each grab a tin of Spam. I put the entire tin in with some easy mac. It’s disgusting, but I easily put down 1700 calories, so I love it.

The last sunset on the trail.

The last day on the trail is dreamlike. An entry from the trail log:

“Up early, on trail by 6:15, everyone else still under their shelters. Wanted to see the sunrise, but it’s cloudy. I hike in the cool morning and it’s beautiful. I take lots of pictures and video, savoring these last moments on the trail. I climb to a ridge, eat lunch, and ponder for a moment how I got here. I’m on a stunning ridge in the middle of the backcountry, everything is so still, and I feel so alive. Friendrick, 1/2 n 1/2 and Watermallon are still behind, so I hike on to the border. I run into Will with 1.5 miles left! So good to see him again – we chat about how it feels to be done. I finish the PCT at 5 pm on September 1st. The Germans and Watermallon arrive. It’s fun, it’s bittersweet. We play music, drink whiskey, and have one last fire. Hard to imagine that this is the end of the journey – today was so surreal. I can’t believe we’re in FREAKIN’ CANADA!!!”

April 24 (I have so much to learn).

September 1.

The PCT register.

Two Germans, a Dutch guy, and an American.

The PCT ends in the middle of nowhere. You still have to hike the 8 miles into Manning Park to get into Vancouver. This 8 miles goes fast. But it’s weird, you’re done with the trail… but not really since you still have miles to make.

“Congrats! You finished the PCT! Now you’re just another bum in Vancouver.”

Breakfast in Victoria. Spent two days in Canada.

Victoria to Vancouver. At first I was going to take Amtrak down to Berkeley, but the 24 hour train ride sounded rough (there were also a bunch of delays due to fires in NorCal), so I opted to fly.

And just like that. I’m home.

Wow.

April 24 – September 1
Days: 131
Zero days: 20
Miles: 2660
Average: 20.3 miles per day
Average not counting zeros: 24 mpd
Vertical Gain: 489,417 feet
Days with 30 or more miles: 38

Thanks PCT.

Thank you to all of the strangers who gave us food and water. All of the folks who let us into their homes. All of the people who cached water for us. The search and rescue teams who saved dozens of people in the desert and up the trail.

Thanks to all of the friends I made, the hours of laughter, shared misery, sweat, blood, and tears. The summits, the passes, miles, miles, miles.

Thank you mom (my biggest blog fan!) and dad for supporting me on this endeavor, as I quit my job to do something crazy, arguably insane.

Thank you Caitlin for putting up with me, the hundreds of dropped calls as I dipped into countless valleys and under towering ridges, the hours on the road to see me, the cookies, banana bread, and moral support on my hardest and loneliest days.

Unreal.

andrew batjiaka

pacifc crest trail 2014

pct