We decided to hike this section south bound because of logistics and because our ascent will be two thousand feet less overall. We take such liberties as section hikers. It might also be fun to also see all the PCT north bound thru hikers.
Etna Summit to Paynes Lake:
We are off on another hiking adventure on our beloved Pacific Crest Trail. This summer marks ten years we’ve been slowly, so very slowly, hiking sections in our home state of California. This year, if the stars align (aka: our bodies hold up) we hope to finish hiking all of California. It’s a big state. About 1700 miles of trail.
Today's stats:
Todays hike was very short, because we didn’t start hiking until 5:30 pm. It turned out perfect. We had a bit of a climb and the temperature was just right. The trail’s views were exceptional of the snow covered spires of the Trinity Alps and both our spirits were high. A few (perhaps a thousand! ) mosquitoes hurried us on our way at the summit of our climb, but weirdly none of them bit me. Hawkeye wasn’t so lucky.
Paynes Lake is a treasure. There were a few thru hikers already bedded down for the night. I wandered around the lake in bliss looking for the perfect camping spot. I wish it was earlier and I could go for a swim. It’s eight now and I’m afraid I’d be cold for hours if I did succumb to the waters' pull. Maybe manana.
It looks like Hawkeye is color coordinated with the flowers!
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Paynes Lake to South Fork of the Scott River:
We got lost today. Well, not lost, just took a detour and then bushwhacked back up to the trail. It only added a couple miles to our day and a little blood loss from all the scratches!
Our day in numbers:
We awoke to a glorious light and sprang from the tent in wonder. The rising rock face from the lake was aglow and we had front row seats. It was an awesome beginning to our day. Soon though, we hiked into an old burned area in the Russian wilderness. The trail was overgrown with brush and the trail littered with trees blown down. It was in this area we took a well used trail that went downhill. It was a jungle gym and we climbed over and crept under and walked around many blow downs. Then we met two day hikers and said ‘howdy do’. Our little pea brains finally realized that we were on a spur trail. We opened our app and saw where we went wrong and then we compounded our problem by making another error. We decided to go cross country back to the trail guided by our phone app.
It was steep. It was brushy. It was brutal and by the time we got back on the PCT, I was done for the day. Haha! Not really, but it did zap a lot of our energy reserves. The regular trail was tough here too, due to the blowdowns, and we made slow progress until we departed the Russian Wilderness and re-entered the Trinity Alps Wilderness. It was once again a beautiful day in a magical land with silver peaks glinting with snow. Wildflowers bloomed and the ever watchful Mount Shasta seemed to smile at us around every corner.
Unfortunately, our day ended back in a burned area. This was from a fire last year and the trees haven’t begun to fall from decay, so the trail was still smooth sailing. It was kind of captivating in a stark, melancholy kind of way.
We are camped at this lovely green spot surrounded by burn. There are swarms of mosquitoes and, once again, they are all around me, but not biting me. I think I have a new super power.
An engaging and interesting 60 year old Swiss hiked up and asked to camp next to us. We were happy to oblige. He came out west to do a southbound hike. Arriving in Seattle he discovered that departing from Canada was a no go, as there is too much snow, so he started at Crater Lake in Oregon instead. As an ultra runner, he can do big miles and plans on hiking south through the Sierras, then returning to Crater Lake to hike north to Canada during his three month visa. He plans to come back next year and hike the desert section. He is a physiologist from the university in Lausanne, Switzerland and is doing some very interesting research on the positive effects of moderate altitude in regards to aging. We talked at great length and I look forward to looking into his research later. He now goes by the name of Sandals. I bet you can guess why. Ohh! I forgot the best part of his story. We told him our mishap today and he told us how he got off trail for 23 miles in the Marble Mountains. He said he was in the middle of nowhere at some lake and had to spend the night and backtrack the next day. His story sure made ours seem small. We all decided that the signage for going southbound was lacking, and it really is. The trail is less intuitive as well. We better up our game a bit tomorrow.
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Scott River to Masterson Meadow Area:
Our day in numbers:
The Swiss left camp early and we finished our hot coffee and headed up the hill and into more burn. We had been dreading it, but it wasn’t bad and before we knew it we were out of it. We saw lots of Northbound thru hikers today. We’ve been seeing them regularly.
We met two hikers today that have a strong online presence.
The Giver from Footprints For Change is on a mission to get historically excluded folks out in nature. Why is it that folks of color aren't out on our trails more?
We loved having a long trail side chat with her and she gave us a lot to think about.
Later in the day another familiar face walked into view. This young, lanky man we met briefly in Florida at a trail event. His name is Jupiter and we were once again blessed by his kind and humble spirit. He’s now hiking 40 mile days and yet stopped to talk to two old section hikers.
It’s illuminating seeing all the faces of the thru hikers. Some make eye contact and say hi, others don’t. Some folks seem to love to stop and chat a while. One thing of note this year is that there are a lot of Europeans on the trail and a huge group of solo women hikers. Interestingly, the Europeans look very similarly dressed and they rarely wear hats.
The trail meandered up and down today a bit. Flowers bloomed, bees buzzed and the ever friendly songs of birds cheered us on.
We are now camped near a meadow under some evergreens and just had to move our tent because it was raining pitch or some kind of sticky sap. Little silver balls from the sky all over our gear. Yuck! One sticky mess.
Mosquitos are out in force and I decked myself out in my mosquito proof wear, but while doing my dooty in the woods not a single one bit my bum. Weird. Am I toxic?
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Masterson Meadow to Lower Deadfall Lake:
Day in numbers:
Oh what a cruise the trail was today. It contoured gently along the land with ever present views of Mount Shasta and dainty rock gardens filled with flowers. We took our time and enjoyed the ride. We are starting to get into the zone where we feel a slight disconnect from our legs and can look around and soak in nature without feeling the pain.
We had lots of trailside chats and one exceptionally long one with day hikers from the area who are involved in the forestry industry and had a lot to share with us. Providential. We all hit it off and shared digits. By the time we made it to the lake, most of the camping spots were taken, but we found one on the far side of the lake. I climbed the small hill behind us and watched thunderstorms in the distance. As they neared my lookout spot, I ran back down the hill and dived into our tent before a brief period of rain. The lightening and thunder was mesmerizing to listen to as we drifted off to sleep.
Paintbrush is everywhere!
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Lower Deadfall Lake to Shoulder of Castle Crags:
Our day in numbers:
Another cruiser of a day. Clouds were a delight, as it kept the temperatures cool and the views continued to stretch the eyes while the wildflowers waved at us along the trail.
We had lots of trailside chats and since are bodies are holding up, we are thinking of jumping up to Oregon and hiking back to our truck at Etna Summit, so we might see some of these folks again.
One individual to highlight is KZed from Australia, originally from New Zealand and with a bit of a British clip to his drawl. I couldn’t really place his accent and he said he’s lived in all the locals I just mentioned. He was quite interesting and we enjoyed hearing about his views of the USA.
We also met the cutest couple on the trail.
Soup and Sandwich! So sweet. Sandwich is 4 and seems to be loving the trail, as is her best friend. They were a pleasure to chat with.
Quite a few thru hikers are having the Northern California blues. There is almost 1700 miles of PCT in California and they feel like they are never going to make Oregon.
And what’s with this sign? It’s the very first sign we’ve seen on the trail in kilometers.
We are camped right before the steep descent to Interstate 5, with very fast sobo thru hikers from Sante Fe, New Mexico. Jeff and Ella are hikers on a mission. I’ve never seen such small packs. They tell us they carry very little food. They will conquer this trail, while we just kind of muddle along on the twenty year plan. Lol! As they say on the trail, hike your own hike.
Ohh! Two Peregrine Falcons just zipped through camp. So cool.
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Shoulder of Castle Crags to Interstate 5 near Castella:
Our day in numbers: down!
This is a big reason why we hiked this section south bound. Being a section hiker has its perks.
It rained in the night and we awoke to a grey misty day. We started down the mountain in our rain gear and removed them about half way down when we got under the drenching fog. It made for a mysterious hike, but not a lot to see.
There were less people today to meet, but a half mile from our destination we met Saunterre. She’s just a few months older than me and our chat really resonated. She lives in Washington State and she and her husband had been section hiking the trail. He noticed how much she loved it and suggested she do a thru hike. She said after a life of being a wife and mother it was very liberating to make all of her own decisions on trail.
Right at the trailhead we met an exceptionally tiny, delicate Asian women. She was stunningly beautiful and spoke with a broken accent. She asked about snow, as she said the Sierras had been difficult for her. We were amazed that someone who looked so dainty could carry such a big pack across many difficult miles. As they say, looks can be deceiving.
AND once again, the mozzies were out attacking everybody but me. I used to be sweet meat for the little buggers, but I guess I’m old meat now. I’ll take it.
Our camp for the night.
(Eric at the Dunsmuirs Lodge was great. I called from the Trailhead and 10 minutes later I was picked up and in ten minutes back at the Lodge getting checked in ($15). He did our laundry ($10) and I bought a frozen chicken and rice bowl ($4) and had a hot lunch in our room. If you want an easy resupply, you can even mail it to the Lodge. Otherwise, its a 15 to 25 minute walk to a store).
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"There are 3 very good reasons to travel: 1. See the world. 2 Meet new people. 3. Room Service."
-Linda Sunshine
A video of this section from Etna Summit to Interstate 5 near Dunsmuir California:
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