July 3, 2014
I woke up this morning, wondering how my feet would be feeling. Last night they were sore but I wasn’t experiencing any particular pain. I didn’t feel any more sore than I remember feeling while hiking last year which felt like a good sign I expected to get up with stiffness but amazingly I felt pretty good. I ate some breakfast and was on the trail by 5:30am. Still in the early morning clouds, my wet rainfly was strapped on my pack and the breeze knocked drops onto me for the first 4 hours. Luckily, this section was not too brushy, so I didn’t need to put on my rain skirt, nor did my shoes get wet. Happiness!
I saw some hikers camped at Salvation Spring (2129) around 7, they were getting up themselves. Three day hikers passed me northbound just before Lola Pass Road, this area has powerlines and several forest roads. The road to the trailhead (2125) is paved and you can see down from the trail there are several places that cars stop for a view of Mt. Hood. There is also a campsite with a picnic table and it is less than 3 miles from the junction of the Timberline Trail, and where the Mt. Hood Wilderness begins.
I know that the rhododendron is the state flower of Washington, but I don’t remember seeing as many of them as I saw on the PCT in Oregon. All a gorgeous pink color! There were not many views (the clouds didn’t help), although the trail was interesting with the evidence of lava rock and scree and it was a little cooler in this section.
I am trying out adding electrolytes to my water, found a brand called “Ultima”. It doesn’t appear to have much more than the minerals and some Stevia, and it’s GMO free. Not bad, if not a little watery because I’m adding it to more water than it calls for. I also brought candied ginger, which turned out to be a tasty treat.
Around mile 2119, you come to Muddy Fork and you can decide on a ford or a bridge. There are multiple logs across the water and it is obvious that the trail continues on the other side here. However, I wanted to take the bridge. There was a trail to the left here but it appears as though it has not been encouraged to take it because someone had tossed some logs on it to block it. Well, I went anyway and discovered that the bridge was in some pretty bad shape. It still looked sturdy, though, so I used it.
There was evidence of a trail but not well travelled and it spits you out directly onto the “Ramona Falls Alternate”. There are no markings here, so Halfmile’s app helped me know where I was. I decided to take the alternate south, then come northbound on the PCT on my return. It was very tranquil, green, with a lovely creek. The rock wall it runs along reminded me a little of walking around Devil’s Tower. There were multiple day hikers and even a deer by the stream.
Ramona Falls was spectacular, the way the water comes down on the layers of rock. There were folks with tripods, about 15, lingering around for their shot. I guess the parking lot is about ½ mile away and there is a campground as well.
Coming back to the PCT, I did not see the sign telling me to go left, so I went north a bit before realizing I should be traveling the other way along the Sandy River. I stopped before turning around (about 1:15pm) and took some Ibuprofen and Tylenol 1s, my first. The feet were feeling pretty sore.
Oh, the Sandy River. I made it here by 2pm and was treated to a lovely view of Mt. Hood to my left and quite a bit of water in front of me. I could see some cairns marking where others had crossed, but it still looked pretty deep. I imagine that this is what the Lewis River in Washington (Mt. Adams) would have looked like if I had arrived later in the day.
I sat down and pondered my choices. I could brave the water and continue on, knowing that I would probably not make the 10 miles needed to get to Timberline Lodge due to how my feet were feeling. I could camp here and try and cross in the morning when water would be slower, hike until snow, then turn around and make my way back. Or, I could turn around here and call it good. I took my shoes off, put on my sandals, and tried wading out but being by myself and without the pressure of not NEEDING to cross, I ended up wading back out and sitting back down. I did wander up and down the river a bit, but didn’t see anywhere better.
In the two hours I sat there, I saw several other hikers. One came up from the south, with a daypack and ice axe. He appeared to weigh his options (as I was), then turned around and headed back south. I saw another hiker (most likely a thru) who came from the north but down river. I wondered what he would do? He walked down river around the bend and (I swear) popped up on the other side of the river within seconds! What the heck??
At the same time, another hiker came from the south and chatted with him about how he had crossed. Well if he did it, I can too, right? So, while they were still talking, I got up and walked down river. I saw it, a large log jutting out into the river on the other side, with large boulders leading up to it from my side. It dangled at least 3 feet over the river and was NOT smooth. The only way to use it would be to walk it or risk splinters. Yeah, right. As I was contemplating my risk aversion vs. trail-continuing-desire equation, the other hiker managed to cross closer to the cairns. But I didn’t see it!!
So I walked back up to him and asked him where he crossed. He crossed a bit below the cairns, so I went back up to reassess. It was obvious the water had only come up midthigh on him, how bad could it be? I need to mention here that I still had my sandals on and the rocks/sand here are NOT sympathetic to this fact. I fell twice and I wasn’t even in the water yet. Good grief.
Again, I waded out a bit to test the water, but it was moving too fast for my comfort level. At this point, I knew that an early morning crossing was the only way I was going to do it (especially because I was by myself). By this time it was 4pm, so I decided to head back up the PCT and towards my car. I’ll come back to Sandy from the other side and time it for the morning.
Continuing back north on the Pacific Crest Trail, it was 2 miles along the Sandy and back to the Muddy Fork. At this junction with Ramona Falls, there is no signage taking you to the bridge option, I would not had found it if I had not come out from there. The trail just takes you left to the ford. If you go right on the Ramona Falls Trail, it (the trail to the bridge) is less than a quarter mile but there is no sign and you can’t see the trail. It’s basically a clearing and the trail is on the right (you can kind of see it where the trees start if you know what you are looking for). Not a biggie, I guess, the ford is not terrible. Maybe it will be more obvious as other hikers take it.
I made it back to the junction with the Timberline Trail around 7pm but only stopped for dinner. It seemed like a bit of a busy place as the four trails intersected here and hikers were coming and going.
I was rewarded with a breathtaking view of the sun going down on Mt. Hood as I continued down towards Lola Pass and I decided that I would stealth camp close to the trailhead for Lola Pass. I could hear as I got closer that the campground had occupants and there was the sound of cars and closing doors. I found a nice secluded spot at 2124.75 off trail and was settling down in my tent about 9:30pm. My location was nice and cushy, enough that I didn’t use my Neoair as I drifted off to sleep. That turned out to be a mistake and after about an hour of sleep, I decided I needed it! Not bad though, a 23+ mile day.
In case you are wondering what my original plan here had been, I was going to hike from Cascade Locks to as close to Barlow Pass as I could using the Eagle Creek Alternative and then loop back on the official PCT route for as much as 80 miles. But as is the status quo, my plans are always due for adjustment. I have since returned to this section of the Pacific Crest Trail that merges with the Timberline Trail and have written about it here. I also still use Ultima but buy the 90 serving canisters and put it in a film canister for the trail. Lemonade, grape and cherry pomegranate are my favorite flavors. Thrive Market tends to have the best prices!
For the continuation of this journey, visit Snuffy’s 2014 Pacific Crest Trail Journal-Oregon Day 3
To start at the beginning, head over to Snuffy’s 2014 Pacific Crest Trail Journal-Oregon Day 1
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