New Shoes, fresh clothes - S. Lake Tahoe

Most of the towns where we exit the trail are small, some with fewer than 500 residents. South Lake Tahoe and Tahoe are one of the biggest areas that we will stop. These resort towns offer a lot of places to stay, eat, get fuel and get hiking resupplies. Along the trail, we heard stories about the all-you-can eat buffets at S. Lake Tahoe so were eager to get into town and try a few of them.

After a hitchhike and a bus ride, we were in the town. I had to write 3 essays for medical school applications, do laundry, and pick up packages so I opted to take a zero day which means NO HIKING.  After finishing most of the tasks, Nightrider and I headed to the beach. Others in the group used their Zero day to do a little sight seeing in California or meet up with other friends/family.

S. Lake Tahoe is where I planned to make a gear change. The pack I was carrying was much larger than I really needed and I wanted to switch to a hammock/tarp setup.  I opted to wait until S.L.Tahoe because I knew I didn't need a bear canister anymore so the smaller pack would be ok. The local outfitters store Lake of the Sky Outfitters is a ULA vendor so my family called them ahead of time to see if they had the pack that I wanted. They didn't carry the pack but allowed me to have ULA to send the pack there and my other packages free of charge. They are open 7 days a week, I suggest any other PCT hikers to give the outfitters a chance.  They have Darn Tough socks, and also have a list of trail angels that offer rides back to the trail if needed.

In addition the pack, I received a box from the family that included fresh shoes, food, and a new PCT with Purpose shirt for me to hike the rest of the trail.  It is ironic that I had called my mom before I got the package and asked if she could send some chocolate covered espresso beans. Reading my mind she had included the beans plus some salt water taffy from Main Street Sweets that I had also been craving. I can't thank my family enough for their help.

My new pack is locked and loaded.

My shoes - the 2nd pair after over 1,000 miles hiking.

As you can see by the picture below, it was time for a new pair of shoes.  This will be pair #3. It is estimated that most hikers go through at least 5 pairs of shoes on the trail. I am on track to replace them about every 500 miles.






If you are wondering how I communicate with my family, I send a  text via satellite link that gives my location. To give you an idea of what it looks like, I am posting an image of the map that they see.  I try to turn on the satellite when I start my hike and then shut it off later to try and save battery. Sometime later in the day, I turn the unit on a second time to check for any text messages I need to address. The blue boxes represent a messages. The red flags are way points along the trail. I can set the GPS to help me get to any waypoint if I have gotten off trail.

One of my friends requested a picture of my changing appearance. I have to say my hair is growing like crazy. I have dropped a few pounds and gotten stronger.  I have over 1,500 miles to go so at the end of the trail, I will try to do a side by side picture of my transformation.

Sonora Pass, saying hello to mile 1000!

 The group has hit some bitter sweet landmarks in the last couple days in Sonora pass, the 1000 mile landmark and the end of the High Sierras. Any serious hiker has to make at least a week long trip along one of the many Sierra trail routes. It truly is the most amazingly beautiful  places I have ever been with all the pictures and video I have collected not giving it any justice. 

The group I am traveling with has been called "the Riff Raff" and we got into Northern Kennedy Meadows and immediately got drawn in by the great hospitality and service at the restaurant and store. It was great to relax with my trail family and chill out on the porch all day with a full stomach, clean clothes, and hang out with a group of friendly dogs all day. 

Another huge land mark between me and Nightrider was our 2 month trailaversory. We celebrated like any thru hiker would with some  ice cream sandwiches, a delicious San Francisco treat consisting of two oatmeal cookies wedged with ice cream and dipped in chocolate.  A new temporary member of the group has tagged along named Wing it. She is a triple crowner on her third attempt of the PCT. For those of you that might not know it, the triple crown of thru hikes consist of the Appalachian Trail, the Continental Divide Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) that I am hiking. 

Wing it has been great to have around to answer many questions that the group or have had and has gained quite a bit of celebrity status by being one of around 200 people who have completed all three major thru hikes in America. To put the accomplishment in perspective more people have been in space than completed the triple crown, with only two ever completing all three within the same calendar year. 

Another milestone is that we were able to send home or get rid of our bear canisters! The canister is designed of course to keep smells and foods away from the bears, but they are heavy and can be difficult to get in your pack. I sent home some pretty smelly gear that I won't need in my bear canister!

Heading out today I will have the lightest pack I have carried the whole trail. I estimate my pack now to be under 25 lbs total, over 20 lbs less than what I started with at campo. You find out that you can do without a whole lot more than you think when you first start. If I could give any advice, it would be to be as light as possible.  That helps to keep you healthy enough to make it 1,000 miles on the Pacific Crest Trail.  Time to celebrate!  Maybe I will go for a hike? 

We have been lucky to have great weather for many days.

The beauty of the area is unparalleled. 

Celebrating our nation's birthday! Mammoth Lakes area

The generosity of those you meet along the trail is much appreciated. One of the hiker's named Pancakes, graciously invited me and Nightrider to stay with them in Mammoth Lakes. The O'dells were kind enough to house, feed and drive us around town on the chaotic 4th of July weekend. 

Legend that I had met earlier, happened to be in town and threw a wonderful pasta party. This time I had the opportunity to talk to Legend one on one and it was amazing. The talk was full of wisdom and inspiration about family, friends, the trail community and as always and left me inspired to continue my hike and live life to the fullest. A close friend of Legend's gave him a blank book for him to compile his own story. He shared two short amazing tales from what he termed his life lessons book. In essence, Legend has divided his book into 10 categories of life lessons and has stories from people that he has met along the way that fit into the categories. The interesting part is most everyone can fall into at least a story at any given time. It becomes a madlib of sorts that one could take a name out and put yours in and it would give a pretty accurate description of yourself, your circumstances and the life lesson Legend learned from you. 

Legend got a hold of one of my resupply packages and was awed by the amount prep and organization my mother and father put into packaging and making the meals. This sparked a conversation about loved ones and a life lesson for legend to have your priorities aligned to take care of your family friends and community first before the trail. 

I'm happy I approached the trail the way I have, the planning and hours of research were arduous at times, but the majority was fun and a bonding experience between me and my family. In a way it gave my parents the ability to be apart of the best adventure of my life thus far, and and in addition to satellite gps tracking makes them feel part of the journey. 

The Sierras are coming to an end, and the mosquitos are out in full force. Soon this dream I have been walking through in the Sierras will bring a different ecosystem to explore and areas to learn about. 

Wish me swift legs, a platform to make a difference, and a continued adaption to this lifestyle and my ability to learn more about myself and others.

Paddling back to shore

Before I blogged about the day's hike I wanted to include a link to why I chose the Colon Cancer Alliance to partner with for the hike.  This Link goes into detail. Why CCA?

The Colon Cancer Alliance has been a support group that my family has used to find out information and speak to other patients with colorectal cancer. We have appreciated the work that they do. If you know anyone with colon cancer, I recommend you make sure they know about this organization.   

I am almost halfway through the hike and almost halfway through with the fundraising - thanks to you!.  If you haven't had the chance to participate, please click on my fundraising page to donate to the Colon Cancer Alliance gofund.me/PCTWithPurpose.   Almost halfway!  

The day before the journey started with my Dad, a Stage 4 Colon Cancer patient. 

As I have traveled north toward the Canadian border, the group of those traveling with me has grown. We are all starting to get our trail names as well.  Liam was recently donned Bass Boat due to his fantasy to quit the trail and join his parents on Norris Lake and go fishing on his bass boat all day.  

This area will make you dream of lazy days fishing. Water, streams and beautiful landscape surround you. When you are reading the guide book or looking at videos about the trail, it doesn't prepare you for the beauty that you will encounter.  

Our group separated as we went toward the Vermillion Valley Resort (VVR). I had a package that I needed to pick up, so I rushed down to the VVR shuttle to make the 930am. With a combination of running, speed walking and a very much tangential path along the trail we were able to cover 10 miles in under 2.5 hours. All of our rushing was to no avail however, the VVR shuttle ended up being two fishing boats that could only hold 4 and 5 passengers respectively and took 35 minutes one way to make it across the lake. After waiting until 2pm for the next shuttle to run, we were all packed up and on our way when the boat ran out of gas and left us marooned out in open water and forced us to paddle back to shore and wait for another shuttle to get into VVR. I wish I had a picture of us paddling our way back toward the shore to share with you. 

Another hiker in our group, Nightrider,had decided to take a different path into town. She ended up being the smart one in the group. Not only did Nightrider sleep in until 10am that morning, she beat us to town by a couple hours. The rest of the day went smoothly and we had to laugh about the troubles we had.

Here is a link to one of the swinging bridges we crossed earlier in the trip.  I was just able to upload it and thought you might like to see what it was like. swinging bridge

Postholing and other new experiences

Today was our first 2 pass day was it amazing yet very challenging at the same time. The general rule of thumb in the Sierras is to try and be over any passes you plan on climbing for the day by 10am, since the snow is still frozen and postholing will not be an issue.  

What is postholing?  It is not the way you want to hike. The term comes from the type of hole that is created when you walk on hard packed snow and hit a soft spot and sink straight down in it. Your leg creates and immediately fills a posthole in the snow. It is difficult to move. You have to pull your half-buried leg out of the snow before you can take another step either forward or backward. This takes a lot of energy and slows you down. After the first time it happens to you, you are more determined to get up as early as possible and get over that pass while the snow is still frozen.

A picture of a hiker on the PCT postholing. This is not our group.

 The second pass off the day was Mathers pass and beyond that was the Golden Staircase and it lived up to its reputation and being one of the most sketchy parts of the whole Sierras. It is a huge wall of rock and specially trained crews that built the JMT had to build a maze of infamous switchbacks because of the unstable footing and steep incline. It is very impressive and you feel a sense of accomplishment after negotiating the path. The most amazing part was on the way down the snowmelt turned the maze of winding switchback trail into a flowing waterfall, coupled with the fading sun it felt as if we were in the terraced gardens of Alexandra. 

I'm learning to have less of an agenda and follow what feels right for the day in the Sierras. Some days meant to be short like Rae lakes and some days meant to be long like today with Mathers pass.  The days in which I mindlessly wander seem to be more productive and fulfilling.

Drying out our clothes 

Liam resting, Alex brushing his teeth.

Some of the flowers along the path.

Nothing to add, just enjoy the view!

The view from my campsite.

Fishing, Swimming, and Bowling.

Although you are just reading this post, it may have occurred as much as two weeks ago. I am now in the part of the trail that has very little cell service. When I do get the chance to come off the trail, I upload the blogs that I have written along with the pictures and video that I took. Since I am also applying to medical school, I also have to check to make sure that any secondary application essays are written before I finalize my thoughts and upload to the blog.

Right now there are several posts waiting to be finalized so for the next several days you should be getting a flurry of updates. Thank you for reading along and following my journey.  If you haven't yet contributed to the fundraiser and would like to do so, here is a link to the gofundme page PCT with Purpose.  All the funds that are raised during my hike are going to families like ours that are battling colorectal cancer. We were so fortunate that my dad had medical insurance and also had disability insurance through his employer. He is not able to work now and our family would have been destitute because of the overwhelming expense of keeping the cancer at bay or curing you from the disease entails. Your help will support research and provide assistance.  Thanks to all of you that have contributed!  

I know my family worries about me from time to time when they are unable to communicate with me for days, but I feel very safe on the PCT. The path is well marked and there are many other hikers on the trail that are willing to help you in the event of injury or illness. That is not to say that there are not dangers out here. Much of the terrain and summits are difficult and if you attempt to be a thru hiker you will want  to make sure you are prepared for the journey. I have found that being a hiker and a thru hiker are completely different. The gear that you take to be comfortable on a short or even a two week hike are different than when you are undergoing a journey that is 5-6 months in length. You find yourself getting rid of every little bit of clothing, tools, or items that you find unnecessary for daily trail life. Why carry something that you "might" need. Instead your thoughts are I will carry only what I MUST. If it is superfluous it gets deposited in the next hiker box, donated to a fellow hiker, or sent home to the family.  

This journey continues to amaze me. Beyond every peak or around every grove of trees, there are things to see, mountains to summit, and beautiful vistas to take in. When John Muir brought naturalists and presidents to this place, I understand why they were so determined afterwards to try and preserve our country's nature and wildlife that I am privileged to to be experiencing. If you get the chance to go to Yosemite, the Sierras, or any of our nationals parks you must. Living in Tennessee and Ohio, I had never gotten the chance to really see the beauty that is in this part of the United States. 

The High Sierra mountain range leaves one to question if they are really awake or dreaming because of the amount of overwhelming beautiful and epic size of all the mountains, lakes, streams and flowers. Our day at Rae Lakes was no exception. After visiting, I realize why it is one of the most popular hikes in Sequoia and Kings Canyon. If you don’t have a thru hike pass it is difficult to get the wilderness permit you need to experience the stunning scenery and series of lakes in the area. The area includes Paradise Valley, Rae Lakes, Charlotte Lake, Bullfrog Lake and Kearsarge Lakes. Bears have been active along the trail and this is part of the area where we are required to carry a heavy bear canister. We had heard some hikers had left garbage in their backpack and overnight the bears found their way into their packs. The Sequoia and Kings Canyon lakes area is one of the most photographed in the park. I don’t think you could take a bad picture in this place as around every corner you emerge to find a beautiful view that you just have to stop and marvel at its pristine water, the blue sky or the mountains in the backdrop.

The flowers along the trail are just as beautiful as the mountains, lakes and streams.

My group was fresh off of an amazing zero day at Bishop that included a relaxing stay at the Hostel California, bowling, and my first late night Denny's experience. We decided to have our first home cooked meal together as a group. Liam, Turtle and I prepared a bruschetta, watermelon, and avocado basil pesto pasta dish for the masses, Whoever wandered by was able to dine with us. Liam decided to fish for dinner. On my way down to the lake I boasted about swimming out to the most central island on Rae lakes, but my resolve wavered once I saw a Danish swimmer, Stefan, take a plunge and immediately resurface and scamper back to shore as fast as possible due to the frigid temperature. Determined to keep to my word and against overwhelming odds, I made the 1/2 round trip to the island and back. After hours of hanging out on the beautiful shore we headed to camp where we could cook the fish Liam had caught for the day. Today was a good day.

Liam catching our dinner.