I never put on my blog that I was back on trail but I have been for about the last two weeks and it has been a really tough two weeks. First of all, I took an unplanned stop in Sisters, Oregon today and will be here tomorrow because of some rain we got in the last week.
When I got on trail about two weeks ago, my plan was to start where I left off, in Etna, CA, but the fires around Etna and the smoke made the air quality really bad. When I was driving through town with the windows down, the car smelled like a wood smoker. It was that bad. As a result, I skipped (side note: my trail name is Skip...will explain later) up 40 miles to the smaller town of Seiad Valley, CA. My dad dropped me off there and I was off to conquer Oregon. The funny thing though was that will I couldn't smell the smoke, the smoke made the visibility for the next two day pretty bad. At some points, I couldn't see more than a quarter mile off in the distance.
After a day and a half of walking, I finally got to the Oregon boarder and got to celebrate with myself! I was hoping that someone would be there also, but I was on my own. I chowed down on some peanut butter MMs (special treat for the occasion), took a really awkward self-timed photo, and relaxed for a while. It was exciting because I finally made it out California, all 1800 miles of it, and thought I was leaving the heat and lack of water behind. Boy was I wrong.
For the first 5-6 days of Oregon, I felt as if I had been transported to the desert but one with trees. The water sources were 10-20 miles apart, it was hot, and it was as if I was walking in a green tunnel. That is essentially when you are walking in the forest but you can't see anything because of the trees. Also, on one of my maps, it had the words "Oregon Desert" on it. Everything I thought Oregon would be was wrong but that changed when I got to Crater Lake National Park.
Crater Lake is an amazing place. A must see place for anyone who hasn't been there. I resupplied in the park, got to walk about 8 miles around the lake, and then the world changed. The night I left Crater Lake, about a week ago, it rained, thundered, and lightninged. It was so close that the storm sounded like it was right on top of me. It was scary because all of this weather was happening outside and I was just in my little one-person tent. It was definitely one of the more nerve-wracking parts of the trip, and the rained stayed around for 4 more days. This meant that my stuff and I was wet and damp and then I knew I was in the Pacific Northwest.
This storm, which lasted days, made it very hard to stay motivated to stay on the trail, so that is why I stopped in Sisters. I needed a break and a chance to dry out and relax.
I'll post some pictures of the last two weeks before I get back on trail. Otherwise, here is to better weather.
