One Way Ticket to Somewhere

  I had almost forgotten how beautiful the section from Snoqualmie Pass was. I had hiked from here to Stevens Pass with my friend Chris two years earlier. As I made my way up the long climb to the Kendall Katwalk, I thought about our leisurely pace back then. We had no reason to worry about upcoming winter, only our own personal deadlines - work, social obligations. On The Way To Kendall Katwalk Kendall Katwalk Once up on the ridge, the views just kept on getting better. It was a clear day, although later in the afternoon clouds started to roll in and I decided to camp at a lower elevation site to avoid having my tent dripping with condensation in the morning. The following day was clear again. As I stood on the ridge to take a picture, a mountain goat came out from the trees, moved to an outcropping and appeared to be staring at Mount Rainier. This could not get any better. I was deep in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness and there was a pretty lake almost after every bend of the t...

  I was getting a bit emotional when I finally crossed the Bridge Of The Gods across the Columbia River from Oregon to Washington. I had dreamed of this moment for a long time and was very happy I had made it. My home state welcomed me with blackberries and lush green forest with solid tree cover that lasted for a couple of days and almost made me run out of battery for my phone as my solar panel could not generate enough energy. Welcome to the jungle  Remember when we all had BlackBerrys? There were still enough views of Mt. Adams and St. Helens to keep things interesting. Mount Adams I entered Indian Heaven Wilderness with its gorgeous lakes and spent some time swimming in deep and clear Blue Lake.  Blue Lake - Gorgeous Swimming  I had hiked around 2200 miles and some more pieces of my equipment started to give up. My favorite hiking shirt was beyond repair and the over molded tips of my trekking poles started to come loose. Directionally Challenged  My...

Oregon welcomed me with a torrential rain storm. While not ideal for camping, I was happy that the rain cleaned the air from wildfire smoke and I hoped that it also helped keeping the current fires at bay. Welcome To Oregon I waited out most of the rain at Callahan’s Mountain Lodge which is located right on the trail. The lodge has an excellent restaurant and I decided to have a nice dinner to celebrate hiking through California and making it to Oregon. Real Food… The heatwave was finally over and temperatures in the next few days were perfect for hiking. My heat blisters healed up quickly. Breathing cooler air and hiking through lush green forest felt amazing after the heat in California. Pilot Rock First visual highlights of this section were the lava beds of Mount McLoughlin and of course the views of the almost perfect cone for of this volcano. Mt. McLoughlin  I entered Sky Lakes Wilderness and took another detour to hike through the beautiful mountain lakes, camp at Trap...