HIKING THROUGH TALL GRASS
PCT DAY 32: Mile 577.5 – Mile 599
Sunday May 15, 2016: 21.5 miles (34.5 km)
Last night we camped at an elevation of nearly 6,000 feet. It was cold and the wind showed no signs of letting up. So it was back to wearing a down jacket in the morning. We broke camp fairly quickly and were keen to get moving to get warm. At first the trail followed a deeply rutted dirt road and soon deviated to follow a mountain side. Here we got our first glimpse of the Sierra mountains in the distance. So unbelievable that we are so close.
It was a lovely morning hiking towards a spring to refill on water. Flower carpeted slopes sparkled in the morning sunshine. And the presence of wind turbines was a reminder that we have not left the wind behind. Sure enough we were blasted by a few gusts to remind us of yesterday.
Golden Oaks Spring
The wind was cool to cold and stayed with us for the afternoon. Every now and then we would walk through a pine forest stand where the warmth of the sun was trapped. This released that delicious warm berry aroma of pine forest. The smell reminded me of warm berry pie coming straight out of the oven, served with icecream – heavenly.
The wind was getting colder as the afternoon progressed. We were hiking through an easement over private property. Here the trail was flanked by tall grass which made it difficult to see your footing. Not very comforting considering that earlier Hammer nearly trod on a snake. The trail seemed to never exit this tall grass. We planned to stop around 5pm but found nothing suitable so pushed on despite protest from my feet and legs. Feet were feeling battered and bruised and legs empty, nothing left for the uphills. Hammer forged ahead hoping to find a suitable spot. We went on for another hour and a half and found a spot protected from the wind – pretty perfect.
Wow you have now been on the trail over 30 days – time is flying by – well done and battling the wind you must be exhausted by the end of the day, carrying the heavy load, etc, I noticed Lou-Seal is nowhere to be seen, smart girl – photos are great stef – sending you both a big HUG – stay safe/well – love M xx
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Lou-Seal only comes out in fair weather Maree.
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Hi Mike & Stef – as there hasn’t been an update for some time, starting to worry, hope all is well. Just finishing for the day and be back to check on Monday – Maree xx
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yes, i am curious as to what has become of you guys, as welly!
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Sorry to have worried you James. It was a long time away from phone reception.
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Following your blog from from England and wondering how you are getting along?
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Happy to have you following rjemj.
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Agreed, where have all the lovely updates gone?? Hope all is okay. Lucie (@Loreto)
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Sorry to worry you Lucie. It was a long time offline.
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Hi Mike and Stef, Dana Robinson here. Missing your up-dates. Are you guys OK? Will still be in Oregon June 11- August 5th; hope to run into you there.
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Great to hear from you Dana. Have been trying to catch up on all the comments. We were wondering how your hike went/was going. Not sure when we will be in Oregon. Would love to catch up with you there if the opportunity arises.
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Stef & Mike – now worried? Another week has slipped by – hope it is just some little technical problem and you are still moving forward and enjoying your journey – missing you, M & J xx
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Sorry to worry you Maree. It was a long time offline.
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Missing the blog comments!!!! Hope you are safe????
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Sorry to worry you Sylvia. It was a long time offline.
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Just started following your blog. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE all the wonderful photos! The flowers and insects are amazing, as are your wonderful stories of adventure. I love the kindness of the trail angels. I’ve been reading for 4 days now and will eventually catch up to where you are.
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So happy to have you following our hike Kathy. And thank you for your kind words.
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