TIMBERLINE LODGE – IT’S ALL ABOUT THE BREAKFAST

​PCT DAY 123: Mile 2089 – Mile 2104.2

Sunday August 14, 2016:  15.2 Miles  (24.3km)

DISPATCH FROM THE TRAIL
I had a long day yesterday so that I could be in a position to enjoy a legendary breakfastat Timberline Lodge. So I was up at 4am and on trail about 5am to walk the final 5.5 miles to Timberline. I started walking with a torch and came across a deer. I’m not sure who got the biggest fright.

I made good time to about a mile before Timberline when the trail became quite sandy and slow going.

After arriving at Timberline Lodge  I was invited to join a number of other hikers already there. I had met quite a few of them over the last week. There was Big Hunk, Lid, Obi One, Smiles and Smoky and we were all determined to do our best at the buffet. There was yoghurt and cereal, fruit smoothies, chopped watermelon and pineapple, scrambled eggs, sausages, hamburger patties, biscuits and gravy, pancakes and waffles, coffee and a sensational hot chocolate and cakes and pastries. It was stunning and with hiker hunger being present, a lot of food was consumed by a relatively small number of hikers. I don’t think the rest of the guest knew what had hit them.

Timberline is an amazing place. It was built as one of Roosevelt’s employment programs in the 1930’s and at one point in its history was used as a gambling den and for prostitution before Mr Richard L Kohnstemm took over and resurrected it to its former glory as a hotel and ski resort. It is also well know as the setting  for the movie Shining with Jack Nicholson, at his menacing best playing the lead  role.  At this time of the year it seemed quite amazing that I was walking around in shorts and there were people skiing not that far above the lodge.

I picked up my resupply package and was surprised that my ETA was for today. It also made me realise that today marked 4 months since  Corky and I began this journey at the Mexican border.

Before leaving I joined my breakfast companions for a beer and Big  Hunk, Obi One and Smiles ordered bread and butter to go with the beer. While the 22 ounce beers were big, the size of the  bread and butter servings was impressive.

I walked out of Timberline with Smiles, Lid and Obi One. It was amazing how many people were out walking or trail running.

The guys were looking to make Cascade Locks tomorrow, while I am planning on getting there on Tuesday. So we said our farewells and they shot off into the distance. Just a little further on and I’m guessing the mountains we could see in the distance were Mount Saint Helens and Mount Rainer.

Before getting to the spot I thought I might make camp there were two rivers to cross both formed by snow melt. Fortunately after so many river crossings in the Sierras,  these were quite manageable.

When I arrived at the spot I thought I would camp there was already a tent there with plenty of room for another. So I introduced myself and asked Jim if he minded me camping here. He said that would be fine and I ended up cooking and chatting with Jim around the fire he had going.

Jim has just resigned from a well paid IT job to move to Colorado from San Francisco. He wanted to go hiking and skiing and perhaps do the PCT next year. He could envision himself being so caught up with work that he would wonder where the years had gone. So he decided a break now was the right thing for him to do. I wished him well and trundled off to the tent. I got about halfway through this blog post and promptly fell asleep exhausted. I don’t know how Corky did this each night.

CORKY – OFF THE PCT

Hard to believe that four months have passed since we left Campo.