Snoqualmie Pass, mile 2,402!!

Greetings from a cold & rainy Snoqualmie Pass.  We got in early Saturday morning & have much enjoyed our stay here.  We plan on heading back out today.  Snoqualmie Pass consists of an interstate, a ski resort, a Chevron gas station, a motel, a few restaurants, a food cart serving by far the best food around, a small grocer & a mostel which means "mostly a hostel."  It's also someone's home.  But they let us take over the place & do all things we need done such as laundry, shower, cook food/eat, use the telephone, use their computer, yadda yadda yadda.  It's lovely.  And cheap.  And has helped us heal up after some challenging, rainy, cold trail hiking.  And Kara, the host, has been so generous & kind & helpful.  And we got to watch Robin Hood:  Men in Tights last night.  Can't ask for anything better than this.

Unicroc is new boot goofin'!  If you don't watch Reno 911, then that's code for:  he bought new boots!!!  He finally said goodbye to his holy, no tread, no support, floppy boots he's worn all the way from the Mexican border.  It was an emotional goodbye, so he kept one of his shoelaces & will make something from it eventually.

We have been passing through some beautiful country.  We hiked up right next to Mt. Adams, pretty close to Mt. Rainier & had views of Mt. St. Helens in the distance. Goat Rocks were phenomenal.  We even saw some white mountain goats!  We've been seeing signs of elk & hearing their bugles every so often but have seen none out in the wild.  But at our last stop staying at Historic Hotel Packwood, there were about 20 elk hanging out, grazing in the back yard.  Absolutely we will have to come back & spend some serious time exploring this area.

We only have 268 miles to go & only 2 more stops along the way.  Next stop is Stevens Pass, in 75 miles.  Next stop after that is Stehekin, 103 miles after that.  And then there's only 90 miles to go until we've arrived in Manning Provincial Park in Canada, which is 8 miles beyond the northern terminus of the trail.  It seems so close....yet it is still so far away.  One day at a time.  One step at a time.

Much love,
Scat Tracker & Unicroc

Farewell Oregon - you've been sooooo lovely. Mile 2,155

I have yet to post a map of the PCT so I figured I'd pop one in here.  It'll give you an idea of how far we've come & how far we've yet to go.

We've reached Cascade Locks - the final stop in Oregon!!!  We walked into town (the trail goes right through) Friday morning, after a rainy & stormy night spent in rainforest-like Eagle Creek which was AMAZING.  Waterfalls galore.  Luna, Werewolf & their dog, Balu are from Portland & invited us to join them on a trip to see the city for a few days before heading into Washington.  We had told them many miles ago that we'd thought about living in Portland & they were convinced we'd love it, & when they asked we said ummmm....yes!  We have a lot in common with them & they hooked us up with a place to crash, inside info. on where to go in town  as well as bus passes to tour the city.  After having spent 24+ hours here, we kinda love it.  Oregon in general.

Since the last blog, we've walked through the land of Mt. Washington (also known as "Squaw Tit"), Three Fingered Jack, Mt. Jefferson, through Jefferson Park (apparently recently named the 3rd most-scenic place in the U.S. by Backpacker Magazine), Mt. Hood & finally, Eagle Creek.  All that's left for us in Oregon is to cross the Bridge of the Gods into Washington.  And we'll do that later today (hopefully).

We've ran into 2 familiar faces as well, from the A.T.  Gouda (now goes by his real name, Aaron) has been thru-hiking the PCT this year as well, but started a few weeks after us & caught up to us a few days ago.  We had no idea he was on the trail & he had no idea we were on the trail until about a week ago.  A fun on-trail reunion, we spent the next few miles hiking together & camped together before he headed on his way, hiking more miles than we per day.  And we just spent yesterday afternoon in the company of Beans, one of our very good friends we met early on on the A.T.  He lives in Portland & we finally were able to connect with him & as Unicroc told him as we said our goodbyes last night - he feels like family.  He took us for a stroll in the beautiful Japanese Garden, to check out the Wildwood Trail in Forest Park, and to experience one of the coolest natural happenings we've ever witnessed with our own eyes - watching thousands of swifts (small birds) as they pass through on their migration, pack themselves into the chimney of a local elementary school, then out to dinner & a tour of his life here in Portland.  A lovely time spent with one of our favorite people.

Just over 500 miles left, only a few more stops along the way.  We've kind of let go of having a specific deadline.  We were going to buy a train ticket today but we decided to keep our options open for now.  Maybe we'll be able to find a ride.  Who knows?  That's part of why we're out here...is to experience things as they happen & be open to possibilities.  So far, that's worked out well for us.

Here is where our last & final mail drop location is, (at mile 2,302) ETA 9/14:

Keith & DeAnna Romstad
c/o White Pass Rural Branch PO
at the Kracker Barrel Store
48851 US Highway 12
Naches, WA 98937

We have no idea how much we'll be able to update this throughout Washington, so don't expect much.  We're not expecting to spend too much time in towns, if you can even call them "towns."  We're excited to experience what Washington has to offer.  Our first time ever setting foot in the state.

Goodbye for now.  Much love to you all.