Stehekin to Stevens Pass

So we have arrived at the next town in Stevens pass. We are staying at a hostel and as I write this I am sitting in the shade trying to get a bit of peace and quiet as it’s pretty hectic here, a bit like a fish market with lots of people catching up and talking all things hiking related.

Anyways. Lots to catch up on over the last week, but before I do I’ll quickly conclude on our last afternoon in stehekin.
Whilst Sarah caught up with some admin I went off to the ranger station to find out more about an interesting alternate route along the PCT.
As I entered the ranger station I noticed a hummingbird in the porch, seemingly trapped by the mesh that was fitted to the windows. It was desperately trying to escape so I  mentioned it to the ranger.  We hatched a plan and with the ranger brandishimg a broom and with me precariously standing on window ledge we carefully tried to usher the poor little fella out back to freedom. Every time the ranger moved the broom the hummbird would dart left and right and avoid capture, seemingly unaware that we were trying to help.
My baseball cap also didn’t seem to work so in the end I carefully managed to gentally grab the little bird with my fingers and carefully released it back into the clear blue sky above us. I said that I wanted to shake the rangers hand and her reply was “Sure, I’ll shake the hand of the man that saved the hummingbird”
Everyone gets a trail name for one reason or another and over the next week mine started to take shape as I will later explain.

Later that afternoon we returned to the trail with the idea of getting some more miles in before dark. When we got off the bus we were greeted by Ranger Stan. He showed us a little camp ground close to the trailhead and in the end we stayed there with a group of German hikers (Britta, Sebrina and Sebastian)

Day 12 High Bridge Campground – Tensite
Miles – 14 8 miles

Next morning we started early to avoid the heat. After picking up Angus Creek trailhead, 5 minutes into our morning we were greeted by a black bear grazing on some lush vegetation. It must have been less than 20 feet from me. I instantly backed up as he didn’t move a muscle. Sarah started banging her hiking sticks together and after clocking this the bear moved off into the brush.
At this lower elevation there seems to be more berry’s forming and I guess that one of the reasons why we have seen so much bear presence.

Today was hard. We had a lot of elevation to deal with, coupled by lots of fallen trees to negotiate. It is a full body work out carrying a full pack clambering over these blow downs. Especially in the later part of the day when we hiked through a burn zone. These areas are particularly challenging as there is no cover and you have no escape from the blazing sun.

Mid morning we stopped for a break by a creek. Due to the noise of the water masking our presence a Pine Martin came running down the trail towards us completely unaware.

Later that morning we met Davey Jones Aka “Jonesy” walking back towards us. He seemed in a fair bit of pain and had opted to turn around before getting too far into the wilds. He was suffering from what he thought was plantar fasciitis. He planned to return to Stehekin and contact a trail physio. Let’s hope he recovers and we get to meet up again as he was a decent chap.

We met up with Sophie – a girl from Wisconsen towards the end of the afternoon and hiked the later part of the day together. We did our first big river crossing together and managed to all chamber over a series of fallen trees to avoid getting our feet wet.

It started to thunder above us so at around 7ish we all called it a day and cruised into a tentsite, surprised to find no one else there. As we set up our tents and I struggled to find a suitable tree to hang our bear bag, a deer entered our campsite. Earlier Sophie had shown us her trekking pole handles had been nibbled by a hungry deer further back along the trail. Apparently they are after the salts that build up in the handles + have been reported to also nibble on people’s socks if they are left outside of tents.

Later that night Lucy and Fred cruised into the tensite. Fred had also done the appalachian trial so we had lots to talk about.

Day 13 – Tensite by milky river
16.5 miles

Sarah and I were 1st out of camp.
The tensite had a longdrop toilet which was literally a wooden toilet with zero privacy and a lively 360 view of the surrounding woods.

The surrounding brush was covered in dew and we had to put our waterproofs on to avoid a morning soaking.

Sarah managed to drop one of her trekking poles into the small creek not long into the day. Luckily we managed to fish it out before it was swept away.

After a punchy climb we moved above tree line. The scenery was stunning and we were rewarded by glimpses of glacier peak.

As we crossed a small creek we noticed a pawprint in the mud. I have taken a pic with the hope that we can ID it later. My money is on a mountain lion.
We also cane across a pile of bear scat that was so big Sarah thought it looked more like a horse. It was fresh, but luckily we didn’t meet the culprit.

Towards the end of the day we descended through some long slow switch backs. We could hear the thundering river below, but it seemed to take forever to reach the bottom.

That night we all camped at a tensite next to this river. Its colour was milky as it was full of silt and sediment. Despite this it was nice to wash off and clean up before bed.

Day 14 – Tensite after brush descent
16.1 miles
The day started with 3k of elevation and it seemed that this was what we had in store for the next few days.
We walked through ancient woodland surrounded by huge trees with trunks  almost the width of a small car. It was a little creepy with moss and ferns lining the forest floor.
Our 1st break of the day was at Vista Creek. Sarah had found a creek that formed into a small waterfall that made for an excellent shower. She started a trend and we all followed suit. The icey cold water giving us a new lease of life.

As we climbed in elevation we started to see more snow. Although TBH there was still no need for spikes or an ice axe.
This year has been an unusual year in Washington regarding snowmelt + normally it takes much longer to melt with hikers experiencing difficulties well into July.
We were told by Ranger Stan a few days back that a group had to turn back due to the snow conditions only 3 weeks before.
If conditions stay like this we will send our winter gear ahead to the Sierras, where we will pass through in October.

The day concluded with a descent through thick brush, which none of us enjoyed. The sun was strong and the “cabbage” as one hiker referred to it as, seems to hold onto the heat. The trail was also washed out and loose underfoot which made the hike down somewhat sketchy.
We all use an app called far out which works offline and  helps show the elevation graph and also things like water sources. It showed a campsite near a bridge at the foot of the descent, which we were all delighted to finally find. Lucy had already pitched her tent and the remaining spots weren’t great. It tool me a while to put up my tent as roots covered the floor.

As we ate our dehydrated meal we watched mice climbing up and down the tree next to us. Both of us were concerned that we would wake up to a chewed pack.

Day 15 – back track from Kenedy Creek
12.2 Miles

Sarah and I started the day hiking through thick brush, painted by the morning dew and so tall in places that it almost engulfed us both. Waterproofs were essential to prevent a morning soaking.
Again the day started with a big 3k uphill ascent. The trail was laced with spider webs + as I hiked they caught across my face like tiny steel ropes. Sarah happy that I was at the front taking the worst of it.
About mid morning we reached an alpine lake called Mirca lake. Its surface was flat and like a mirror reflecting the surrounding snow and waterfalls perfectly. In one corner there was still a patch of ice that remained despite the best efforts of the sun.
As we reached the lake we were circled by territorial biting flies that seemed relentless on getting us.

Sarah and Lucy were brave enough to take a dip in the ice cold water, whereas I just opted to go up to my thighs. It was freezing!
Feeling fresh we hiked on over Fire Creek Pass. By this time the sun was at full strength and it was hard work. We all put snow under our hats to help regulate our body temperature. It’s amazing how this helps maintain momentum, although it does give you  brain feeeze – a similar sensation to eating to much ice cream.

On reaching the top of the pass we were greeted by 360 degree panoramic views and Fred and Sophie started singing a verse from the sound of music. Made for an entertaining video.

As the day progressed we started encountering bigger patches of snow at these higher elevations. Thunder rumbling overhead as we went.

Again the trail was washed out which made for some challenging hiking. I set the pace at the front with the others in hot pursuit. As i hiked I disturbed a nesting bird who had chosen to make its home in a shoulder height spruce right on trail. As it left its tiny nest it uncovered 4 emerald green eggs. I joked we could make scrambled eggs for tea.

Around 6pm we reached Kennedy creek after a long descent. The river was raging and a soup of silt and sediment. The flow so strong that we could hear rocks as big as bowling balls moving along the river bed.
We were all aware that river crossings like this can be dangerous towards the end of the day after a full day’s worth of snowmelt. In conditions like this you are advised to cross 1st thing in the morning.
Sarah and I, Sophie and a hiker called “Slingshot” opted to back track to what we thought was a tensite. Whereas Fred braved it and went across. Fred is an experienced hiker but as we watched he almost slipped and fell a number of times, so we were all happy with our decision to wait it out.
After climbing 0.4 miles back uphill we reached our tentsite for thr night. Again it wasn’t ideal, but the only alternative was to camp in the river bed either side of the raging river.
That night we were kept awake by a family of owls seemingly annoyed we had invaded their space.

Day 16 – Lake Sally ann
19.1 miles

After an early start to the day we hiked down the the river crossing once again. It was show time.
Luckily the water left had dropped a little since last night and the flowrate was approx 50% compared to last night.
The 4 of us crossed the river. I lead the way and Sarah followed up at the back. The crossing wasn’t easy as the bolders that lined the bottom were slippery and the flow was still strong. Slingshot the smallest of the group had the water level reach her thighs.
Despite having wet shoes, we were all relieved to have made it across.
Next up another 3K climb to the top of the mountain. The weather today was very different with the mountains cloaked with thick mist. It looked like something out of Lord of the Rings + trees dripped water on us throughout the day.

That day we encountered more snow than we had seen so far. Some of the traverses were long, but it was still patchy at these higher elevations.
One crossing was a little sketchy were the gradient of the slope was around 40 degrees.
We also had to get across a creek bed full of receding snow.

During the day I disturbed a number of nesting birds again along the trail. Their nests tucked into the banks of the trail. Based on all these bird related shenanigans the trail name “Bird whisperer” has been bounced around, although I am still not sure whether I want to take that for my trail name.

I joked when times become tough perhaps I can beckon a flock of hummingbirds to lift us up with there tiny feet and transport us along the trail.

As we hiked we saw a number of tarmagen either sides of the trail. Over the last weeks we have seen these quite frequently, but not in so many numbers. They generally like to sit camouflaged in trees and make a noise similar to a bull frog as they call across the mountains.

We are also seeing more Marmots at these higher elevations. They are a burrowing creature around the size of a cat + make a whistling noise as we hike to alert there neighbours.

We also came across some scat that had fur and small bones in it,  too big to be a fox. My money is on a mountain lion and we passed some locals that confirmed Lions had been spotted here.

As my feet had been wet for most of the day I was starting to develop blisters on my heels. This is not good + required some maintainance throughout the day.

Thunder rumbled overhead during the day, but luckily didn’t come to anything.
Food supplies were also looking worrying and Sarah has been referring to me as the food police. As our hunger develops we will need to carry more food, although this lack of food has spured us all on today to try and cover more miles.

We finished the day next to an alpine lake called lake Sally Ann. The tentsites spread out around the lake. We were all cold and wet so we opted for an early night. Sarah and I cooked in the comfort of our tensite, with sleeping bags wrapped around our feet to try and keep them warm.

Day 17 – Lake Jamus outlet
19.8 miles

The day started misty again and the tent was packed away soaking wet due to the amount of water droplets in the air. Its almost like we have been walking through the clouds for the last few days.

Around mid morning the sun started to break through and by mid afternoon we were back to blue skys. With the mountains cloaked in mist the views had almost been turned off by a switch, but we were both pleased they were back with a bang.

The terrain today was more like a rollacoaster, with 3 medium elevations ups followed in close succession by big decents although the elevation difference was nothing like what we had seen at the start of the week.

We walked through fields of huge bolders as we descended, rewarded by stunning views at every corner.
As we hiked a number of hummingbirds darted past us.

We had been warned that as we approach Stevens pass the mosquitos would get worse. That night we camped at Lake Janus and it was pretty bad. We ate our last ramen and pulled pork dinner in the comfort of our tent, whilst the bugs buzzed around outside.
We had one more punchy climb to address in the morning and with blisters starting to bark at me + food supplies almost out we were both had to see the finish line of this section.

Day 18 – Stephens pass – Skykomish outfitters hostel

8.8 Miles

Another early start with mist rolling over the lake and the finish line was close. Last night we had met 3 brothers camped at the lake who were doing a 200 mile section hike. They had reported that the last climb would be tough, but with a good meal behind us last night we all flew up the mountain. Sarah was like a rocket and I joked it must be because some proper food was in sight. In fact we were both in good spirits and excited to see the next trail town.

On arriving to Stevens pass we followed a short side trail to the hostel. It was more than we’d oped for. An old ski lodge equipped with a ping pong table, along with numerous resupply options. We were greeted by the host with the trail name “bubbles” who showed us round and gave us the low down. Sarah and I lucked in and got a room to ourselves.
That afternoon Bubbles ran us up to the Ski Lodge were we picked up our food resupply boxes. Sophie had messed up and not used UPS to get her box sent here and this resulted in a bit of a wild goose chase. We hitched into the next town Skyomish and were given a ride by a lovely elderly couple called Russ and Marilyn. Hitching with 4 people can prove tricky and the 4 of us were all bunched up on the back seat. Russ claimed it was the highlight of there day as we told them our tales.
Skykomish was a small mountain town with old looking wooden houses. The post office didn’t have Sophies package, but we were happy to grab a burger and milkshake. 2 burgers and 2 shakes came to around an eye watering £30!  Although after eating trail food for the last week I was happy to pay anything.

That night the host at the hostel cooked us all a meal and after dinner we played table tennis and cards.  We also met up with a French guy – Valentine who we met earlier on the trail and also found out that Emilia had caught us up and was in nearby Levansworth. The band is getting back together and Sarah and I are both happy to spend a well deserved zero here before we carry on.