The past several weeks have been quite amazing, unfortunately I was unable to update this blog due to lack of computer use / cell phone coverage, but to be honest I couldn't be happier to be off the grid.
Hiking through Northern California has been such a dynamic experience. Sierra City, Belden, Old and Old Station, Shasta, Etna, and Seiad Valley (in the 'State of Jefferson') were small little 'towns' for hikers to visit. As we hiked from town to town, we approached the first volcano of the Cascade Mountains (to be debated) called Mt. Lassen. Seeing a solo volcano definitely boosted my moralle and reminded me that we were actually making some northward progress... and then, we saw Mt. Shasta from Old Station! Still hundreds of miles away, Mt. Shasta was peaking out through the distant clouds and was calling our name. We started hiking faster and longer days (26-32mi) just to get closer to the mountain. Besides for the long and flat 30mi waterless stretch of Hat Creek Rim, we were ridge hiking the mountains of the Shasta-Triniy Winderness. Dodging poison oak, we finally made it to Shasta for our resupply.
After Shasta, we headed towards the hiker-friendliest town yet of Etna. This small town was full of smiles and we were greeted very warmly (somebody even bought me a Lime Rickedy). After a quick tour of the town, we spent the afternoon at the local watering hole, the Etna Brewery where I enjoyed many glasses of their delicious IPA. Eventually we got a hitch back to the trail by 4 young forest service guys (their pickup bed wasn't the most comfortable ride but it got us there). We ran into the Caballeros who were trying to hitch into town. A few minutes later more hikers were being dropped back off to the trail and we ended up having a little pow-wow before continuing the hike. Let's just say we only made it 2 miles in before calling it a day (originally planning to hike an additional 10-12 miles).
The hike from Shasta to Seiad Valley was in my opinion the prettiest part of Northern California. I was not expecting this much beauty and plan to come back another time to explore this area. We first hiked through the gorgeous Trinity Alps where we met some spiritual dwellers who gave us pieces of locally caught smoked salmon from the Salmon River (fishing rights only allowed to indegenous people). In the morning times, the Trinity peaks seemed very far away almost at the horrizon, but by evening we were camped right in the middle of them. Then we traveled through the beautiful Russian Wilderness which has a challenging ridge climb with views of its amazing granite canyon. Finally we hiked through the Marble Mountain Wilderness before dropping into HOT Seiad Valley located just miles form Oregon. After a quick stop in Seiad, we walked down the road and camped in a dirt lot next to the Klamath River to prepare for the big climb out of the river basin the next day. The climb ended up being very beautify and winded through the Red Butte Wilderness until we hit the OREGON BORDER!
OREGON!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm home, for the next 450 odd miles! It feels very good to be in a differnt state and further north. We are now passed the halfway point and have less than 1000 miles before Canada. Ashland has been such a relief. We drank some good Caldera brew last night, checked out Lithia Park, and have time to relax. I met up with a ol buddy Reed who lives here and he was so generous as to give us a ride around town yesterday.
To Be Continued...
Other things to mention:
-I'm still hiking with Ant Eater and now with Pilfer since Old Station (leap frogging other great people as well)
-Super excited to be back in Oregon!
-Food in town taste delicious
-I've heard of wild fires South of us that have cut the trail off (good thing we've made it to Oregon, but I hope we're fire free until Canada)
-Still have not experienced rain... and warm weather forecasted = no bueno
-I cut my hair today haha, still keeping the beard though to the border
Video:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/74583578/VID_20120722_082039.3gp -Trying to hitch into Shasta
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/74583578/VID_20120714_112634.3gp - Reaching the halfway point (mile 1,326ish)
Pic of the Oregon/California Border
The Group leaving Seiad Valley (me, ant eater, data, and pilfer)
2 comments:
Glad you are well...be safe...we are cheering you on....
Hey Justin, welcome to Oregon! Been trying to get in touch with you because SDR02 is down. Please call maintenance as soon as you get this message. Thanks - Jarke
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