Day 95: Bear + Deer = Beer

August 3, 2015 (18th Re-Ration – Seiad Valley) Tentsite before Buckhorn Spring (1638.8) to Seiad Valley RV Park (1662.1) 23.3 PCT miles today 1702.4 miles total Today’s Elevation Gain/Loss: + 2,318 ft, – 7,678 ft Some days are just more physically exhausting than others. Today was almost completely downhill and on flat road, which you’d…

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Day 94: Setting the Mood

August 2, 2015 Cub Bear Spring (1614.0) to Tentsite before Buckhorn Spring (1638.8) 24.8 PCT miles today 1679.1 miles total Today’s Elevation Gain/Loss: + 5,474 ft, – 5,040 ft Today was one of those days that brings out your inner artist. The air around us was filled with smoke and the sun was hidden behind…

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Day 93: An Underrated Tinderbox

August 1, 2015 South Fork of Scott River (1585.5) to Cub Bear Spring (1614.0) 28.5 PCT miles today 1654.3 miles total Today’s Elevation Gain/Loss: + 6,031 ft, – 5,533 ft When you hear people talk about the PCT, it is rarely about Northern California. The desert gets tons of attention because it is a proving…

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Day 92: Dirty Thirty

July 31, 2015 Sisson-Callahan Trail Junction (1555.5) to South Fork of Scott River (1585.5) 30.0 PCT miles today 1625.8 miles total Today’s Elevation Gain/Loss: + 4,423 ft, – 5,282 ft We did it! We finally hiked a full 30 miles in one day…12 hours to be exact. We didn’t know today was the day until…

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Day 91: Community Contributions

July 30, 2015 Tentsite before Shasta-Trinity Gumboot Trailhead (1529.9) to Sisson-Callahan Trail Junction (1555.5) 26.5 PCT miles today 1595.8 miles total Today’s Elevation Gain/Loss: + 2,777 ft, – 2,740 ft This was a lovely day. Pickles and I felt great, a light breeze fended off the worst of the heat, the trail was flat and…

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Day 90: The Appetizer Course

July 29, 2015 Castle Crags State Park (1509.1) to Tentsite before Shasta-Trinity Gumboot Trailhead (1529.9) 20.8 PCT miles today, 2.5 non-PCT miles 1569.3 miles total Today’s Elevation Gain/Loss: + 6,654 ft, – 2,438 ft It is becoming more apparent every day that we have a lot of exploring to do in this short life of…

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Day 89: Deliberate Rest

July 28, 2015 Castle Crags State Park (1509.1) 0 PCT miles today 1546.0 miles total Today’s Elevation Gain/Loss: + 0 ft, – 0 ft I have spent the entire day laying in my tent, elevating my foot and simultaneously trying to relax and rest and somehow still be productive. The struggle has been real. Apparently,…

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Day 88: Pickles – The Man, The Myth, The Legend

July 27, 2015 (17th Re-Ration – Castle Crags) West Trough Creek (1487.1) to Castle Crags State Park (1509.1) 22.0 PCT miles today, 2.5 non-PCT miles 1546 miles total Today’s Elevation Gain/Loss: + 6,456 ft, – 6,719 ft Today was one of my favorite days of the year…the day I get to celebrate the birth of…

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Day 87: Paradise, Poison Oak, and Pus

July 26, 2015 Gold Creek (1463.2) to West Trough Creek (1487.1) 23.9 PCT miles today 1521.5 miles total Today’s Elevation Gain/Loss: + 5,133 ft, – 7,457 ft It appears we have hiked ourselves into the rainforest. I am currently laying in the tent (feet elevated of course) while Pickles makes us some after-dinner chamomile tea…

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