Mile 1764.7 to Mile 1796.82 - 32.1 miles
It all started so promisigly well. For the first few hours the trail carved ingeniously between old lava fields
Mt McLoughlin then loomed menacingly in the early morning light
Then it all started going badly wrong - after we'd crossed Highway 140. We'd been warned about the presence of blowdowns - trees toppled on to the trail from strong winds
The further we went - the worse it got. You risked life & limb clamouring over, under, around & through the jumble of branches & foliage. After the lunch stop the PCT disappeared under the morass of trees - particularly either side of Sky Lakes Trail Junction. I later learned that the US Forest Service have estimated that there are over 800 trees down on this section. Added to the woe was the flying biting bugs that attacked at every chance that you had to slow down.
By 7.30 pm I thought I'd reached my goal only to find no campsite or water supply. So after another 3.3 miles of slog & rocks in the fading light I reached a site at 9.30 pm. But this wasn't before I'd managed to dig a canal in my scalp from a low tree branch which I then repeated to create the dock. I was a bloody mess - literally. I finally crashed at 10.30 pm - pretty beat.
A plus was Bad Mash & Goldfish catching me up. I hadn't seen Bad Mash for 1200 miles
The other good news was that the fire threatened Rim Trail at Crater Lake could open in the next 1/2 days.....Weta
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