September 11, 2022 Mile 2519.7 to mile 2538.5 18.8 miles Jumbo is still quiet this morning, which means he’s still hurting just as much as he was last night. I understand the feeling. Even though we’ve been getting really decent nights of sleep recently, our bodies are just simply done. We slowly start moving. It’s …
Continue reading PCT Day 146: Blowdown City and the Marmot King
September 10, 2022 Reflection Pond at mile 2501.2 to mile 2519.7 18.5 miles Packing up this morning is not fun. The wind didn’t stop for a single second last night, and it’s still going now. I procrastinate as much as I can, but I eventually have to face reality and get out of my quilt. …
Continue reading PCT Day 145: I Would Like to Speak to the Manager of the PCT
September 9, 2022 Campsite at mile 2481.2 to Reflection Pond at mile 2501.2 20 miles It’s smoky when we wake up, even smokier than it was last night. We can barely make out the outlines of trees in the distance, and if there are other mountain ranges out there, we can’t see them. It’s just …
September 8, 2022 Leavenworth to Stevens Pass to campsite at mile 2481.2 16 miles I do not want to leave this amazing bed. No, no, no. I’m more tired than I’ve ever been. I hobble when I start moving. I am one with this mattress, these pillows. Movement? No thanks. But then it’s 6:50, and …
September 7, 2022 Mig Lake at mile 2457.7 to Leavenworth via Stevens Pass 7.5 miles Last night I fell asleep right at 9:00, and this morning I wake up at 5:00 on the dot. I lie there for a while, thinking about things, watching the stars blink out and the daylight switch on. It hits …
September 6, 2022 Campsite at mile 2438.8 to Mig Lake at mile 2457.7 19 miles I wake up grudgingly. I’m not looking forward to today after how painful yesterday was. I hear Jumbo moving around but ignore it for as long as I can until the peer pressure incites me to start moving. Ugh. I’m …
September 5, 2022 Campsite at mile 2418.7 to campsite at mile 2438.8 20.1 miles “Are you getting up?” “I mean, yeah. I have to pee.” Jumbo makes his eyebrows do that thing that’s simultaneously sad and entreating and endearing. I sigh. “Yes, I’ll get your food bag.” “YAYE!” I’m pretty sure he’s learned this pronunciation, …
Continue reading PCT Day 140: Everything Hurts And I’m Dying
September 4, 2022 Campsite at mile 2397.8 to campsite at mile 2418.7 21 miles This morning is beautiful, but I’m not thrilled about finishing this climb. Jumbo and I pack up lethargically and then start moving slowly up the slope like two old, broken-down machines. We warm up around the time we see Tribute chilling …
September 3, 2022 Mirror Lake at mile 2385.6 to campsite at mile 2397.8, with a stop in Snoqualmie Pass 12.2 miles Wait, I just realized that the title of this post sounds like a band name. A little clunky? Maybe. Maybe they play butt rock with plastic hardware store buckets. Maybe it’s experimental jazz, the …
Continue reading PCT Day 138: Snoqualmie and the Bad News Bears
September 2, 2022 Campsite at mile 2362.3 to Mirror Lake at mile 2385.6 23.3 miles I don’t know what hits me this morning, but I wake up with an uncharacteristically large amount of energy. Jumbo isn’t even rustling around with his oatmeal packets yet, and Tribute is still in Slug Mode. But I have a …
Sarahmarie Specht-Bird 