Mile 2414.3 -> Mile 2450.3

Well, it did rain for a couple minutes last night. Once it started I got up and started to get my tarp out. The rain slowed, and in my tired stupor I decided being a little wet was better than taking the time to put up rain protection. I wrapped my tarp over me like a blanket and went back to sleep.

Just like yesterday, today beat me up and shoved gorgeous views in my face. It was a lot of rocky climbing and descent on uneven, tree root-infested trail. It was such a bittersweet day because my legs felt so sore and my body was wracked, but this was some of the prettiest hiking I have ever done. Ever.

I had a big goal of getting to Glacier Lake, which was about 36 miles away. Normally this would take me 12 hours but in this environment with this terrain, I’d be lucky to do it in 13. I started from the river at 6:45 AM and didn’t reach the campsite until 8:05 PM. I took only one break to dip my legs in the river and wash my shirt. The rest of the day was marveling at the sights, cursing the climbs, and slowly descending with tender feet.

I setup my tarp tonight because even though I didn’t think it was gonna rain, I had a large tentsite to myself and a few minutes left of daylight. I strongly prefer to cowboy camp, and putting away a tarp in the morning makes packing up that much slower, but I know my no-rain good luck can’t last forever.

Tomorrow I do 15 miles into Stevens Pass to pick up my resupply box and then keep going. I’m closing in on the border (less than 200 miles to go!), and because of the limited internet, by the time you read this I’ll probably be in Canada.

Main Photo: After seeing this unnamed peak for hours, the trail finally wrapped its way around before descending past it. August 30.