cathieandrandy

Billy Goat got up early to see us off. He is waiting for his son, who is coming to hike the last week with him. We all get hugs as we board the bus for a ride back to the trailhead. Passengers include the Portland Trio, Samwise, Ghost, Glacier, Nutz and me.

Glacier is joining our group. We stop at the bakery to load up on sustenance. . . Yum! Here are things we rarely eat in the “real” world - giant sticky buns to die for.

We are on the trail by 9 am and leapfrog with the Trio throughout the morning, then say our final good byes when they forge ahead to make 25 miles, while our plan is only for 20. They plan to finish on Thursday, meeting family and friends at the border monument for a surprise special event.

We’ve known about it for a couple of months. Joe will be proposing to his girlfriend at the finish of his PCT trek. His sister is bringing her out with the family to meet him, with the engagement ring (which she will slip to him). We’ve advised him to remove his backpack, and get down on one knee. She deserves that much respect after putting up with his five and a half month long hiking adventure.

It is an Indian summer day. I strip down to my short sleeve shirt. The sun is warm, and there isn’t a cloud in the sky. Glorious! We meet up with a Northern Cascades National Park ranger who asks when we plan to finish. We tell her this coming Friday morning. She says our timing is great. A snow storm is expected Saturday evening. Snow?

We are reminded of the time of year, as soon as the sun sets. The temperature plummets and we bring out the warm stuff.

We are camped at a picnic area near Highway 20 at Rainy Pass. Bears may be a problem, so we store our food in the brand-new, clean bathrooms. We worry about bears when we camp in areas where they may have become accustomed to people (and people food). The birds sure have. I have a picture of two birds perched on Glacier.