Day 7 - Short Blog Day!

Start Time: 7:00 am
End Time: 6:30 pm
Start Mileage: 2538.3
End Mileage: 2552.20
Distance Walked: 13.9 miles
Elevation Gain: 2,766 feet
Descent: 1,870 feet

We were up and away by 7 am and had picked a campground 2 ½ miles down the trail where we planned to stop for breakfast. The first two miles were brutal as we negotiated blowdown after blowdown. You have no idea how tiring it is to take your backpack off, hand it to someone, crawl under the fallen tree to reach the other side, and then lift your pack again. It’s a real workout.

Finally, we were clear of the blowdowns and enjoyed a beautiful downhill trail to camp. I’m not sure coffee has ever tasted so good!!

After breakfast, we crossed a bridge and began another climb—not as bad as some we’ve done before, but when you’re carrying a 25–30 lb pack, it’s still heavy and still has to be lugged uphill!

One of the joys of being in the forest is hearing the amazing bird calls. It’s a shame we couldn’t identify which birds were calling out. There was one bird we nicknamed The Ref, as its call sounded just like the toot of a referee’s whistle. I just wish we could have spotted it.

The day turned out to be a mirror image of the previous one—you either had a beautiful trail to walk on, or you were bushwhacking through dense brush or trying to navigate over, under, or around blowdowns.

In the afternoon, during a climb, we stopped for a water break and sat by the trail. Huckleberry and I sat together, while Woody was across from us. Suddenly, sauntering down the trail came a deer. The deer paid no attention to us, skirting 10–15 feet behind Woody before rejoining the trail. Another 30 feet ahead was a huge blowdown that had given us trouble earlier. For the deer, it was no problem—it was up, over, and gone in no time.

After watching the deer, it was time to continue our climb to the campsite we had selected, which unfortunately meant more climbing to start the next morning.

Tonight, I tried the Chicken Risotto and used much less water than the package called for—the result was perfect. Of course, Huckleberry and Woody had to give it a try, and they were suitably impressed.

I’d apologize for the shortness of today’s blog, but it was very reminiscent of the previous day. If I tried to extend it, you’d think, “This sounds familiar,” so rather than bore you, I thought it best to end it here. On reflection, you probably already think it sounds like déjà vu! But ending it early gives me the chance to get some much-needed rest!!