Pacific Crest Trail Hike: CA Section N – Mile 1288 – 1420
Pacific Crest Trail Hike: CA Section N – Mile 1288 – 1420
Hello from home! What! I know – I have not updated in awhile because I was doing larger mileage days and getting back to Michigan. Did I complete the trail or did I have to get off for other reasons? Who knows!
This CA section N was honestly was of the most uncomfortably hot and dirty hiking sections, but looking back – one of my favorites. It was full of celebrations (reaching halfway!), two fun town stops, lots of new hikers, and enjoying friends. I also hit the 100 day mark on the trail, which is absolutely wild to think about. Though I have been in hotels and towns throughout the trail… 100 days?!
PCT CA Section N Summary
Statistics:
Days: 8
Full hiking days: 4
Zeroes: 1
Neros: 3
Total Trail Miles Hiked: 127.7
Total Miles Hiked: 132.6
Trail Elevation Gain: 12,260 ft
Trail Elevation Loss: 21,074 ft
Highlights:
Reaching the halfway point of the trail was a huge milestone.
Getting up the infamous Belden climb and through the Hat Creek Rim area generally unscathed was a win.
Burney Mountain Guest Ranch was an absolute gem and one of my favorite zero days on trail in no small part to the wonderful friends around me.
Lowlights:
Hiking through the extensive burn scar was mentally grating, depressing, and generally unpleasant.
My poor planning in relation to mileage on my shoes made the last bit of hiking in this section uncomfortable – on top of the heat!
PCT CA Section N Detailed Version
Day 95 Part 2: Mile 1280.0 – 1303.5
Trail Daily Miles: 23.5
Total Daily Miles: 23.8
Total Trail Mileage:
Elevation Gain: 5937 ft
Elevation Loss: 5373 ft
Weather: Hot, Sun
Overall Day Sentiment: Over that climb.
After our stop in Belden, myself, Prick, and Bags began the hot and long climb out. This is an infamous section and is dreaded (and many former hikers fear monger). I accidentally stayed a little too long in town eating fresh fruit and ice cream that Chasky collected from festival goers trying offload items before they headed out of town.
The climb in the afternoon sun was just as bad as previous hikers mentioned. Luckily there were ample water sources, which I stopped at every single one. I used my sun umbrella for the first time in awhile which was helpful to my painfully pale skin. It also reduces the ambient temperature under the umbrella while allowing me to have my sun hoodie hood down as I didn’t have to worry about my neck in the sun.
After the exposed ridges, the trail enters a more forested area but unfortunately most of it was a precious burn scar. The canopy was gone, but the bushes had filled in taller than I. This made my umbrella more of a hazard than a help as I got caught on these tall bushes – I’m sure it would have been funny to watch me navigate through. This foliage trapped a lot of heat in it making it also humid. What a time!
As I got to the general top of the climb, there was a beautiful meadow with a sign that indicated I officially had entered the Cascade Mountain Range and exited the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range! This felt momentous as I had essentially done the entire length of a whole mountain range.
I hiked slow this day and got into camp late, around 8:15pm. Prick and Bags were waiting for me and we were all just exhausted. Between the heat and the climb, sleep came easily.
Day 96: Mile 1303.5 – 1329.1
Trail Daily Miles: 25.6
Total Daily Miles: 26.5
Total Trail Mileage:
Elevation Gain: 3738 ft
Elevation Loss: 4859 ft
Weather: Hot, Sun
Overall Day Sentiment: I cannot believe I made it halfway!
This was a day where we just had to get miles in. There was nothing of particular note except for reaching the halfway marker. The day was mostly through a burn scar and it had long water hauls. Also all of the water sources were springs significantly off trail, which added time and required extra energy to get.
After passing the hilariously named Butt Mountain (Prick even bought a shirt to commemorate) , the halfway marker appeared! Even though it was in a burned section, it was still cause for celebration. Prick, Bags, and I were there together along with Chasky and it was a surreal moment.
The PCT had been something I had been dreaming about for years before actually getting on the trail. To know that I had gone from never sleeping in a tent alone before this to now having completed 1325 miles of this trek was overwhelming. I’m proud of myself and at the time I was already mourning being halfway completed. Though the miles were halfway done, the back half of this trail goes much quicker time wise because miles come easier.
At the time that I crossed this marker, I felt strong, healthy, and like I was aging in reverse. I may be incredibly dirty/smelly/sweaty at all times, but this has been a transformative experience that is continuing to send ripples into the future.
After spending a significant amount of time with the marker, we continued on the last 5-ish miles for the day to the next water source where we would camp. This would go down as one of the smallest and most uncomfortable sites on trail but it worked!
Day 97: Mile 1329.1 – 1332.4
Trail Daily Miles: 3.3
Total Daily Miles: 3.3
Total Trail Mileage:
Elevation Gain: 264 ft
Elevation Loss: 739 ft
Weather: Sun
Overall Day Sentiment: Celebrating halfway!
Doing such a big mileage day the day before set us up for a short short day into Chester. The 3 miles went quickly though we did have to trudge through an unexpected bog/swamp/slow moving river before reaching the road. Once Prick, Bags, and I reached the road it took longer than we thought for a hitch but we eventually got into town. A quick breakfast was first on the agenda then on to other chores. This is also the point I felt comfortable sending home my microspikes which were nearly 1 pound! A trip to the laundromat and grocery store were the next stops before getting into my hotel for the night.
A pizza dinner and ice cream in bed after 3 showers to wash off the burn scar soot capped off a great day!
Day 98: Mile 1332.4 – 1347.4
Trail Daily Miles: 15
Total Daily Miles: 15
Total Trail Mileage:
Elevation Gain: 2641 ft
Elevation Loss: 1854 ft
Weather: Sun, Hot
Overall Day Sentiment: Thankful for large family dinners with new folks.
It was a slow day leaving Chester as there was a finite amount of miles we were able to do because of Lassen National Park. In Lassen, you are required to have a bear can (which I did not have) so typically hikers hike through the park in one day ~ 20 miles. It was 15 miles to the park boundary that also had a water source, so this was the natural spot for all of us to camp.
After a delicious breakfast at Cravings (one of the best meals on trail??) and a pre trail beer/cocktail we were all off! It was an easy 15 miles to the Boundary Spring. There were several hikers other hikers there and we all had a family dinner. It was a great way to meet new folks that I hadn’t interacted with before – all pictured below.
Day 99: Mile 1347.4 – 1374.8
Trail Daily Miles: 27.4
Total Daily Miles: 30.0
Total Trail Mileage:
Elevation Gain: 3047 ft
Elevation Loss: 4579 ft
Weather: Sun, Hot
Overall Day Sentiment: Proud of my first 30 mile day.
The trail was relatively flat through Lassen Volcanic National Park so Yeti and I tentatively decided to do our first 30 mile day. We would catch up with the others the following day.
Lassen Volcanic National Park is aptly named as there are many geothermic features throughout. This is partially why the “trail miles” and the “total miles” for the day are so mismatched as I did brief side quests to see the features. Another reason is that I left my sunglasses back at camp and I had to trail run back to get them. But at least I discovered this loss before I had gotten too far! A highlight was Terminal Geyser (pictured terribly below because steam doesn’t photograph well) and some other sulphur forward pools.
Unfortunately much of Lassen Volcanic National Park was burnt in recent wildfires. This meant that a better part of the day was spent in a burn scar with little water. The previously lush forest known for wildlife was desolate.
Near the end of the day, there were some tempting rivers that many were swimming in but we had a goal of 30 miles – so we continued. We heard that the gas station in Old Station allowed you to camp behind it for free. After a rough last 3 miles of our 30 miles, we hit the road and were able to catch a ride with a Sprinter van to the gas station. A short dip in the river nearby cleaned up some of the soot on my lower extremities. The gas station provided some treats in the form of alcoholic drinks and ice cream which was a great companion to dinner. As golden hour settled in, I was sitting at the provided picnic table eating my ice cream and looking at my pitched tent and felt a sense of awe looking at where I was.
Never did I think I would camp behind a gas station but alas… growth?
Day 100: Mile 1374.8 – 1398.0
Trail Daily Miles: 23.2
Total Daily Miles: 23.8
Total Trail Mileage:
Elevation Gain: 1963 ft
Elevation Loss: 2634 ft
Weather: Hot, Breezy
Overall Day Sentiment: Where are my new shoes?
A night sleeping at the gas station was more restful than I originally thought and we went to have a quick breakfast at the diner next door.
Near Old Station are the Subway Caves which are (former?) lava chutes that have created an intricate cave system. Yeti and I walked there and explored a bit and weresurprised/excited about how chilly the temperature was in them. We ran into several other hikers exploring the caves as well and met back up with Prick and Bags – who were attempting their first 30 mile day. As the remainder of the day was along Hat Creek Rim, a notoriously hot/dry section, I did not want to leave. I was gifted a hot day rather than an extremely hot day along the rim that was accompanied by a consistent breeze.
My shoes were much past their lifetime so I felt every single rock throughout the day, but luckily a new pair of shoes was waiting for me at my next stop. The day ended hot as well and I am unsure if I have ever been dirtier? I think I say that every time I am heading into a town the next day, but alas, I was filthy and looking forward to a shower. The day also ended with Bags and I stumbling upon a rattlesnake (noooooo) – the first one since the desert.
Day 101: Mile 1398.0 – 1407.7
Trail Daily Miles: 9.7
Total Daily Miles: 10.1
Total Trail Mileage:
Elevation Gain: 670 ft
Elevation Loss: 1036 ft
Weather: Hot
Overall Day Sentiment: Over 100 days, 1400 miles, and couldn’t be happier.
It was a short nero into our next stop, the stop we had been talking about for 200 miles, the stop that had a pool we had been dreaming of – Burney Mountain Guest Ranch. The four of us rented their cabin rather than the dorms and it was a treat. We arrived late morning and were able to shower immediately upon arrival. We had to head into the town of Burney to do a fully resupply, although the Guest Ranch does have some resupply items. After a somewhat chaotic town stop, we split up to get hitches back to the ranch. As it was an extremely hot day, we were hoping for rides allll the way back – but Prick and I got to walk an extra 1.5 miles to the ranch with our groceries. It really had me contemplating if I needed the two bottles of wine I purchased.
The remainder of the day was spent lounging by the pool, enjoying dinner with other hikers, and playing pool in the lodge. The four of us then played cards in the evening, which felt like the most ‘normal life’ thing I had done in some time. It was a moment that I think of often and fondly because I am grateful of the friendships I’ve made thus far.
Day 102: Mile 1407.7
Trail Daily Miles: 0
Total Daily Miles: 0
Total Trail Mileage:
Elevation Gain: 0
Elevation Loss: 0
Weather: Sun, Hot
Overall Day Sentiment: A true joy.
It had been a long while since a proper, planned zero day so I relished every moment. After a good breakfast at the lodge, I sat on the cabin porch for a few hours with coffee while watching animals come and go. There were countless bird species, a family active desert hares, and even beautiful mule deer. Slowing down and enjoying the tiny simple joys in life is a gift.
Prick and Bags left midday as they had not planned for a full zero, but Yeti and I remained at the cabin because it was too good to leave! The day continued to be relaxing with time spent at the pool, chatting with family/friends, a nap, and a quiet evening.
xoxo Leeann/Kanga
