Fin

What a daunting task we face trying to summarize the end of a magnificent journey. Our path has brought us over 112 days (95 of which we spent hiking, averaging 16.6 miles a day). We hiked through numerous life zones, broiling heat, thunderstorms, fires and many picture perfect days. We basked in the simplicity that only life on the trail can offer - rising with the sun and finding ourselves in rhythm with the natural. We struggled through aches and pains, smoke-filled skies and kamikaze mosquitos. We made some fantastic new friends and were reminded of the generosity and kindness of people who helped us along the way. Now our difficulty lies in our transition back to the "civilized" world. We meet this task with excitement while simultaneously planning for our next adventure!

Thanks for following along on our journey. We hope you have caught a glimpse of why we have a passion for long- distance backpacking. Check back in the coming weeks for a link to the finished slide show.

Oregon - short but sweet!

The Pacific Crest Trail through Oregon is less than 1/3 the length of the trail in California and yet our experiences through this state have been as varied and exciting as it's much longer neighbor to the south. In less than a month we hiked by Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the United States. We traversed lava fields and around volcanoes in the southern reaches of the Cascade Range. We were overwhelmed by the lush silence and majesty of old growth forests. We navigated snowfields and abundant huckleberry bushes. We witnessed thunderstorms and the resulting fires from lightning strikes. We culminated our hike at the glorious Mt. Hood and Timberline Lodge where we celebrated the wedding of our friends Bryan and Kim. Wow! Thank you Oregon.

One week to go!

Sorry - no photos this time. We finally found a library that gives a one-hour time limit and I can't upload pics (sigh).

We are in Sisters, Oregon. We have been walking through amazing country the last few weeks. Most of the PCT through Oregon is located in federally-designated wilderness or National Parks. We hiked around the rim of Crater Lake and the forests and lakes of the Sky Lakes, Three Sisters, and Mt. Washington wilderness areas. All magnificent! Our only complaint is the mosquitos (and the fact that our tent zipper broke about two weeks ago!). We are taking our last full rest day here before hiking the last 100 miles of the trek. We are both excited to do anything other than walking but sad to be returning to the world of car alarms, cell phones, bills and, well, not wilderness.

We will send out a few more post-hike wrap-up blogs from Portland. Hope all is well!