August 4, 2008 Pacific Crest Trail

Destination: Seiad Valley Campground
Miles: 0

Adrian: Part three of a series...
Your pack is on, trekking poles in hand, and sunglasses at the ready. As you hike there are things to consider. Will you be talking? If so, you'll have to have to follow Kirsten close enough to hold a conversation, which means you'll also be close enough to breath in, and get covered by, all the dust kicked up by her. The dust comes from a mixture of soil, dried plant material and several different types of shit. Think cow, horse, bear, wildcat and human urine. So yeah, hike real close to Kirsten and take deep breaths between sentences. Sweat a bit too as this will help the dust stick to your face, neck and hair. We don't talk much on the trail when it’s really dusty. Pine needles, rocks and other materials can help keep the dust to a minimum, so choose your conversation time wisely. Otherwise, stay about 20 yards behind your hiking partner to keep yourself relatively free of the filth...or be the first in the line of hikers.
In about two hours you can start looking for a good place to take your first break.
To be continued...

After a fitful sleep, we walked to Bob's for breakfast and then came back to pack up and go to the Post Office to ship the bounce bucket up to Sisters, OR. I wanted to ship it to Ashland, but it might not make it there in time so it goes to Sisters about 3/4 the way through Oregon.

We caught the 12:22 p.m. bus to Yreka and resupplied out of a Riley's Food Store and a General Dollar Store. We bought some party hats and leis for picture taking at the California / Oregon border. That's right, in a couple days we'll be leaving California. It's been such a long state and I never thought about finishing it until just recently because if its vastness. We've been in it for over 101 days and 1,600 miles.
Thoughts of actually finishing the hike are beginning to enter my mind for the first time as well. I know we have another 1,000 miles to go, but spirits are high.

Tonight we are having a weenie roast with other hikers at the campground. Seiad Valley Cafe is home to the famous pancake challenge that Kirsten wanted to participate in. Alas, tomorrow is Tuesday and they are closed on Monday and Tuesday. Because of this fact, we'll be hiking out tomorrow morning instead of afternoon, which I prefer anyway as a pancake is just a pancake.

The hike tomorrow starts with a 4,200-foot climb in the morning! Stay tuned for that freak show...

Kirsten: If we didn't just have an awesome wienie roast I would be disappointed about the pancake challenge. The pancakes served at this cafe are one pound. The pancake challenge is five pancakes, therefore five pounds of delicious batter.

The owner of the store offered to contact the cafe proprietor to open the restaurant up for us. It's just as well as that it's closed. Five pounds of pancakes and a hot, exposed and steep climb out of the valley probably don't mix.

We've reconnected with Miss Potato Head, Beautiful and Gorgeous and will hopefully be together when we cross into Oregon.