Trail Dames - We're Gonna Dance Upon This Earth

Ho Rain Forest Part 2

We woke up this morning to a bright blue sky and the sounds of buzzing insects and swift water. My neck is stiff from waking every half hour last night to stick my head out of the tent to see the stars. They were spectacular! Silver
Lining remarked that at one point she got up and saw two shooting stars, one right after the other.  She said, "You know it is a clear, beautiful night when there are so many stars that you cannot pick out the milky Way!". 

This is yet another pay-off for hiking far enough away from civilization that there is no man-made light whatsoever. I wish that I had had the energy to just lay out and look at
the sky all night long. 
     As we got up and started fixing breakfast, filtering water and packing up stuff, the humor turned somewhat scatalogical.  I don't know what it is about backpacking, but it tends to turn all three of us into 10 year old boys,
laughing hysterically at every burp and tee-hee-ing at references to privy humor. It really is funny! HBB says we are like 10 year old boys with jobs and credit cards.  How scary is that?   As we giggled our way through the final
packing up, it got hotter and hotter.  We finished wrapping up my feet and SL's ankles in duct tape, (we are both having boot issues), and hit the trail.  HBB kindly let me lead the way, and I took off.  At one point, the others stopped to
filter some water, but in Silver Linings words, I had found my groove.   
     I felt like I was sailing down the trail, pack and all, and I keep thinking about the Trail Dames. This trail is so perfect for them! Those women are experts at recognizing beauty and they would absolutely love this.
   It is so interesting how a trail can look the same from one evening to the next morning, yet feel so different. Of course, all of the usual cliches apply....everything is clean, fresh and new. You would hope that I could come up with some better references than that, but there it is.  But at the risk of
sounding like a junior high English essay, the trail feels hopeful. Between the
sun beams, fresh dew on the ferns and smell of moss, I feel like I can accomplish anything. I can walk for miles, jump over rocks, grow more, live better and love better.  

     Have you ever felt so much promise that you could barely contain it?  As my vacation is drawing to a close, I want to bottle this feeling, and hold it close so that when the stresses of rental season and bow rehairs come a-calling, I will have a secret talisman. I will recall this moment and let it glow brightly, coloring my attitude as needed. 

    The end of our hike finds us passing more and more day hikers, each smelling like fabric softner and perfume.  As we walked through the parking lot, with it's clean tourists holding giant cameras and scolding their children, I ask HBB if it is wrong to feel just a bit superior. :) I am really smelly, quite sweaty and sporting a magnificant "tan" line made of dirt, where my socks meet my legs.
I feel like I have truly experienced the Hoh Rain Forest.
    Tomorrow it looks like we are going to spend the day sailing on the Puget Sound with HBB's friend, Barney. If something remarkable happens, I will let you know, otherwise, it looks like our hiking/backpacking is done for now.  I did learn a few lessons during this vacation......I learned that flexibility is a trait I need to keep working on   I am still bummed at the disintegration
of my Wonderland Trail Adventure, but am managing to get over myself.  It is
like Greg Mortenson says in "Three Cups of Tea", 'my spirit did not fail, my body did'.  I think I can live with that.   I also learned that losing a little bit of weight can really mess your feet
up! My beloved boots are chewing up my feet like crazy and I feel like they are
old friends that have greatly let me down. So, would someone please let Winton
know that the next time I am at Mountain Crossings, I need to request a little
bit of his time for a boot fitting. I guess I had better get that done before
his status as a famous author spreads far and wide!   I have to go sailing
now, but hope you all have a wonderful dayand thank you for sharing my Washinton adventures!!
Anna
www.traildames.com

Washington Adventures Continued....The Hoh Rain Forest

 

Well, if you can't do the Wonderland Trail, you might as well do the Hoh Rain Forest!

   Today we backpacked into the Hoh Rain Forest and it was simply magical! We
are West of Seattle, in the Olympic National Park, and have found the absolute
most Tolkein-ish forest anywhere! After a beautiful drive, in which we exhausted
all possible tasteless jokes regarding the "ho" hike, we found the trailhead and
took off.  We are all four together again, as HBB decided that she could finish the WT another day and that she would rather hike with us.  That is a good friend for you......
     These woods are dark and mysterious, with huge ferns that reach above my head. The trees are huge...some of them easily large enough to drive a car through.  I keep wondering if they have Redwoods in this part of the country.
    The trail is fantastic and different from anything I have ever hiked.  Mostly it is smooth....which in itself makes it unlike most of what I have hiked. Every now and then, huge roots curve up through the ground like giant worms.  I pick my way up and around them, wondering if they are going to come to
life and grab me! You may laugh, but this forest is truly that fantas-tical.
    For several miles, the trail curves up and down like a gentle roller coaster, and the sun shines through the thick trees in broken beams. It really is quite wonderful.
The only thing keeping this from being truly heavenly is the fact that it is 95
degrees.  Seriously.  This area of the country is under a heat warning and they are 
predicting temps between 95 and 100 all week long!  The heat is oppressive and
the bugs are absolutely loving it.  However, thanks to my good friend Deet and a
mid-hike stop to cool down in a glacial river, the hike was still really
fabulous.
     The best thing that happened to me, though, was completely egotistical.  
We came upon a group of middle school girl scouts, with two women leading them, just as
we decided to stop and chill out in the river. They were very sweet, and after a
little conversation, they took off down the trail.  After 15-20 minutes, we took
off as well, with bandanas dripping cool water down our necks.  What happened
next was truly amazing.    No... it was astounding! I actually caught up to them!! 
Me!! The slowest hiker around!  Well, I was also with Silver Lining and Little
Bit, but we all caught up to them. As they stepped aside to let us pass, I told
them, "You might not want to do that with me...I am pretty slow!".  One of the
leaders turned and said, "But you caught up to us!".  I realized that in all my
years of hiking, I had never caught up with other hikers, much less passed them. 
Yes.... the girls were over-loaded with big packs, and they were tired....but I
couldn't help but feeling like all my hard work in the gym was paying off a little.
     Ok, ego trip done.... :)  
   We finally reached camp and set up on the banks of a beautiful, lilting river. After eating a delicious dinner of tuna and beef jerky, (me) and Ramen, (everyone else), we stowed away our bear canisters, and are relaxing for the
evening.  We are laying back watching the sky go from light blue to a soft gray
as the sun sets behind the mountains.  A partial moon is rising right across
from us and it won't be long before the stars start appearing.  I am typing to
the sounds of soft laughter as the other women joke lightly. You know, I always
say that to see this exact view, you have to actually be the one that walks to
it.  Tonight I would add that if you are lucky, sometimes that very same walk
can bring you to this peace and friendship as well.  And that is worth all the blisters and sore muscles in the world.
Good night..........

Wonderland Trail...well......

Ok, so we hiked in, and turned around and hiked back out.  So ends my
illustrious Wonderland Trail vacation. :(

Due to road crossings and permit
restrictions, it looks like the rest is not do-able. I was really bummed out,
but at this point I am moving on and having a vacation anyway.
     So, as of now, we are supposed to be going out for different overnighters
all over the Olympic Pensiula. Little Bit seems to be sick again, so we are in
limbo. Tonight's plans were to hike a neat coastal trail with views of sea lions
and whales.....I will let you know if it happens. Who knows where the next update will come from?    Anna aka Mud Butt

Wonderland Trail Adventures- part 6

       Ok, so after sleeping for 18 hours straight, and two days of no food, I am
feeling a little better. We got out a little yesterday and I managed to eat
some, so it looks like I am on the mend. 
     My body, though....whoo-wee!

Big giant blisters? Check. A dozen bruises? Check. Over 50 mosquito bites? (and that is just from the knees down!) Check!

Oh yeah, and two big scratches in  a place better off not mentioned, from where I had a disagreement with some rocks. ;)    I am telling you, this trail is rough on a girl! But, the pain and discomfort
are no problem. Every night on the trail, we sit around and play the "What hurts worse" game.  Anyone that backpacks knows that this is just part of it. A very small price to pay for getting to see such amazing beauty in this world, as far as I am concerned. :)
    My problem now is.....strength.  This has really taken it out of me. I am at about 60% and this trail takes about 110% of what I have on any given day.  So, I am kind of up in the air.

BUT....I am not giving up! Today we are hiking out to meet HBB at her campsite, with the plan to hike back tomrrow.  I will use it as a litmus test of sorts. Simply put, I will not go gently into that good
night!!       As for the rest of the WT, here is where we stand....tomorrow would be a 15
mile day. Definitely not going to happen.  After that, there is a six day
section with no road access whatsoever.....once you are there, you are there.  And there is no deviating from our permitted camp sites because this is one seriously regimented trail.  The rangers regularly patrol the trail and they give tickets for those hikers not at their assigned campsites. Hmmm....
That is what is up in the air.
     So for now, I am hitting the trail and praying for energy.  Keep me in
your thoughts and I will let you know what happens!
Anna aka Mud Butt

Wonderland Trail Adventure- Part 5

Wonderland Trail- Day 4

    Well, it is official, I am really sick.

     The indignity of it all!!! Not only
did I have to get out of my tent over and over, but each time I got out and in, 432 mosquitos come running (well, flying) in yelling, "Whoo-hoo! We have access!".  And then to top things off, now, this might sound weird, but, when you get up in the night out here, you have to be very, very careful to not get lost. It
is a lot easier than you would think!  So everytime, I had to go to great legnths to make sure I could find my way back to my tent.
    In any case, by the time I woke up, I wished I were dead. After a pow-wow with the Babe, we agreed that she would hike the 2.8 miles to meet SL and LB, while I would do the 1.3 to the nearest road crossing. There is a visitors center here and later, SL will come get me.  This is the first road crossing since we started the trail, and if you remember, that one was actually 5 miles away from the WT! So I guess, if I had to get sick, at least I was lucky that I wasn't a three day walk from the nearest phone and road.
   I have to say, that was the hardest mile I have ever hiked. I know that part of the issue is that I in major 'bonk' mode because I haven't eaten or drunk anything since yesterday afternoon.  I just have no energy at all.   After what felt like hours of plodding along....pick up one foot, put it down....repeat.... I finally make it to the visitors center. I proceed to lay down on a bench and sleep on and off for the next four hours.  I know I look like a smelly homeless person, but I don't care.
Actually, I also look like an axe murderer cause I have on my mosquito head net.  
   At one point, I got up to call my mom and beg for sympathy, which she provided in spades.  What is it about hearing your parents voice that just makes you want to cry?  An elderly lady walked by and said kindly, "Are you ok, honey? You were out like a light." I explained that I was not feeling very well and she just smiled and walked on.
        Silver Lining arrived sometime after noon and took me home.  Turns out that she had the same
thing a couple of days ago, only not as bad, so we figure I caught it from her.   She is already starting to feel better, so maybe this will pass quickly.  But the biggest issue now is getting back on the trail.  Between the permit system and the access points, this is going to really screw things up.  Oh well,       I am going to crash for now and will let you know when I am back to normal.
 
Anna aka Mud Butt

Wonderland Trail Adventures- part 4

Wonderland Trail- Day 3

      This morning I tried to hit the trail early, knowing I had almost 9 miles of hard hiking ahead of me. I felt fantastic, though. Last night the mosquitos were ferocious, so HBB and I hit our tents very early. She managed to cook her dinner by just sticking her hands out of the zipper from inside her tent, but I settled for cold dinner out of my food bag. When we got up this morning, the skeeters were swarming everywhere but we had hopes that once we started hiking, they would relax a bit.
    Todays hiking was simply stunning. First rolling hills through a deep green forest, and then sub-alpine meadows full of wild flowers.  My favorite part of the day was when both sides of the trail were thick with vibrant, purple wildflowers. They smelled so good and I kept stopping to take pictures of them. 
I just kept thinking, no one back home is ever going to believe this.
    I climbed steadily for much of the day singing my favorite uphill song, "One
Hundred Bottles of Beer on the Wall".  Before long, I topped out over Packtrain Ridge.  The views were 360 degrees and I totally felt like I was on top of the world. :)
   From there I was above tree line for a while, with nothing but brown rock surrounding me. I finally caught sight of one of the famous whistling marmots that had been singing us both to sleep, and awake.  They are small, fat, tan and brown furry things, about the size of a house cat.  I came across a man and woman that were day hiking and they said that I had just missed a bear.....that she had come within 50 feet of them! I remarked that that was much to close for my personal comfort, and the man just laughed and said that she wasn't the bit interested in us. Hmmmmm.....I think I will just keep my eye out anyway so one doesn't get that close to me! 

      After a gorgeous day of hiking, I pulled into Sunrise Camp and since the Babe wasn't there yet, I picked out a site and set up camp.  The mosquitos are seriously unbelievable. They swarm continuously, and you can see clouds of them in the air.  I was pretty sure that they couldn't get much worse. Wrong! There is no water at the camp, so I had to walk down to the lake to
filter water. I can see the skeeters thick in the air and can hear a continual 'buuuuzzzzz', which is a bit like being in a bad horror film.    It is a little weird.  Then I got down to the water and wow, oh wow..... The lake is extremly shallow.  A good 20 feet out into the lake, it is still only about three inches deep.  And the entire thing is full of mosquito larve.  I am not kidding.  Thank goodness for my new Sweetwater filter!!  Between the silt and larve, it is a miracle that I got water at all, but it did the trick beautifully.
     By the time I get back to the tent, I am starting to not feel so good. I dash into my tent to escape the bugs and crash on my sleeping bag.  When the Babe shows up three hours later, I am dead asleep. She had met Silver Lining and Little Bit at a road crossing and Hiker Biker Babe had brought back treats.  As soon as she said the word 'treats' I knew I was in trouble.

My stomach is not well at all. 

With that in mind, I am signing off.
Anna aka Mud Butt  

Wonderland Trail Adventures- part 4

Wonderland Trail- Day 2, part 2

      From that point on the trail climbed a bit more, and yes, from time to time there was more snow. But I was so happy to be on the trail that I didn't care! Soon I was reaching full-on alpine meadows, the hiking got easy and the world opened up before me.  All of the sudden, there were wild flowers everywhere. The
sun was warm and the meadow rolled out in front of me like a carpet of colors with a gentle brown trail running through it. I looked up and saw Mount Ranier hovering above the meadow...the closest I have been to her. I stood there as tears flowed down my cheeks and thought,

"How?"  

 "How did I get this lucky and blessed?" I tell my traildames all of the time to look at a view and to realize that the only people that get to see it are the ones that worked their way up to it. Well, I had worked hard today, but I didn't deserve this! It was flat out the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. 
    After a while, I pulled myself together and walked a bit further til I heard a familiar voice calling me. Hiker Biker Babe was laying on a giant, flat rock, basking in the sun.  She graciously moved over and we shared our tales of the day.  I was right in the middle of telling her my saga when I grabbed her arm. Across the meadow, lumbering along, was the biggest black bear I have ever seen! HBB began
humming "From A Distance", which is our personal motto for how we would like to view wildlife....especially bears.  We watched as he wandered around and she finally remarked that if he came any closer, we would be doing the 'Dance of the Scared Woman"!  But he stayed far
away, enjoying his meadow and enriching our day.
He really was beautiful

      The swarms of mosquitos eventually drove us to our feet along with the call of camp.  The final 1.5 mile of the hike was beautiful and gentle and we finally settled down at Mystic Lake. Tomorrow's going to be a hard day so now I am going to sign off. 

The marmots are whistling and the creek is singing. Good night.
Anna aka mud Butt

Wonderland Trail Adventures-Part 3

Wonderland Trail- Day 2

    Today was full of surprises, some great and some soooo not great! We all woke up
this morning sharing complaints about the rude, inconsiderate camper nearby that
was blowing a whistle at 4:45 this morning.  Silver Lining got so upset that she
went around to the other sites to chastise the offender.  She was unable to find
them though and I joined in the griping. So rude!! After all the complaining, we
all settled in to eating breakast and packing up.  Dr. Lining and Little Bit are
headed back to the car and will meet us in a couple of days. Little Bit has been
fantastic!! Never backpacked before and doing 17 miles in 2 days.  And hard miles!
And she did not complain a bit even though she was in considerable pain by last
night. She is definitely my new hero!
    My day didn't start off so well. You know how sometime your head just isn't
in the right place? I left the camp and immediately had to cross a log bridge.
Last night I sailed over it but this morning it made me nervous. By the time I got  across, the adrenaline was pumping and I was shaking.  Then .2 of a mile  later, I had the cross the giant suspension bridge again.  This time the swaying, 207 foot long jumble of cables got to me.  I was on the verge of a panic attack, and the thing is, you can't rush across and get it over with.  You
have to go slow and steady as it bounces and sways more and more as you near the
middle. By the time I got across, I was somewhat of a mess. 

       Luckily, after I got off of the bridge, I had a very, very long uphill in which to calm myself down. Rocks, rocks and more rocks for a while, and then a long, really nice uphill through a
towering forest. Did I mention that I am still going uphill?  (Good thing I like to go uphill!) I finally stop for lunch on this huge rock next to a tumbling mountain stream and kick back in the sun.    

    Ahhhh.....things are looking up. The sky is brilliant blue, the trees are tall and thick and just when it couldn't get any better, a hummingbird flew by. I layer three- day old cheese, summer sausage and mayo on a tortilla and took a bite. It was the best thing I have ever tasted in my life.
   I considered hanging out for awhile, but a little voice said, "you have no idea what lays ahead...you had better get going!".  Smart voice, as it turns out.
Right before I left, however, I looked in the guidebook and read all about the famous Mount Ranier Whistling Marmots. I realized I had been hearing the same whistle that had woken us up this morning all day long!! Whistling marmots! How cool is that?! And I had to laugh at us getting all bent out of shape at the "rude hiker blowing the whistle". :) Isn't is amazing how your perspective can change with just one little bit of information?  Well, I peeled myself off the rock, threw my backpack on and headed down the trail. Around the corner was a very unpleasant sight.............

Snow.
Lots and lots of snow.

      Now I knew there was going to be lots of snow on this hike...remember the ice axe sitting back in the car?  I just didn't think I would see it so soon! I will let you in on a little secret... I am scared of hiking on snow. It is slippery, unpredictable and you can't tell what is under it. Well, I spent the next hour struggling as my ankles flopped around and my feet refused to stay where I put them.  The thing that made it really frustrating was that it was stunningly beautiful. Like, 'I-have-never-seen-anyplace-this-beautiful' beautiful! It looks like a Courrier and Ives painting.....rolling
white hills, dark green clusters of trees, black rocks and a gurgling stream.
How can it be so beautiful and so hard at the same time?   I really don't like
this at all. I put on my Yak Traks, but they don't seem to be helping and the
front keeps coming off. I feel blisters coming on and figure this is going to be
the low point of my day. Wrong.
    I have been following footsteps for ages, (cause you can't see the trail at
all), when they disappear. I circle around and around and they are just gone!
After lots of indecision, I squeeze through some trees and see a wash of gray
rocks leading to a sweeping snow valley that goes up and up. Are those foot
prints I see? I clamber up there and see two pairs of old footprints. I know
there are at least 10 people in front of me, and that this can't possibly be right, but decide to follow them anyway. I know that I am a wee bit lost, but I also know that I can follow my own footsteps
back down, so I am not in any danger.
   Well, I climb and climb. I fall a few times getting more and more upset.  All
of the sudden the footsteps stop. I have come to an alpine area where the snow is interspersed with  
scattered rocks and bushes. As my eyes search for more of those blasted footprints
I was following, I see them! They are moving through the rocks and bushes headed
for a wall. It is then that I look up and see what looks suspiciously like a flat, straight edge.  Could it be....I do believe it is! The trail! My ghostly friend's footprints make a bee-line for the wall and clamber up.  I realize that  someone had done the same thing I had, and for a moment, I felt a strange sense of camraderie with this person I will never meet.  At the very least, you gotta admit that great minds think alike.   When I finally climbed up onto the trail using my hands and knees, I staggered to my feet and did a little dance of joy.  There was no snow up here!

From here my day was definitey looking up!
(to be continued)
Anna

Wonderland Trail Adventures- part 2

  Day 1- continued......

     When we finally got to the trail itself, we all got excited, gathered around the sign for pictures and then headed straight up the trail.
The forest here is so different from Georgia! It is really thick and has a million plants that I have never seen before. When you feel the call of nature, ducking off the trail is quite an adventure! Fallen trees, vines, undergrowth
and moss as far as the eye can see! The cool thing is, though, there are really no snakes to worry about.  I guess it is too cold up here for them to be happy. It
makes stepping over all of those half-rotten logs a little easier when you don't
have to worry about a slithery friend lounging under it.     We crossed about a zillion creeks today on log bridges, some of which the amazing trail volunteers have nailed hand rails of sorts to. I really appreciate it cause walking across a log makes me very nervous!

    Later in the day we have our first ford. The river we are crossing has four different sections, the first of which has no bridge. As we prepare to cross, HBB give us a lecture on fording safely and the other three take off their boots. I prefer the stability of keeping mine on, however. I don't mind wet
boots as long as I can feel secure crossing a river.
    The water here is fascinating! This is glacial run-off, so the water is full of rock flour. It makes the streams and rivers look like weak chocolate milk, which is cool to look at, but a bit nerve racking in that you have no idea if the water is 2 inches deep, or twenty feet.   Since the rocks surrounding the water are the exact same color, sometime you have to concentrate to actually see where the water starts and stops.
    The crossing goes off without a hitch and only comes up mid-thigh deep.  It is still a bit disconcerting since you can't see anything below the surface at all!  It is very cold, and quite fast, but the bottom is smooth and sandy, and I only squealed once when I almost lost my balance. 
We scramble across piles of rocks and cross three more sections, all of which have bridges. The last one was wild because the water was so fast and turbulent that when you looked down it made you very dizzy Not a good feeling when you are on a log balanced over a torrent of chocolate milk!!
  Where is Willy Wonka when you need him?

    The rest of the hike was beautiful and peaceful with the only excitement coming at the very end. There is a famous suspension bridge here that is 207 feet long. It is narrow and very, very swingy and bouncy. They advise only one person on it at a time and I totally understand why. Unlike other suspension bridges I have been on, this one is not fun. By the time you get to the middle,
it not only bounces and sways, but pivots side to side, making it feel like you
are going to be pitched into the roiling, mad water below. Before I go on the bridge, there was a man there waiting for me to cross before him.  As I reached the center, the movement got really intense and I thought to myself, "How RUDE!! That man did NOT wait til I was across!!  The sign says ONE PERSON at a time and he decided to come anyway.....REALLY!!!!"  As I stepped off, I turned around to give him a piece of my mind and realized that he was still patiently waiting at the other end.  That is just exactly how wobbly that bridge was.  Well, I was a bit ashamed of my thoughtless assumption, but in all honesty, I was  so happy to be across that I didn't give it a whole lot more thought.  :)

         Our campsite for the night was nice, and had a privy of sorts and a bear pole near by.  ( which
incidentally would not have kept the bears out or food, cause it was too short!!)  The privy was a simple seat with two walls forming a sort of 'V' around it.  It faced out into the rich, green woods and while it didn't offer much for privacy, it was by far the best view you could get while answering the call of mother nature. 
      After a dinner of instant mashed potatos and mini snicker bars, we all went to sleep listening to the water of the tributary and the wind in the trees. It was one of the best nights
sleep I have had in a long, long time.
Anna aka Mud Butt