The Pacific Crest Trail

The pacific Crest Trail is a long-distance mountain hiking trail that runs in Washington, Oregon, and California between Mexico and Canada. The trail follows the highest portion of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Range, which parallels the Pacific Ocean by 100 to 150 miles. The trail is 2,650 miles long and ranges in elevation from just above sea level at the Oregon/Washington border to 13,153 feet at Forester Pass in the Sierra Nevada. The route passes through 25 national forests and 7 national parks. The Pacific Crest Trail is a place where space and time have become an illusion. With civilization we can take a train, drive an automobile, and fly a plane. With nauseating speed we fly by monuments, wilderness, man made obstructions, natural fields, rows of trees, buildings, and people. We are never really aware of the actual space in which we exist because we are annihilating time and space by traveling beyond our means. It is not until we attempt to move about on our own two feet that we realize the immense size of the world that we live in. Nobody is forced to walk anywhere; I will walk 2700 miles across the United States. For the first time in my life, the less that I have the better off I will be. I will have escaped clocks and calendars, where the only time is defined by the rising and setting of the sun.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Last 48 hours on the trail






Trail is completely covered by snow, clouds and dense trees make navigation by geological landmarks impossible. Was lost for about 3 hours and backtracked, found trail and started heading the correct direction. Trail gone again, but now I'm going the right way. I'm scared, cold, and very tired. Camped in snow, on ledge, between 2 trees. Supposed to rain tomorrow. I really hope not. Took 1 hour to break camp this morning, cold, not thinking straight. Began walking SSE, no trail. No sign of trail all day. Made it to Hopkin's pass, then trouble.











Fog came down to about 4000 feet, I'm at 6000 feet. Sat down and cried and prayed for the weather to get better. Not sure where I am, gave it 2 hours to improve. I'm very scared, dont want to continue in the wrong direction and die. 9:30 weather got worse, I called 911. Sat down again and prayed, a lot. Weather so bad I don't know if helicopter can fly. All I think about is Kathryn, I wonder if she knows im in trouble, I wonder if she cares. Woodpeckers sounds like helicopters. Small avalanches all around. I begin to climb to the ridge to see if conditions are any better, but then a helicopter flies straight over my head. Make for clearer ground to wave red jacket frantically. They see me! I break down and cry, for relief? Embarrassment? Exhaustion? Air lifted out, I get a birds eye view of terrain I was trying to traverse, absolute insanity.
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