Sunday, October 14th.

Sunday, October 14th: Today's miles = 24.2. Total PCT miles = 2,660.1 . Miles remaining = 0.

Today I stood at the US - Canadian border at the northern monument of the PCT!

It did not stop raining ALL day. It was raining when I took down my tent this morning and it was raining when I reached the monument and the end of the PCT this evening in the dark, soaked to the bone in rain and mud. My feet were squishing in my shoes (I lost a toenail) and the whole trail was a river. There was no escaping it. I got to a point 6 miles before the monument where I just stopped caring that I was dangerously cold. Until that point I was going to stop and set up camp, get my wet clothes off, and tend to the hypothermia I knew I had. When I reached the camp spot, though, it was 5pm and I said, "Screw it" and started storming off sloshing through the trail, kicking mud everywhere, putting my hands in plastic bags for warmth, and determining to to finish the PCT tonight! It wasn't smart. I know it wasn't.  I have only ever been that cold one other day in my life; when I summited Katahdin, ending my AT hike. Its when you go from being that cold to being all the sudden warm and delirious that you have to worry. I was warm and delirious those last 6 miles. I though those last 6 miles would be the longest 6 miles of the whole trail. They were in fact the shortest 6 miles of the whole trail! I was so determined to get to the end of the PCT. I was hiking faster than I usually ever do partly because I wanted the border, partly because it was getting dark, but mostly because I knew I needed to keep my body as warm as possible. I reached the border and ended my PCT thru hike at 7pm tonight! Of course it was dark, raining, and miserable. I took a picture, signed the log book, and left. I didn't waste much time there because I needed to get my wet clothes off and have a warm drink. I was planning on camping just 2/10ths of a mile into Canada so I told myself I would come back in the morning. At the camp site when I got there were Funk, Trooper, Big Cat, Styles, and COWBOY! Shep dog and G came in after me. Cowboy had gotten a ride up trail a little, had his arm in a pillow case sling, and finished the PCT with his friends.

Even though I am done with the PCT I am not done hiking. I have to hike 8 miles from the border here where I am camped to Manning State park. I was wishing so badly last night that there was a road at the end of the PCT so I could hitch into town, shower, and eat. Instead I had to set up my tent in the rain and mud. Many people can't enter Canada for one reason or another; it mostly seems DWI's. Those people have to turn around at the monument and hike 30 miles back to Hearts pass where they can hitch. So, I have to say goodbye to Big Cat and Styles tonight before the rest of us go to Manning. We are all technically in Canada right now....but who's going to know? There is no official border crossing here, just a trail that leads into Canada. When I leave Canada there will be no record that I ever entered.

Tonight is my one last night on the PCT. It's because I'm still out here all smelly and gross that it dosnt seem like the trail is over. Tomorrow when I am clean and sleeping in a bed; when I wake up in the morning and don't have to hike, it will finally feel like I have completed a thru hike of the PCT!

Saturday, October 13th.

Saturday, October 13th: Today's miles = 20.6. Total PCT miles = 2,635.9. Miles remaining = 27.6.

It rained the entire night last night and was continuing to rain when I woke up this morning. There were a number of factors as to why I woke up in a puddle this morning, one of which was my fault. I set my tent up last night on a slant due to laziness. I did not expect it to rain like it did. Either way, I had about a liter of water in my tent this morning. My sleeping pad doubles as an inflatable raft and it sure came in handy last night. I have a down sleeping bag so it was my first priority to keep it dry. I succeeded mostly.

The rain didn't stop all day. It was another view-less day. Rifle hunting season for Washington started today and there were plenty of hunters out despite the rain. I had been hiking in my black rain gear but after I started to see hunters I put my bright orange skirt back on. I'm not trying to get shot just a day away from the border. One of the hunters informed me that it snowed this morning where he was and that it was suppose to snow all around this area tonight. Also, there's a 90% chance of rain for tomorrow upwards of an inch. They are also saying that it may be cold enough tomorrow afternoon for it to snow. If this is the case it could snow up to a foot!!

I think it's time to get this trail over with. I haven't been completely ready for it to be over until today. I had gotten to the top of a climb this afternoon covered in rain with the wind blowing a chill so brutal that I actually said outloud "yeaup, Im ready for this trail to end". If it were warm and sunny I know I would have never said it.

I set my tent up better tonight due to the fact that the rain has yet to let up at all. I wonder if it will start snowing!

Friday, October 12th.

Friday, October 12th: Today's miles = 21.2. Total PCT miles = 2,614.7. Miles remaining = 48.8.

RAIN!!!

Today it rained...

It was miserably cold and wet pretty much the entire day. I didn't see any views or much of anything besides wet and slippery rocks. It was an uneventful day. Just one day closer to the border monument.

Thursday, October 11th.

Thursday, October 11th: Today's miles =13.3. Total PCT miles = 2,593.5. Miles remaining = 70.

We all woke up wondering how Cowboy was doing. We began to speculate that instead of breaking his bone he might have torn a tendon. Either way, he was in a lot of pain. I knew I needed to catch the 8am bus back to the trail but Cowboy, Funk, Trooper, and Shep dog were all waiting until 3pm. As I was getting ready to leave I saw Shep dog trying to fit a pillow case on Cowboys arm in attempts to make it work as a sling. From the looks of it Cowboy was trying to figure out a way to get back on trail and hike the remaining 89 miles of trail before getting himself to a doctor. I wanted to tell him that he should take a boat across the lake and see a doctor but then I thought 'what if it were my arm?'. I would want everyone to shut up, speak nothing of a doctor, help me make a sling out of a pillow case, tell me they knew I could make it, and wish me the best as I set out on trail to finish this Goddamn thing! Hopefully he knew best for himself and made the right decision accordingly.

I caught the bus but wasted a lot of time being lazy and only hiked a few miles today. I ended up camping with Chef, Pocahontas, Pitfall, and Baboon. We all sat around the camp fire for hours swapping stories and enjoying the last few days of trail.

Wednesday, October 10th.

Wednesday, October 10th: Today's miles = 0.

I woke up this morning in time to catch the 9am bus from Highbridge to Stehekin. I wasn't going to stay the night there but a group of people ended up staying and it was too enticing. I got to shower (kind of), although, I didn't do laundry. You realize just how disgusting you and your clothes are when you shower and put the unwashed clothes back on.

Stehekin is a tiny town tucked away in the mountains. The only way to get here is to walk through the mountains or take a boat from another town across a giant lake. The town sits right on the edge of the lake and has only a restaurant and a post office. To buy groceries the residents of Stehekin order from the grocery store across the lake and the goods are then transported to the town a few days later via barge. The little town had a rec room with a pool table and a computer. All the hikers hung out there. Funk got a room for the night and Cowboy, Trooper, Shep Dog, Big Cat, Chef, Pocahontas, Pitfall, Baboon, and I ended up staying in it. It was a smelly situation for sure.

My zero day was relaxing until about 8:30pm when some of the boys got a bit intoxicated and started wrestling each other. As their were 10 hikers there, some of us were in the hotel room, others in the rec room, and I was sitting outside enjoying the view from the lake when I heard a ruckus coming from the rec room. Chef then came storming by shortly after saying, "Cowboy broke his friggin' arm!". My first thought was "how in the hell..." and then I remembered. We are 89 miles from the end of the trail and Cowboy has to go and break his arm wrestling!!!

Now, Stehekin has no doctor. All it has is an EMT in the ranger station. The boats were done running for the day to get across the lake and his injury wasn't serious enough for any other action so poor Cowboy took a bunch of painkiller Opiates and it toughed it through the night with ice on his arm. The wrestling boys weren't feeling so tough anymore and I might say that they all seemed to either sober up rather quickly or pass out. 89 friggin' miles from the end of a 2,663.5 mile hike and to break your arm...!!