8/19/20; mile: 1,821; elevation: 6,178 ft.
Well, I guess it’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed a campsite; felt like I’m me again. Comfortable in my trek as well as my place in this space. I mean, I was still alive; still walking north. I had food and shelter, there was water, I wasn’t weeping, the sun was still above the horizon and I had the wherewithal to appreciate it all. A good night’s sleep does NOT hurt. Roger Waters’ “The Tide is Turning” comes to mind. Morning comes and Ron goes. Onward to Crater Lake.
The first hour or so of the morning is still a marvel to behold. I now remember how much I love walking into the sunrise. The start at a high camp allows this today. Thank you. At a creek crossing I find another bandana left by some other hiker. I carry it on, wondering if I might find the rightful owner. Or not; some souvenirs you can’t buy. My one water stop for the day is a decrepit “pond” that is quite challenging to gather clean water. It’s seems so strange to struggle for water like this in Oregon, known to be moist and full of water. No matter, it needs to be done and I need to move on.
Check that out, 21 miles by 1pm. I get to the road crossing for Crater Lake. I need to follow the road to get to Mazama Village for my resupply and camping. That may be a new earliest fast time for me. Or not. I’ve had some pretty early starts/long days on this adventure. At this point, I’m not sure I really care. The priority is getting to Canada. The how fast and average this-or-that is now getting lost on me. I just gotta keep the candle lit and keep on sauntering. Or maybe at this point the John Muir method isn’t appropriate. I gotta move.
I go to the Mazama cafe/restaurant and unload my pack on the back patio. And then I reconnect with SoCo and Tony (the Brit), as well as Flash. Flash is the son of family member co-worker. He’s been reporting back to home that he’s greatly appreciated my water updates on the PCT app, working hard to catch me. Well, he did. I walk over to the the store to retrieve my resupply package and buy beers for the gathering that’s growing. Pizza comes out of the cafe and we all enjoy the afternoon. Dwight, who works at the cafe/restaurant, is so supportive and helpful to PCT hikers. He offers a ride to Flash to get his resupply package at the P.O. Meanwhile, we PCT hikers continue eat food, consume beer , charge our electronics and help each other get what we need or want. It’s helpful to know who has weed to spare.
Before marching off to the “official” PCT campsites, I catch wind that the Lily Fire still has the trail closed north of me near Shelter Cover. This is the first fire closure for me on this trip. Not that fires haven’t affected hikers behind me. I hear California is burning. Not much I can do about things out of my control. Some hikers speak of walking straight through, damn the closure. Me, I’m not so sure. I really want to walk my entire way to Canada, but I also don’t feel or need to be be “one of those guys.”. So I guess this is my second moral conundrum on this trail.
It’s so funny to know that I’m at “Crater Lake”, but haven’t seen shit. It’s there. I just gotta hike up to it. Mañana.
Savior out.