July 31

Distance: 10.5

Mile marker: 520.1*

Lunch: A&J – cheeseburger (A+) and cherry milkshake (A+)

Dinner: J – jambalaya (A+), A – mac n cheese (B+)

Hotels are very nice. It was nice to wake up in a bed and not have to pack it up. We did have to pack everything else up since we yard saled just about everything throughout the room in a combination of cleaning and reorganization. Jason went to look for stickers and a postcard, but the gift shop was lacking in Cascade Locks-specific things. There were postcards featuring Mt. St. Helens, Timberline Lodge (our next stop in two days), generic Oregon, the Columbia River gorge, and even Crater Lake (located on the opposite end of the state). Finally, I found one featuring the Bridge of the Gods locked behind the counter. They were also without any Cascade Locks stickers to add to our bear cans. It’s astonishing how a town that plays home the 2-day PCT festival can be so blasé about being the only incorporated city along the PCT. Maybe they’re still going through some growing pains as the trail popularity has picked up in recent years?

We read up on PCT days and are sad to miss it. We knew that going southbound meant we had to miss it or we’d be hella late. So many cool vendors will be there. Even the Jolly Gear guy (makes Alex’s hiking shirt) and Dan (makes our tent)!  Maybe we’ll come back in a later year or decide to hike this again but northbound.

We mailed some things back home that we weren’t using, and Alex mailed her new shoes down trail to Crater Lake. Jason inquired with the postmaster about his new pack in the mail. It arrived in Portland at 7:30ish. The postmaster said it missed the truck out of Portland and would likely be delivered tomorrow, but could even be the following week. The postmaster was super nice and accommodating to hikers. She knew the whole routine, and it was a wonderful post office experience. Because this pack was delayed, Osprey already sent another pack down trail. We decided to press on and hope the shoelace/pen cap/duct tape repair continues to hold. The rep at Osprey has been great and very sympathetic to the whole situation.

After a quick stop at the roadside diner for a cheeseburger and cherry milkshake, we finally hit the trail.

Due to a fire in a previous year, there was an alternate route to get around the burn scar. We briefly followed the Columbia River west and saw a pair of pileated woodpeckers in an old growth section along the river. The alternate route also took us past a salmon hatchery which taught us some important salmon facts for the next time we play bar trivia.

Our alternate route had us follow the Eagle Creek trail. It featured lots of waterfalls, rock formations, and bridges.

The highlight of the trail is Tunnel Falls. The trail goes inside a lava tube behind the waterfall.

We have a steep climb out tomorrow morning to rejoin the proper PCT route: 3000′ ascent in 5 miles. Then we’ll beeline it to Timberline Lodge. We hear there’s a lunch buffet there….