October 15 Distance: 27.7 miles | Ascent: 4780′ | Descent: 4480′ Mile marker: 2030.3 Lunch: J – chicken parm (A-), A – spaghetti mac (A-) Dinner: J – ramen bomb (B), A – instant potatoes (A) There’s a bus with a weird schedule in Kern County. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, it runs twice a day…

October 14 Distance: 4 miles Lunch: J&A – Disappointment followed by KFC bucket Dinner: J&A – cinnamon toast crunch (A) We knew the storm was coming. We were watching the weather like hawks. We were getting thrice daily weather forecasts through our satellite communicators. And yet, it was a lot worse than we thought possible.…

October 13 Distance: 24.8 miles | Ascent: 5560′ | Descent: 4520′ Mile marker: 1998.6 Lunch: J – spaghetti mac (A), A – dahl (C+) Dinner: J – mac n cheese (A), A – beef stroganof (A) Our calendar reminded us that today was our 13th anniversary. We didn’t get each other gifts. We did share…

October 12 Distance: 21.3 miles | Ascent: 3260′ | Descent: 3720′ Mile marker: 1973.8 Lunch: J – spaghetti (A-), A – chicken parm (A) Dinner: J – tomato orzo (A), A – spaghetti (A) Now that everyone is out of the Sierras, the mood is pretty chill. All the hikers at the campground slept in…

October 11 Distance: 14.3 miles | Ascent: 1170′ | Descent: 2990′ Mile marker: 1952.4 Lunch: J – triple crown burger (A+), A – supreme pizza (A+) Dinner: J – supreme pizza and salad (A+), A – burger (A+) We’re learning! We didn’t camp right next to the little river last night, even though the meadow…

October 10 Distance: 25.2 miles | Ascent: 3300′ | Descent: 5100′ Lunch: J – bacon mac (A), A – Korean beef (A-) Dinner: J&A – instant potatoes (A, A), and mac n cheese (B+, B) We’re outrunning a storm on foot! Sorta. We’ve been warned about the storm that’ll blanket the Sierras in snow for…

October 9 Distance: 24.6 miles | Ascent: 3650′ | Descent: 4310′ Mile marker: 1913 Lunch: J – spaghetti mac (B), A – chili and rice (B+) Dinner: J&A – instant potatoes (A+, A+), J – Korean beef (A-), A – egg stir fry surprise (C) The landscape is dramatically different than the High Sierras just…

October 8 Distance: 20.8 miles | Ascent: 5030′ | Descent: 4250′ Mile marker: 1888.4 Lunch: J&A – jambalaya (A, A) Dinner: J&A – mac n cheese (A, B+) Ohhhh nelly. It’s the big one. Forester Pass is the high point of the PCT at 13,200′. Today was the day. Honestly, it was not as difficult…

October 7 Distance: 22.6 miles | Ascent: 5010′ | Descent: 6460′ Mile marker: 1867.5 Lunch: J – Thai red curry (A), A – sausage stuffing (A) Dinner: J – egg stir fry (C+), A – chili and rice (B) We went over two 12,000′ passes today! The first one, Pinchot Pass, was a mere 2.6…

October 6 Distance: 20.9 miles | Ascent: 5240′ | Descent: 2900′ Mile marker: 1845.0 Lunch: J – sausage stuffing (A+), A – mac n cheese (B) Dinner: J – spaghetti mac (B-), A – Thai red curry (A) We didn’t see a single person all day. For the 20.9 miles we walked, we only had…

October 5 Distance: 13 miles | Ascent: 2430′ | Descent: 3630′ Mile marker: 1824.1 Lunch: J&A – ham and Swiss croissant (A+, A+) Dinner: J – chili and rice (A-), A – chicken parm (A) We got a ride to the trailhead from Richard, an older man who says he likes helping out thruhikers for…

October 4 Distance: 9.3 miles Mile marker: 1823.6 Lunch: J – Denver omelet (A), A – corned beef (A+) Dinner: J&A – Italian sandwich and chicken tenders (A+) We finished the hike out of Bishop Pass and made it to the trailhead by late morning. It was absolutely freezing when we got up, but we…

October 3 Distance: 16.0 miles | Ascent: 3250′ | Descent: 3410′ Mile marker: 1823.6 Lunch: J&A – chocolate banana oatmeal (A-, ?) Dinner: J – spaghetti mac (B), A – Oh boy…. Several times yesterday we got weather reports. The clouds were suspicious and there were some ominous winds. At lower elevation, the report foretold…

October 2 Distance: 25 miles | Ascent: 4650′ | Descent: 3760′ Lunch: J – orange chicken (C+), A – chicken teriyaki (A+ Dinner: J&A – mac n cheese (A, B+) We heard the alarm from the other tent synchronize with our alarm at 5:30. While we scrambled to quietly pack, the other tent must’ve hit…

October 1 Distance: 23.6 miles | Ascent: 5150′ | Descent: 5530′ Mile marker: 1786.4 Lunch: J&A – Shin ramen (A, ?) Dinner: J – spaghetti mac with hash browns (B-), A – protein bars (?) We camped at Virginia Lake last night. When we arrived in the dark, we couldn’t see enough to really appreciate…

September 30 Distance: 15.2 miles | Ascent: 2670′ | Descent: 1230′ Lunch: J&A – Spaghetti-Os, Tim Tams, tomato soup, cake (A+s) Dinner: J – chicken teriyaki (A-), A – hash browns (B-) A heavy rainstorm pounded Mammoth Lakes overnight, and although we woke often, we were thankful to be indoors.  By morning, Jason got a…

September 29 Distance: 12.1 Mile marker: 1751.4 Lunch: J&A – birthday cake (A+) Dinner: J&A – burritos (A+) The lake we passed early in the chilly morning was foggy. Our footsteps woke some ducks tucked into the grasses at the edge of the lake. We watched them for a few minutes as they floated out…

September 28 Distance: 23.9 miles | Ascent: 3920′ | Descent: 4980′ Mile marker: 1742.6 Lunch: J – green bean orzo (A), A – mac n cheese (B+) Dinner: J – sweet pork (A-), A – taco (B-) It’s Jason’s birthday today! He thought it would be a strange birthday what with no cake or party…

September 27 Distance: 26.1 miles | Ascent: 3730′ | Descent: 3300 Mile marker: 1718.7 Lunch: J – Korean beef (A), A – taco (B+) Dinner: J&A – chicken parm (A, A) We’re not trying to do this. This is the fourth time. It seems highly improbable. The “distance” we assign to each day is based…

September 26 Distance: 23.4 miles | Ascent: 6190′ | Descent: 6100′ Mile marker: 1692.5 Lunch: J – black rice surprise (C+), A – Korean beef (B) Dinner: J – green bean orzo (A), A – black rice surprise (B) We climbed over so many steep mountains today! We started our day with a gentle 500′…

September 25 Distance: 23.3 miles | Ascent: 1940′ | Descent: 4070′ Lunch: J – Indian curry (B-), A – mac n cheese (B+) Dinner: J – mac n cheese (A) and chili with rice (C-), A – chili with rice (A-) We had camped on an exposed ridge above 10,000 ft elevation. Fortunately, the wind…

September 24 Distance: 17.4 miles | Ascent: 4630′ | Descent: 2260′ Mile marker: 1645.9 Lunch: J – potato chips, ice cream, Alex’s leftovers (A), A – Indian curry (B) and French fries (A+) Dinner: J&A – Mountain House beef stroganof (A, A+) We split up! Yesterday, we had a great idea. To get to our…

September 23 Distance: 27.1 miles | Ascent: 5240′ | Descent: 5600′ Mile marker: 1628.5 Lunch: J&A – mac n cheese (A-, A-) Dinner: J&A – dahl (C+, B), J – spaghetti mac (B+), J&A – peach cobbler (A-, A+) We wish we knew more about geology. There are a lot of cool rocks. Some rocks…

September 22 Distance: 26.2 miles | Ascent: 4880′ | Descent: 4780′ Mile marker: 1601.4 Lunch: J&A – rice and beans with summer sausage (A-, B+) Dinner: J – rice and beans with summer sausage (B-), A – poptart (A) It was freaking cold when we woke up! And we have to hike in this?!?!? Maybe…

September 21 Distance: 12.9 | Ascent: 2930′ | Descent: 1950′ Mile marker: 1575.3 Lunch: J – chili and rice (B+), A – green bean orzo (A) Dinner: J – Thanksgiving (B-), A – spaghetti mac (B) Today was the solar equinox, right? It falls on either September 20th or 21st based on how the Earth’s…

September 20 Distance: 0 miles Lunch: J&A – pretzel and ice cream (A+) Dinner: J&A pizza, salad, and meatballs (A+) We did a lot of chores today. Laundry, gear repairs, gear replacement shopping, groceries, travel arrangements, phone calls, and more! It was very productive. We feel rested and rejuvenated. Alex got new pants, as the…

September 19 Distance: 11.0 miles | Ascent: 1160′ | Descent: 2030′ Mile marker: 1562.4 Lunch: J – large Big Mac meal (A-), A – Dinner: J&A – large roma pizza (A+) It rained last night. And, this morning. Our weather report said the rain was ending, or pausing, at 7 am. So, we slept in.…

September 18 Distance: 26.4 miles | Ascent: 4160′ | Descent: 4240′ Lunch: J&A – mac n cheese with spam (A-, B+) Dinner: J – green bean orzo (A), A – chili and rice (A-) Today was fairly easy, and super scenic. The most challenging part was the rocky trail. Jason’s shoes had carried him from…

September 17 Distance: 26.1 miles | Ascent: 5470′ | Descent: 4210′ Mile marker: 1525 Lunch; J&A – chicken salad (A, ?) Dinner: J&A – jambalaya (A-, ?) Starting at sunrise is pleasant. The cool air feels crisp. Or maybe that’s just an ominous sign of the impending autumn season. We hit 1500 miles early in…

September 13 Distance: 25.4 miles | Ascent: 5230′ | Descent: 3630′ Mile marker: 1438.1 Lunch: J&A – tuna salad (A-,B-) Dinner: J&A – chicken chili (B,B+) We started having good views again! We learned that many northbound hikers will get off trail at a road we passed in mid-morning and skip the section we had…