Day 162 (23 June)

Miles 1198 to 1218.5 (20.5 Miles) Little Trees camp to Best Shasta View camp

We slept really well last night, no animals coming for a visit as far as we could tell. Today we will be hiking in the snow all the NOBOs have been telling us about. There is the option to either leave the trail for a couple miles and hike on a dirt road that's supposed to be safer and easier, but involves some bushwhacking to eventually get back on trail. The other option is to stay on the PCT and that's what we decide. We are ready. We carry micro spikes and an ice axe, we should be fine. 

Right where we reach the highest point of the ridge where the snow starts we decide to have breakfast and enjoy the view. We've got reception here and record some voice messages. After a while we finally are ready to tackle the snow. The first patch is quite big and difficult to get off of. It's about 3 meters high still and on a slope, which makes it quite difficult to get back down to the trail. But we manage and from then on it's pretty easy. Some more patches, some GPS checking, and we are done! Easy as that. I really don't understand why people make statements such as impassable and really sketchy when all they did was go around and didn't really see the actual part. We learn that we need to stop relying on what other people with different skills and experience are telling us and trust more in our capabilities. We hiked through 40 miles of snow in Oregon, this right here is definitely not a big deal for us. Everything is relative. 

The snow is gone, but the creeks are here. We cross dozens and hundreds of little streams, sometimes the PCT even turns into a small creek. Our feet at this point are definitely no longer dry. But we are making good time. We have a special campsite in mind that's supposed to be absolutely beautiful so we hike fast, up and down, down and up, classic PCT style. 

The trail is mostly along a ridge, offering us views for miles and miles. Nature is in full bloom and the smell from all the flowers around us is really good. We are hiking with Mt Shasta to our left and Mt Lassen, the next volcano on trail, to our right.

We reach the campsite quite early and take our time to set up and talk to our Aussie neighbor, Walkabout. Later two other hikers from England, Whitewalker and Rusty, join us. They're all such lovely people, too bad they're NOBO and we won't see them again. We talk for hours until the sun sets. The sunset is incredible. No rainfly needed, another night spent directly under the stars. That's the good life.

And tomorrow we will finally see Flamin' Hot again, an American-Mexican from Chicago whom we hiked with quite a bit last year and have kept in touch all through last year. We will meet up with him at Burney Falls, some 15.6 miles south of here. We are so so excited to see you, Schnabizack!​