They're Done!

Super Albums: The cure for the blue indoor heart and the antagonist of Restless Leg Syndrome. There're still a few kinks to work out but I hope you enjoy! Make yourself a Pastaside, Ramen or some cocoa, get a bowl of Spicy Cheetos, click the Picasa Link and enjoy! Don't forgot about the videos!

Super Albums, Coming Soon

The view from inside. (Trail Angel Ted's house)

After a lengthy spell of computer repair and photo retrieval, I've begun to amass some "Super Albums" of the journey, consisting mostly of my photos via the interweb, my iPhone and my camera, but bolstered with those of others here and there (I will give credit in these cases ya'll).

The rainy season here is Portland certainly lends itself to sitting in front of my computer and harvesting and organizing these Pics, which I'm happy to have after the Great Hard Drive Crash-scare of '09; three days after I'd gotten back and downloaded all of my pictures to my computer I began editing and organizing them when my harddrive died. Not just started to go but strait up kicked the proverbial bucket with no warning. Even though my trip pictures (about 1100) were the only things not backed up, Recovery Service places quoted be $800-$1000 to retrieve them! &^%$! Luckily, new best friend and Mac whiz Jeremy was able to set me strait, get most pictures back, and hook me up with a fixed computer with fancy new stuff on it for about $300 less than a simple repair (not even photo recovery!) would have cost me at Apple. IF ANYONE NEEDS MAC REPAIRS, Go to this guy! He's the shit.

Readjustment to the "everyday" hasn't been so bad here in Portland. People here just kinda get it, both in the broader and narrower senses. Its been really nice to run into fellow '09 Hikers that I had the pleasure to walk with: Viewfinder knitting in a coffee shop, Fixit on his bicycle at a Cyclocross race. Lint on his tallbike and Miss Info going to work just to name a few. Its also been really nice to eat lots of Waffles from the Waffle cart, rent movies, drag huge logs and plants into my bedroom so I feel a little more "at home", cook huge dinners, see a bunch of music and overall waddle in all things Fat Kid. But it ain't the same as the trail, where you were reminded of the real necessities in life, and stresses, even over these primal needs (i.e. water, kinships, donuts), were few.

These first million or so steps are but the first. I've meet and hit stride with far too many too inspirational folk in between to not keep going. While my next adventure may be a bit smaller (I can only take 5 months off from the same job and still have it so many times! Thanks Matt!), the mode won't be too different.

So, keep posted to my Picasa page as it'll be growing with bacterial speed over the next few days. There're pictures of you and you in there, and yes, even you. I love you all, and no matter how you walk it, best of luck to you and hope to run into you all again along this great camino.

Like I said before: America, Fuck Yea!

(I was totally not crying in this picture)

Processing a lot, eating more. I love Canadians, but headed back soon... I'll do a blog proper when I'm 'home' (maybe Chrissy's couch/backyard?) and reliving the dream. Thanks and thanks again to all of you've who've helped and supported me along the way. I did not do this alone - Over and out on HCC, Haulin' Oates, Team Budget, Team Seize the Pants, W & LBs....til then, HIKE!

Reroute and detours: plans are one thing and fate quite another

Goldmyer Hotsprings: The Cave!

The views, reroutes and detours proved amazing as we followed the original pre-1971 PCT route. Just a quick blog from Skykomish - uploaded some photos to Picasa. Gonna hit the trail for the final run in this weather window!

-- Post From My iPhone

Washington: It rains here

This photo is one of a rain-free few: crossing Bridge of the
Gods into WA

7 days into Washington and we've been forced into town by unseasonably inclimate weather: it began raining three days ago, and pretty much hasn't stopped ( unless it was sloppily snowing above 5800"). After fording flooded "creeks", waiting out horribly windy nights in soggy, freezing tarps, and cursing endlessly, we' planned to haul a 33 miler yesterday to make it over the Knifes Edge and into White Pass. But after passing multiple parties that'd turned back from the Packwood Glacier due to highwinds, zero visability, and general crappiness, we succombed to reason and did the same, back tracking 12 miles into the town of Packwood. We're dry, fat and happy now, but I'll seriously have to re-assess my plans to thru hike if this weather remains: the point is to enjoy all this, and that's hard to do when you can't see anything and you're shivering, soaked, and exhausted.


On the more neato side of things, I saw my first mountain lion. While this didn't make me feel any warmer, it also didn't leave me with the sense of fear I thought it would; I felt strangely comfortable and a little more stoked.


-- Post From My iPhone

Package Sender Merry Makers

**be sure to send through your Post Office, since Fedex and UPS cannot deliver to P.Os***.
I've been lucky enough to get a bunch of requests for mail drop addresses. You guys are amazing and rock and I can't imagine life on or off the trail without you all. I love you guys (and cookies too!) If you could send it Priority (usually $0.50 more) that'd be great: in case I can't pick it up for any reason I can forward it to somewhere I can for free. Here's the beta:

Sept. 13th-ish: I should be arriving in Skykomish
Caitlin Burns (PCT HIKER)
c/o General Delivery
Skykomish, WA 98288

Sept. 18th: Rolling into Stehekin, the last stop before Canada!
Same
Same
Stehekin, WA 98852

Ashland-Portland: 14 days and the Beginning of Rain

Sunrise on glassy, lovely Crater Lake.

After living in Oregon for three years and a few other summer seasons, I finally feel that I've seen almost as much that I'd like to see. We started out from Ashland on the 15th, and found ourselves in Cascade Locks - the northernmost point of the trail - by the afternoon of the 29th. We took no zeros in this state, but she was kind to us nonetheless. After taking three months for the state of California alone, it seems rather strange to be finishing another in two weeks.

A taste of what's to come: rain heading down to Eagle Creek Trail

With 547 miles of trail left ahead, the reality of the impending "reality" that I and all of my fellow hikers will have to face once we hit the Northern Terminus in Manning Park, BC seems more present everyday. This is especially so here in Portland, where I write you now. We head out today with one hiker less and whole lot of awesome presence less: yesterday we took dear friend Bijan, "Mowgli", to the airport so that he could fly home to be with his family after suffering the worst loss of a sibling and friend. He will be enormously missed and I ask that, even if you never had the pleasure to meet him, please send all the love you can his and his family's way. Also please take every chance you can to get in contact with loved ones. One thing I've learned here on the trail is that when it comes to fundamental things: Don't Wait.

Berry season - something more delicious than mosquitos come to fruition with late summer rain. Thank goodnesses.

As we enter into moister climates, we've begun to reap some delicious benefits. For the first time since the Sierras we've been again finding edibles right on trail: huckleberries, salmonberries, second crop strawberries and all sorts of mushrooms (although I only trust myself to identify super obvious Chicken of the Woods and Chantrelles - which most deer get before we do). The wildflowers again enrich our color scheme, and make moist sleeping a little more bearable.

Typical knee brushers. Way better on so many levels than chapparel.

Heavy Weather hangs over Mt. Hood.

My body begrudgingly continues to hang with spirit here, and physcially and temporially I think I'm lined up to finish in less than a month. But Damn, I just cannot tell you how in love with all of this I am and how I, if I could, would keep this walking going endlessly. I've said it a million times and can say a million more how the people I've come to know and meet at random out here completely reaffirm what had been my waning faith in humanity. Time to hit the trail for one last dose of the good medicine.