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.