Klamath national forest – Southpaw Hikes

7/12/17 – Celebrated a little too much yesterday…we attempted to get back on the trail, but didn't make it past a shady tree in the city park. Back to the hotel, another night, and on the trail tomorrow. Our decision might have been influenced by the fact that Etna Brewing Co. wasn't open the previous day, but was today! Tried a beer each with dinner and got a great, long nights sleep.

7/13/17 – Feeling nice and refreshed this morning. As we were leaving a couple from Traverse City, in the room next to us, offered us a ride to the trailhead. Fueled by a good nights sleep and some coffee, we walked 18 miles in the afternoon before camping on a saddle at mile 1615.1.

7/14/17 - 32 miles today! A personal record for both of us. Not planned, but there was a lot of downhill involved. After cruising all day and hitting our goal of 20+, we stopped for dinner around 5. Afterwards, every campsite we passed was taken, so we pushed on to Grider Creek Campground. Made it there around 9 with a little daylight to spare, ate a ton of food, and washed up in the creek. Mile 1647.0.

7/15/17 – Slept in a little then walked the remaining 6 miles into Seiad Valley. Had a wonderful breakfast at the cafe and hung out with some other hikers for awhile. Eventually we took on the brutal 4800ft uphill hike out of town. It was exhausting. Eventually we leveled out and descended a bit to Kangaroo Spring where we camped. Mile 1663.3.

7/16/17 – Much easier day today, though still a couple long feeling climbs. Lots of beautiful views today and significantly cooler temps than we've been having! Camped earlier today after ~23 miles near a dirt road at mile 1686.4. My NeoAir (sleeping pad) finally got a hole – I've been expecting this day to come for years. Thankfully I was able to find it and the repair kit is holding… for now.

7/17/17 – Made it to Oregon! Still quite a few miles left in California to do, but feels good none the less. A couple easy climbs and long afternoon breaks later we were most of the way to Callahan's Lodge, where we plan to hitch into Ashland. Excited as always for a big old breakfast and coffee in the morning! Camped near mile 1710.

7/18/17 – Woke up a bit earlier today, got down to Callahan's and got a ride into town. Met a friendly goat along the way that had escaped its enclosure. New record today – checked into our hiker friendly hotel by 9:30. Grabbed some food and a bus into downtown to get our packages, exchange socks, and quickly got distracted by breweries. Looking forward to checking out more of Ashland tomorrow after spending the evening prepping our Oregon resupply.

Started the post with beer, might as well end with some…

7/6/17 – Met a former PCT hiker at the bar last night, always nice when people know and understand what we’re up to! Slept in a bit this morning and eventually made our way out of the hotel. Relaxed in the park behind the health food store for a bit sipping on one of our favorite town luxuries, coffee. Went back to Black Bear Diner again (hiker friendly and affordable, well portioned food!). Afterwards we got a ride back to the trail from a trail angel, Tony. We met him yesterday outside the post office, but today he was dressed different – he’s a Highway Patrol officer! Thought we were about to get cited for loitering and instead got a ride to the trailhead in the back of a cop car. Strangest hitch so far for sure… Made quick work of the next ~10 miles and setup camp near Disappearing Creek at mile 1508.6.

7/7/17 – One of the most scenic days on trail yet. Endless mountains, waterfalls, spires, and forests. Twenty six miles today, 6800+ ft gain, most of it at the start of the day. Saw a ton of deer today, on trail, in our campsite… After a final push in the late afternoon we made it to the Deadfall Lakes and camped. Mile 1534.3.

A deer came up to our tent to visit here.

7/8/17 – Easier day of hiking today terrain wise. Still tons of epic views, we hear they get even better in the Trinity Alps Wilderness coming up… Hiked in 6-7 mile pushes today with breaks in between to air out the feet – can’t wait to get our trail runners back in Etna! After about 24 miles we camped at Scott Mountain Campground, mile 1557.8.

There were some surprisingly flat parts, surrounded by boulder fields and ridge walking.

Scott Mountain Campground. Had a few sites, but mostly a free for all.

7/9/17 – Another day of hiking. Views of the Trinity Alps Wilderness occasionally stolen by Shasta. A slightly shorter day today as we are ahead of schedule! More food than the last segment, but starting to have coffee and omlettes on my mind. I’m not sure why, but for me breakfast foods and coffee drive my hunger a little more than even burgers and beer. Hiked up and down a few more times then camped on a saddle at mile 1578.6.

7/10/17 – Short day today, but quite a bit of elevation gain and loss. About 10 miles into the day, we started seeing the smoky haze of a forest fire near Etna. Neither of us have any experience with forest fires, so it was a bit surreal, especially as we started smelling it too. As the wind picked up and the trail headed northeast, the smoke dissipated. The next several miles flew by and we ended up arriving at Sawyer Bar Road, our hitch point into Etna. Had a nice dinner with great views and a ton of people watching – Etna Summit is a busy place! Lots of noisy high schoolers gettin’ drunk… Camped by the parking area at mile 1597.2.

7/11/17 – Today Sara and I celebrate not only one thousand (techinically a little more) miles of PCT completed together, but also two years together! Easy hitch into town with a friendly county worker and a great breakfast at Bobs Ranch House. The Hotel Etna was super accommodating and let us into our room before noon! Super hiker friendly, let us do laundry there as well. After a brief stop to the post office and a trip to the grocery store, we’ve settled into a great day off!