PCT Day 75: Frog Mountain

Miles Hiked: 18.7

PCT Mileage: 1307.9

This morning I woke up feeling so exhausted and sore. Diva let me know when she was about 30 minutes away from being ready for the day so I could pack up my stuff and hike with her. It was 6am when we left camp and walked through the tiny “town” of Belden where everything was still closed. Essentially it was just a little lodge with a bar and a campground. We crossed the Feather River on a bridge before heading up the long climb. From the bridge, it was a 5,700 foot climb over 13.7 miles. I was so glad to be hiking with Diva. I’m so tired of being alone right now. I was also just feeling so exhausted I really needed another person to motivate me today. Luckily we got to leave all of our gear minus packs, snacks, and some water at our camp. Diva’s hiking partner Midnight was going to pick it up for us and meet us at mile 25. That way I could get some rest and miles in at the same time. She was coming back from a wedding she took time off trail for and had a rental car for an extra two days.

The climb was very long but never steep. Luckily it was over cast because it would have been roasting hot otherwise. The crispy burned trees offered us no protection from the intensity of the sun. The soil was so loose and mostly ashes. Diva’s shoes would kick up clouds of dust with every step and I walked in this cloud all day today. I didn’t care. I was so happy to have a friend and too tired to make myself hike those miles by myself. We took two breaks on the way up because I like to take as many breaks as I can. Especially today. Finally we reached the top where I sat in the sun near Rascal and Sherpa who were playing cards. For lunch I made chocolate pudding and had some pepperoni.

I was so tired from the climb but we pushed on to finish our day. The forest stayed crispy and black the whole way. Right when Diva and I were taking our packs off for another break, Midnight came running down the trail. She was picking us up early! Basically it was way easier for her to navigate the back country roads to Cold Spring rather than Humboldt Road where we originally planned on hiking to six more miles north. I was so happy the day of hiking I was over soon than I thought it would be. I was feeling wrecked. We put our packs back on and walked another half mile to the car while Midnight went on a trail run. Diva pulled out a banana and Gatorade for me which I enjoyed so much while I laughed at how dirty I was. Midnight was also slack packing our friends so we dropped their packs off before going to the town of Chester.

In Chester I got a jumbo banana milkshake from Pine Shack. Then we camped at the town park. I went to be extremely early because I felt so bad. I was just glad to be laying down at the end of the day.

Happy Trails!

-Early Bird