On September 18, Chris and I broke camp at the border, climbed the last thousand feet up and over the last ridge, and walked the eight miles out to the highway in Manning Park. Judy picked us up, and I walked into my house at about 8:00 that evening. Long walk finished. I’m very happy to be home, although, two days later, still very tired, a sort of deep bone-tired that is hard to describe and will likely take a while to rebound from. If one’s soul indeed only travels as fast as a trotting camel, mine evidently hasn’t arrived yet, as my mind is very scattered, and I have to remind myself that I have all the time I need to get back on track here. So my first priority is to rest and reconnect with friends!
The last leg was made much more enjoyable by the company of Festus (aka Chris Dern), lifelong friend and an 800-mile partner on the ’77 PCT hike. He came off his couch, so to speak, to walk 3 PCT-length days (ie 20-milers) with me from Rainy Pass to the border. And did them in good spirits, and with some helpful medications. We climbed pass after pass, with amazing views of rugged peaks, brilliant fall colors, and only minimal smoke obscuring the far distance. All trails to the east were closed due to fire, but, thankfully, the PCT remained open. I finally saw a bear, a whopping big black one right in front of me on the trail one morning. He moved off, casually and gracefully once he saw us.
And how do I feel about the adventure now? I’m content. No, I didn’t walk every mile, I didn’t leave a line of “continuous footsteps” (I think my milage is somewhere over 2100). What I truly believe is that I did the best I could, given who I am and all the events that I had no control over (ie snow, fire, spider bites). Do I feel obliged to go back and hike the missing sections? Absolutely not, although I might want to do some section hiking later. Did I have a great and amazing adventure? Did I enjoy my days on the trail, seeing the country at 3 miles per hour and meeting al kinds of wonderful people? Was I grateful each morning to be out there, starting another day on the PCT? Yes, yes, and yes! I send my humble thanks out to all of those who lent a hand along the way: trail angels with their coolers of ice-cold sodas, those who stopped to pick up a hitchhiking, grizzled, dirty stranger, the ones who welcomed me into their homes. The world is full of good, generous people, and I am determined to be one of them!