Boy did taking 3 days off help us recover. Doing absolutely nothing, laying in our hotel room and staring at the wall, we patiently waited for the bug to make its course through our bodies to exit. Coming back on the trail we could immediately feel new strength and recovery benefits of our time off. However, there were some downsides as well. During the time when Serge and I were sick, each one of us lost significant amount of weight. We were already very skinny, but now, we got to the point where our packs would not even fit us well and we would have add an extra padding to our waist and shoulders so we could use the same gear.
Hiking with our friends, Alex and Ann who came to visit from Texas”
Boy did taking 3 days off help us recover. Doing absolutely nothing, laying in our hotel room and staring at the wall, we patiently waited for the bug to make its course through our bodies to exit. Coming back on the trail we could immediately feel new strength and recovery benefits of our time off. However, there were some downsides as well. During the time when Serge and I were sick, each one of us lost significant amount of weight. We were already very skinny, but now, we got to the point where our packs would not even fit us well and we would have add an extra padding to our waist and shoulders so we could use the same gear.
If you are not careful enough, you can get easily injured on PCT
The weather began to feel cooler with each day. Hot afternoons became filled with a nice, cool breeze. It would be actually too cold to stay in the shade. Not long after, we got caught in our first Oregon rain. It rained for 3 days, and thankfully on the 4th day we were going into Cascade Locks, our last town before entering Washington. Hiking in the rain for one day is very different from hiking in the rain for 3 consecutive days. All of our clothes were soaked, yes – underwear too.
Beautiful Timberline Lodge
Pacific Crest Trail path crosses Timberline Lodge, which is a mountain lodge on the south side of Mount Hood in Oregon, about 60 miles (97 km) east of Portland. Constructed from 1936 to 1938 by the Works Progress Administration, it was built and furnished by local artisans during the Great Depression. Timberline Lodge was dedicated as The National Historic Landmark on September 28, 1937, by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. ”
I also wanted to start introducing quotes of our good trail friend, Polaris. We have met Polaris back in Sierras and he is well ahead of us on the trail by now. He has been hands down one of the nicest friends we’ve met on the trail. I would like to start sharing some of his wisdom with you guys:
“What have you learned?” People ask me on trail. Here’s what I always say:
Love fast and love strong, because you never know how long you have to spend with a person. 5 minutes or 50 years…you just never know.”
What can I say, Dean was a great host. He picked us up from Cascade Locks and had his car heater blasting all the way up to Portland. We got to dry all of our soaked gear in his driveway and do a jumbo laundry load (I’m still waiting for that water bill). He took us everywhere we needed to go, grocery shopping, REI, and all the awesome food places around Portland (including his mother in law’s house for a BBQ). Being a good coach that he is, he rolled out our sore muscles on foam rollers the night before we were getting back on the trail. I have repeatedly said that this trail has been teaching us how to love and be loved. It’s amazing how life connects you with people for a reason, and how a dinner invitation turned into a full blown taking care of Serge and Dasha during Labor Day weekend for Dean 🙂 Both Serge and I couldn’t feel more loved, rested and ready to hit the trail in our last and final state, Washington.
