As I sit here preparing this trip report I'm starting to realize that I must have a cold. All the symptoms are coming on; I don't feel very well, I'm getting plugged up. Although it isn't strong (at least not yet), I'm pretty sure I've got a cold. And I know who I got it from. I got it from Tricia.
When we woke up at Barker Pass on our first day she was stuffed up and snotty (literally, not figuratively). She thought it might be allergies (although she's never had them in that kind of country before). Vicki and I worried that it might be a cold. It didn't seem to matter to her either way; she ate breakfast, got dressed, grabbed a snot rag and on we hiked.
She had a badly stuffed nose the whole way, both days. But she made no complaints. She did hike a little slower than normal though (go figure).
And her symptoms didn't abate when we got home like allergies would have (they are getting better today though).
I think my 12 year old just backpacked 32 miles with a cold. I'm quite sure that I couldn't have done that at age 12. What the hell have Vicki and I created? Have we raised a child who's tougher than I am?
Anyway, day two started early (great eastern exposure). Brian cracked us up by bunny-hopping over to the "dining tarp" still in his sleeping bag (to stay warm):
Once we started hiking, we stayed up high for a mile or two. Our last view of Squaw Valley was pretty dramatic (its main gondola silhouetted against the lake):
We then descended slowly northward on a ridge; the views to the north must have extended more than 25 miles:
The next major feature we passed on our hike was Tinker Knob. It required a bit of a climb to get around its south side:
After the climb (we were now on Tinker Knob's eastern flank) we were back on top of ridges and back into 360 degree views. From this spot we could still see "the" lake (walking past it makes one realize just how huge this thing is). We could clearly see I-80 and the top of the Truckee River canyon. We could see Northstar ski resort and the North Tahoe Airport. All these things from 15 to 20 miles away. And to the north? Well, to the north we think we got a glimpse of the Oregon border (well, not really, but we sure could see a long, long way):
From Tinker Knob, the trail wraps around Anderson Peak's west side. It then regains the crest for another almost three miles. It may come as a bit of a surprise, but we had incredible views on these three miles as well:
Donner Lake came into view:
We could see all of Truckee and the I-80 east area:
Do great views get boring? Can a section of trail get tedious from the same expansive, never ending views? Somehow it doesn't seem possible:
To the north we were closing in on Mount Judah:
The last bit of the PCT south of Highway 40 traverses Mount Judah (Vicki planned to meet us with lunch at Highway 40 - then we'd continue to I-80). There was also a certain trail junction up ahead on Mount Judah that I, for one, was looking forward to passing again with Tricia; a trail junction that she and I took photos at more than half a lifetime ago (measured by her lifetime that is).
We passed just east of Sugar Bowl's Mount Lincoln:
And then we traversed the west side of Mount Judah toward the junction of the PCT and the Mount Judah Loop trail. This junction was familiar to us. Tricia and I had hiked the Loop Trail back in 2007, on a rest day while on a climbing trip with friends to the Donner areas. Here we are in photos from July 2007 (Tricia was five years old - we'd made just one trip to the PCT by that point; we were 32 miles from the Mexican border):
I'd printed these photos out to take with us. Sharon, Brian and Whitney had seen them. And then we were at the junction. We started to pose for photos... and I just started cracking up. In 2007 we had no idea what adventures were ahead of us on this trail. But we took the photos. We had no idea in 2007 what a part of our family's story this PCT would become. And yet we posed for pictures, wondering, hoping, and yes, even expecting that some day - some day - we'd get to this point having hiked all the way from Mexico.
And today was that day. We posed again (thanks Sharon for the shots):
We had less than a mile "to Vicki" by this point. We made that mile and met up with her (and Hallie and lunch) just south of Highway 40.
After eating (and dropping our packs!!), we headed out for Interstate Highway 80 (right through and over the Donner Pass climbing areas that we'd been to so many times):
We decided that these last 3.7 miles would be perfect for Hallie - she'd be pushed a little, but she could sleep for hours in the car on the way home:
We zipped over toward I-80; in less than an hour we could see cars and trucks:
And then we reached it, tunnels and all:
We walked through the tunnels and then we were done. Vicki met us at the westbound I-80 rest stop (our dog Charlotte absolutely loves Brian; it looks like Halifax is gonna get there too):
As we split up and headed home, I reflected a lot on our now-passed, 2014 PCT season. We had a lot of fun and got a lot accomplished. We went from trailheads a "significant drive" from home, to trailheads almost at home, and then back to traiheads a "significant drive" from home. More awaits us, and I can't wait (eight months until our next trip seems like a long, long time though - can a person have withdrawals from an adventure like this?).
Oh, and Hallie? She did sleep (actually, both dogs did) most of the way home: