Ashland, OR ~ less than 950 to go!!

Four days ago I descended into Sied Valley, the second lowst elevation on the trail and also very well known as the hottest place on the trail.  Weather predictions extimated triple digits and I mentally prepared o for the inevitable...  Sure enough, my thermometer hit 101 and I was still hiking.  Unlike the desert, it doesnt really cool off in the evening since the humidity holds onto the heat.  Even if I did stop to wait out the heat, I'd be waiting until 8pm for it to even get below 90.  So I basically dunked my head in every stream I came across, which actually worked pretty well.  I also came across some amaizing trail magic at the river campground just as I emerged from the woods.  Three chairs and cold beer/soda sitting in the stream right next to a beautiful swimming hole.  On a hot day in paradise this is exactly what a hot hiker needs, how did they know?!?
The climb out of Sied Valley is also very well known as one of the most challenging ascents on the trail.  5,000 feet up in 8 miles.  And to add to the challenge, the entire mountain has been burned by wildfires multiple time in the past few years leaving the trail extremely exposed to the hot sun and extreme temperatures.  It didnt take me long to decide I was going to night hike this part and as luck would have it there was also a full moon that night.  I left town at 8pm and hiked up to 4,000 feet to sleep for a few hours, then back on the trail at 4am to finish the climb and get into the trees before the sun caught me.  It was a stunning night indeed.  31 miles later on the same day, I arrived at the sign marking the CA/OR border.  The trail register was full of extatic entries full of joy at our massive accomplishment.  We had hike 1699 miles through California.  I can attest that it is a big state indeed.  We have a little less than 1000 miles to go but first there is a celebration in order, and Ashland,OR is the perfect town to do it in.  They have an excellent hostel, food co-op, town park, authentic english pub (The Black Sheep), movie theater, lots of hiker friendly locals, and even the Shakespeare Festival Theaters with shows nearly every day and frequent opportunities for last minute cheap tickets.  I am turely blessed with finding a free place to stay in town, which makes a huge difference in being able to stay for more than just a day, THANK YOU BONNIE AND JOSH!!!  It is truely a beautiful place to relax for a couple days before embarking on the last big leg of my journey.

Oregon promises to be fairly hot with lots of mozzies in some places.  Of course there are some exciting landmarks to look forward to in OR (Crater Lake, Sisters, Mt Hood) but my heart is pulling me north to Mt Rainer, Goat Rocks, Glacier Peak, the Northern Cascades, and finaly Canada.

I wish you all the best in your adventures and I thank you for sharing in mine. 
Peace, Love, and Happy Trails
~Beads

sunrise

Welcome to Oregon!!!  End of a long day and so excited to see the sign I started to nibble =-) 

A little taste of the desert along the Hat Creek Rim

Fireweed and Mt Shasta

Terminal Geyser in Mt Lassen National Park

Etna, CA ~ my last little mountain town in Cali

Greetings all.  Boy it has been awhile since the last time I sat at a computer.  Rest asured it has been wild a and wonderful time in northern california.  Now at 1606 miles and just 100 more to go until Oregon, I simply can't believe I'm almost there from simply putting one foot in front of the other.  And I can surely attest that California is  HUGE STATE.   One of my favorite moments of the hike is reaching the top of Frog mountain and getting a glimps of Mt Shasta for the first time... this was the first mountain that was familiar to me and a proud moment to finally have some real perspective of how far I had come.  The views keep coming and it is hard to believe I've been hiking for nearly 3 months but every single day  has been a wonderful experience.  I am so incredibly lucky to have this opportunity to travel through some of the most beautiful mountains in the world every day.  To walk on the rocks and soil and hug the trees and watch the birds and be in the middle of it all.  It's a great feeling.

Etna is a another small little mountain town that loves to see hikers, and they  have everything a tired and hungry hiker could possibly want.  They have a hostel, library, coffee shop with excellent ice cream, and of course a brew pub =-) With nearly every hiker coming into town for a little rest and relaxation it is yet another valuble experience of being on the trail, sitting around a table with friends sharing stories and laughing until well after hiker midnight (9pm).  Many of these friends were perfect strangers until a mere 5 minutes before but they become family imediately, yet another example of magic on the trail.

I will soon be in Ashland and actually plan on taking a few days off to rest and take the opportunity to go to some plays at the Shakespere Festival in town.  My right ankle has been protesting a little more than normal as of late and it needs to take me to Canada so I better take the time to let it heal.

Peace, Love, and Happy Trails
~Beads

ps, sorry for no pictures yet, I'll be sure to find a comptuer in Ashland that can handle it, lol

Hit 1500 miles and crossing interstate 5 today. Castle Craigs is towering above us. The heat has made the days tough but CA is nearly done! Happy trails!

Celebrated my half way point and hit 1400 miles this morning as i watched the sunrise bounce off mt Shasta. It is a great day to be in the mountains :-)

Belden Town mile 1289

So close to half way!!! Hard to believe this adventure is nearly half over. I'm a little sad that half of the trail is behind me and still excited to see what is to come.  This heat wave has been difficult to hike through, the middle of the day is easily 90 degrees and humid with sometimes little shade.  Water has been fairly plentiful and there is nothing better than an ice cold spring up on a ridge.  This morning I started at 6,000 feet and descended into a river valley at 2,300.  Big downs mean big ups tomorrow and I'm planning on leaving at 4am to beat the heat.

Such a HUGE milestone means lots of thoughts and reflecting on being out here.  Everyone has different reasons for attempting such a massive feat and a major motivator for me is to use this trip to help others in need.  The Colville Valley Animal Snactuary is an awesome organization with a great heart and I am so excited help them in their mission to help the animals in need in Stevens County, WA.  Every little bit helps and a community working together can do big thinks.  Imagine if every person who saw this blog donated $5.... that would be HUGE.  And the best part is that when I'm done I'll be hosting an evening program in Colville to share stories from the trail and a slideshow.  If you would like me to come to your neck of the woods please feel free to email me and perhaps we can work something out, talags@gmail.com.  So click on the donation icon and help make the world a better place for the fuzzy critters of northeast washington.  Tail wags and sloppy kissed to you =-)

Peace and Love and Happy Trails
~Beads

Sierra City at mile 1198

Things are winding down now that the excitement of the sierras is becoming more of a memory.  A week ago we spend the day around 8 to 9,000 feet and now the ridges are at 7,000.  The temperatures down in the valleys are reaching 100 degrees and the elevation is keeping our experience a little cooler for the time being.  The few snow patches that are hanging onto northern faces are becoming less common and the tree-less rocky ridges are becoming more rounded and covered in vegetation.  The various varieties of blood sucking insects are becoming more varied, prevalent, and aggressive.  And the actual trail is more soft dirt and pine needles than ankle twisting cobbles.  We are all sad to see the sierras go but equally eager to continue our hike northward and slowly yet surely work on our goal, Canada.  Our legs are strong, our gear is well used, and our stride is confident.  It is truly a beautiful time to be walking in the woods.

Of course we are not the only residents of the forest.  I have seen one cinnamon colored black bear who was super cute.  I got to watch him for a couple seconds as he strolled down the trail in my direction before he realized I was there and ran away.  Of course the whole thing happened so fast I barely got the zipper open on my camera case let alone able to take a picture.  Last night was also a night to remember.  Not long after dusk I was awoken buy one of the loudest noises I've even heard in the woods.  It was insane.  I can only describe it as a crashing and snapping sound that could have only been caused by a very large animal, most likely a bear but possibly a Sasquatch.  Bears can often make quite a ruckus tearing apart trees and logs looking for grubs but this was simply a whole other level of destructive sounding behavior.  The only thing that separated me from this beast was a thin wall of my tent and a hope he was finding what he was looking for.  Through the entire event, that only lasted maybe a minute, I was never able to get him in the light of my headlamp.  I guess I'll never know how close I really came to seeing a Squatch!

One of the best parts of the trail are the people I meet and the little trail towns that welcome hikers with open arms.  Sometimes there are people that make an extra effort to helping hikers and they become an important part of our community, and our family.  We call them "Trail Angels".  Here in Sierra City (no more than 2 blocks long) there is a wonderful couple, Margaret and Bill, who own the Red Moose Inn and invite hikers to camp in their back yard, take a shower, do laundry, and rest in the air conditioning all for free.  They cook a family style dinner for a reasonable price, serve breakfast early so we can leave and try to beat the heat up the hill, and have strict rules against helping around the house.  Our job is to rest and relax, a hiker's dream.  These angels are well known in the guidebook and we looks forward to visiting days ahead of actually getting here.  There are a few more to come but they tend to be more spread out the further north we get.  It is always a treat to enjoy a historic mountain town and not have to pay lots of $ for a room like a tourist.  Many of the businesses still benefit from our presence in other ways like food and ice cream (it's own food group of course).


Peace, Love, and Happy Trails
~Beads

sunrise over Lake Tahoe