Miner - Pacific Crest Trail Journal - 2009
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Sean "Miner" Nordeen
State: California
Country: U.S.A.
Begins: Apr 17, 2009
Direction: Northbound
Daily Summary
Date: Sat, Jul 6th, 2013
Trip Distance: 2,663.5
Journal Stats
Entry Visits: 4,298
Journal Visits: 90,196
Guestbook Views: 17,343
Guestbook Entrys: 23
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Cowboy Camp
It is finished!
At long last, I have officially finished the PCT. When I hiked most of the trail in 2009, I never dreamed it would take me 4 years to come back and hike the rest of the section I skipped due to the Old Station Fire. I think its a bit ironic that I finished by hiking Section "O" which is a bit infamous. Its often overgrown and full of poison oak. Some hikers have gotten lost and resorted to hiking the forest roads around sections of it. In many ways, the rumors of the section were way overblown. I was able to hike some of the overgrown parts at night via flashlight, so navigation wasn't that bad. There certainly was poison oak. The heat wave didn't help my impression of it, but I was still able to appreciate some of the nice scenery the section offers.
After leaving the I-5 at Castle Crags and heading north in 2009, I never got a really good view of Mt. Shasta except from far in the distance. Section "0" is dominated by close views of Mt. Shasta which is why I posted so many photos of it. It seemed to be particularly close my last night on the trail. Given how it dominates the view in Northern California and Southern Oregon, I'm glad I finally was able to see it up close.
Being back out on the PCT has really brought back many memories; not all good, but most of them are. I did feel tempted to keep hiking north and feel a bit envious of the thru-hikers this year. In order to scratch that hiking itch, I think this September, I will either hike the Tahoe Rim Trail or perhaps head back to the AT to do another section. I still find it incredible how a thru-hike can become addicting. Some never do hike again, but many do head out on another long journey and do it over and over again. I guess I caught the hiking bug too. This short trip has made me realize that I really want to thru-hike again. I'm currently considering hiking the CDT in 2015. I hope things work out so I can.
