Entries RSS(Editor’s Note: Kristin is able to send us her blog entries when she comes to a town with internet access. As a result, the entries are published as they are received rather than on the day the events actually took place.)
About a week after I had passed through the forest fires and thought the smoke filled road walks were behind me, I received word that yet another fire was ablaze in the Marblehead Wilderness. This meant another road walk. Morale was low after this unfortunate obstacle, but in order to keep my spirits up, I had a plan. A crazy plan.
A few weeks earlier, another thru-hiker had mentioned to me how he had heard of people hiking through the 460 mile state of Oregon in just 2 weeks. The idea of passing through an entire state in such a short time, after having spent what felt like years walking through California grabbed a hold of me. So, to keep morale up, I did not take a day off, I did not laze around town, filling myself with “real” food, instead, I charged into Oregon, determined to hike 32+ miles a day and reach the Washington border in 14 days.
The trail through Oregon is gradual which allows for quick walking. However, high mileage days would not be possible without a light weight pack. The ultra-light mentality has taken the backpacking world by storm but, despite all of gear that is out there, it can still be difficult to cut down pack weight. On my first backpacking trip, on the Long Trail, my pack weighed over 50 pounds. The following year, on the Appalachian Trail, I was able to get my pack weight down to 30. It takes a while to learn what you need and what you don’t need. My latest attempts at lightening my pack have involved switching from a sleeping bag to a down quilt, cutting the last third of my sleeping pad off, and saying goodbye to an extra fleece. My pack now weighs between 20 and 25 pounds depending on how much food I have to carry.
So, with only the essentials on my back, I headed north into Oregon. The first few days of 30s went surprisingly well and took me to the jaw dropping Crater Lake. Crater Lake was formed nearly 8,000 years ago when the summit of what used to be Mt Mazama collapsed during a volcanic eruption. Today, the distance between the rim of the crater and the lake is 900 feet and it is an incredible sight. As luck would have it, that day my 32 miles left me right at the lip of the crater where I made my best camp yet.
