I knew as soon as the alarm went off that Bunny was not the least bit interested in getting up. That’s why a good husband hits the off button instead of the snooze. She’s a lucky Bunny. I still woke up out of guilt at 7 and started making hot coffee to go with the fresh Krispy Kreme honey buns I whipped up for her. I gently woke her at 7:30. To ease the transition from sleep to wakefulness, I opened the bag of bacon jerky. No one can be upset with the smell of bacon in the air.
It had been a cold, windy, and sometimes rainy night. I mentioned that I was surprised nothing got wet in the tent from the rain. Bunny said “what rain?” It was still a bit foggy so I let her set the pace for packing up. I noticed on the package of bacon jerky it said “you get out what you put in.” I have several problems with this quip. 1) if the bacon doesn’t digest, why eat it. 2) if it is bacon coming out, would it be possible to just have an all bacon jerky diet on the trail and keep recycling. Someone else can have the first bite to verify the accuracy of bacon on the coming out. 3) I eat mostly solid food on the trail and still haven’t had a solid export yet.
We knew we were late starting at 9, but we still were hoping for about 14 miles today. At 1, we still hadn’t even made 6 miles yet and we’re thinking we might be happy if we can at least get in 10. When we left camp, we ran into a sobo and asked him if he had seen another old couple like us. He said he hadn’t really ran across a lot of people. He had started at the parking lot at Snoqualmie and ran out 10 miles before turning around. He already had 13 miles in and we hadn’t even started yet.
There were several other trail runners out doing their best to make us feel even older. The trail was over several miles of loose rock slides. Repeatedly, Bunny and I had to step aside while runners whizzed on by. We worry about every foot placement and step while they aren’t even looking at the trail. There was a time about a decade ago before I started using hiking poles that I wasn’t afraid of falling. In fact, I had never used hiking poles until Bunny and I went to Scotland to hike the West Highland Way. I should have realized that Bunny was actually trying to hide the fact that she was older than me yet too proud to use a cane. That’s why she introduced hiking sticks in the mix, to cover up the age difference. If she could get me hooked on sticks, I wouldn’t notice that she really needed a cane. Bunny has prematurely aged my walking.
Washington is a truly beautiful state. The mountains are magnificent in all directions. Everywhere you look is a postcard. At one point, we were able to catch a glimpse of Mt Baker ahead of us. We turned around to catch a last look of Mt Rainier, but saw it looming over us as large as ever. We left Mt Rainier NP over 90 miles ago and it still dominates the horizon. Rainier is a massive mountain and probably the mountain I have photographed the most over the last 15 years.
Everyone coming towards us would get quizzed on whether they had seen another old couple like us. No one had. Another couple our age told us they had seen an old man and a young woman not too far ahead. We figured they must have seen some other nobos and just ignored it. But we heard it again from a couple of females that had admired a view with an old man and a young woman. As we crossed the ridge into the next valley, we met 3 sobo guys that said they had seen an older couple, about 20 minutes back, that was heading towards a lake for a lunch break. These guys were all in their early 20s while the other people we had talked to were near our age. Perspective?
We were actually a little concerned about what had happened to Charcoal B and Struggles since we couldn’t find them last night. We wanted to make sure they were ok, so we were trying to catch up with them or at least, make sure they were alright. We knew they weren’t around where we camped, so we figured they must have camped about 2 miles up the trail at the next water source. We also figured they would have started around 8 which gives then an additional hour of walking on top of the 2 mile lead. I figured that we should catch up with them by around 2 in the afternoon, but we were dragging terribly today.
I just assumed that everyone was talking about the same couple. I needed to find out more info from the next people we met. I’d ask if they had said their trail names or where they were from. The next couple of young girls said they had just met an older couple and he was wearing a blue hoody. Charcoal B wears a hoodie to get out of the sun. Positive ID. They were just about 20 minutes ahead on the trail. We picked up our pace, but couldn’t seem to narrow the gap.
Over the ridge, we encountered a switchback bonanza. There were so many and so close that you almost got dizzy changing direction so much. I saw a solo female that said she had just met an older couple sitting on a log just 2 switchbacks ahead—their names were Charcoal B and Struggles. We were almost caught up. I took off down the trail at more than 2.5 mph (fast for us). After 20 minutes I gave up going so fast and waited for Bunny to catch up. They must have seen me and ducked behind the log to avoid me. It happens. A lot.
I calmed down and waited for Bunny. When she caught up, I checked the map and noticed a waterfall with a campsite in another mile. That would be right at 9.5 miles from where they probably camped last night. We’d stop in and say hi as they set up camp. They weren’t there. A guy sitting near a stream said they had just passed less than 10 minutes ago. There was camping in another couple of miles which was the minimum we were aiming for after our crappy start to the day. We might be heading to the same spot.
The trail entered a recent burn area and I could see far enough ahead that I thought I recognized Charcoal B. I told Bunny I saw them and took off to catch up. When I got close enough I yelled “Kunta Kente, at last I have found you.” They looked devastated. All day long they had been running to get away from me and yet I had caught them. They looked at me longingly and asked “where’s Bunny?” hoping to save the situation.
We walked the rest of the way together to camp. We saw a young kid, I’m With Him, come back up the trail looking for his dad, Bingo Bango. We had met them pretty early in the day when they passed us after our first climb. Bingo Bango had stopped to use a tree around the waterfall and hadn’t shown up at the meeting spot. I’m With Him was clearly nervous. We told him we hadn’t seen him. I’m With Him ran back up to the waterfall looking for his dad.
We made it to camp about 6:30. We still haven’t gotten any word on the whereabouts of Bingo Bango, but, as can be seen from today’s events, there is a good trail communication network. We were stopped a couple of times on the way to our camp and quizzed about Bingo. From looking at the trail this afternoon, there is an alternate route around where we are with the same place names. We are sure there was just a mixup as to which route to take. Dad took one, son took the other.
Bunny and I plan to make it to Stevens Pass a day faster than Charcoal B and Struggles are. We were hoping to get to spend another night on the trail together which we did tonight. They’ll be much relieved when we move on tomorrow. They are looking at 10.5 miles and I’m looking at 16. Bunny is noncommittal to the 16.
One other interesting thing happened today. At the parking lot in Snoqualmie was a sign posted on the trail which said “Cam Ron, will you marry me?” When Bunny and I were stopped for a break, we had a conversation with a sobo. When we asked his name he said he didn’t have one yet. He was just Cameron. I asked if anyone ever calls him Cam Ron which he responded that a few of his friends did. Then he told me that he had already heard about the sign but didn’t think it was for him. I did mention that it was a conditional proposal. The sign said please leave up until August 6. Apparently, if Cam Ron can’t make it as far as Snoqualmie by then, the offer is null and void. It’s kind of cold, but, it is difficult to hike with someone that has a significantly different pace. Cam Ron’s proposer knows his/her pace and what he/she expects of Cam Ron. It’s a dog eat dog world on the trail and Cam Ron may not make the cut.
EFG