Day 132 : A change in the weather

29th August 2013 Mile 2073.5 to mile 2107.5: Warm Springs to Timberline Lodge Mileage : 34 Average mileage since day 101 : The whole of today was centered around getting to Timberline Lodge that evening, so I was up and moving early in order to get some easy early morning miles under my belt before the weather changed for the worse. Although the weather is not supposed to change just yet, I have been having an ominous feeling over the last few days that autumn in the Cascades has started. As if confirming my suspicions, the weather decided my kit wasn't quite wet enough after another humid night smaping right by a river and so attempted to rectify the situation all afternoon. Apart from the rain, the day passed uneventfully apart from bumping into Fireball, with whom I had crossed the half-way marker, and whom I hadn't seen since leaving Burney Falls. Fireball had reached Crater Lake, was having a rough time and decided to get off trail for a couple days and then head south for a while to mix things up. To me this seems a bit weird and it's not something I would have done, but I'm better at not judging others now and am glad that he's still on trail. The has been an almost palpable mentality change among the hikers still on trail as we realise that although we're close to the end now, we still have hundreds of miles to go with ever worsening weather conditions, and every hiker has to prepare him/her-self for that. Hikers are still dropping off like flys, and it seems to me that from here on out the trail is a mental challenge as oppposed to a physical one. That is not to say the physical challenge is non inconsiderable, far from it. Infact, the the trail will get tougher in Washington, and the physicality of the trail is compounded by the slow but constant deterioration of our bodies. Any hiker that started out from Mexico is by now experiencing a fatigue and weariness that doesn't really go away regardless of how much you eat or sleep. It would be great to be able to slow down and take more zeros and hike fewer miles everyday, but the thought of being stopped by the weather one or two days from the Canadian border not something any of us will entertain for even a moment, and we all know that if we want to get there, we must keep pushing as hard and as fast as possible. So it all comes down to mind over matter. In my view those hikers that will make are those strong enough mentally to endure the weather and physical pain long enough to get to the border. I thought a lot about that today while hiking, and realised the make or break issue for me will be my ability to stay dry when sleeping. I can deal with the cold, and the rain when i'm hiking as I can just eat more, and hike harder to stay warm and dry. But when I'm done for the day, i need to be able to put on dry clothes and keep them dry, and me warm when I sleep. To that end I know my Tarptent is going to have to go. I spent a fair amount of money on it, and am disappointed by its performace, but hiking experience is hard won through a process of trail and error so I tried not to get too annoyed by it. I am fortunate that this is my only hiking kit issue thus far (apart from run of the mill things like socks and hiking poles of course). What works for one hiker, doesn't necessarily work for another so now i need to find a replacement. A couple other hikers I've been hiking with over the last couple days, namely Horny Toad, and Senor Verde are also users of the Contrail Tarptent but are nevertheless thinking about switching to the Big Agnes, whatever that is. I personally can't justify spending several hundred dollars on a shiny new and all powerful expensive tent fitted with an en-suite bathroom that I will use for 10ish days, so I've decided I'll go the other way, i.e. low tech and low cost. I am going to get myself a piece of tarpaulin big enough to stretch across me when I sleep and that i can put up high enough over me that hopefully it will keep enough of the weather out to keep me ish-dry while in northern Washington while allowing me to get my morning and evening routines done with minimum hassle. The pros of this option of course that it costs very little, and is very light, but the cons are that the protection it can provide is minimal at best, and that in a real storm, might be totally inadequate. I'm also aware it will mean that I have to camp in the trees at night in order to string it up, which shouldn't be a problem given the forested nature of the Washington Cascades, but it will mean i have to think a bit more about my camping choices as i get farther north. All these tent toughts helped me pass the time as I sped towards the final climb of the day up the southern flank of Mt Hood towards the Timberline Lodge. I usually plan my days to avoid long climbs at the end of the day, but today I decided the prospect of Timberline Lodge was worth it. Timberline Lodge though, as the name suggests, is at or above the timberline of Mt Hood and was a long climb almost , but thankfully not quite, into the cloud layer obscuring the higher portions of Mt Hood. The only way to tackle such a climb at the end of a long day is through the intake of massive amounts of sugar, which is why i carry a skittle reserve at all times. As I've said previously I don't often use sugar on the trail as a form of energy but it does have its uses, and this is a good example of when it comes in handy. I could literally feel my energy levels surge from the sugar entered my blood stream as I started the climb. High on sugar I was able to pretty much run the 5 miles up to the the lodge which I reached just as I began to crash. The lodge was swirling in ever darkening mist and fog as I raced up to it and into the warmth of the luxury lodge. My plan for the night only took me as far as the lodge, and not what i'd actually do when i actually got there. Although massively hiker friendly, the lodge is still a very expensive place to stay and I had no intention of shelling out a lot of money, and so had actually scouted out a bit of shelter around the back of the lodge where i could retreat to if i didn't find anything better. As often happens though on the PCT 'The Trail Provides' and the time from me entering the main entrance of the lodge uncertain of where i'd stay, if i'd be able to get clean and if i'd be able to get something to having all that sorted under a minute, as Cartwheel, a fellow PCTer was walking through the lobby and instantly helped me out. He gave me his room key and told me to go upstairs, have a shower, and claim a sleeping place on the floor of his room. I love the PCT. In his room were hikers , Scout, an Alaskan girl, The Messenger, and Israeli, and The Chosen One, a self styled Rastafarian. This bunch were equally hospitable and before long I was warm and clean and looking for something to eat. The Timberline Lodge is revered by all PCT hikers for its legendary buffets, but I was too late for the evening one so contented myself with a meal and beer at one of the other restaurants. The extremes between the rough and ready nature of the trial, and 5 star luxury of the lodge were difficult to process. I sat that in the restaurant listening to the pianoed lounge music emanating from somewhere nearby, watching all the other people staying there interspersed with other PCT hikers in a similar sort of trance. Pleased with the day's accomplishments, I headed back to the room and got went passed out almost instantly upon getting into my sleeping bag.