8/17/17 – Up and Up and Up We Go

Blog 8/17 – Up and Up and Up
Day 115
Miles: 2,179.59 to 2,202.74

Total miles hiked: 1,561.70
It’s curious how miles can feel completely different from one day to another. Yesterday we hiked 20 miles and by the time we finished at 6:00 p.m. we were exhausted and our feet were screaming. Today we hiked 23 miles and 2,500 feet of elevation more than yesterday and yet we strolled to camp at 6:15 p.m. feeling relatively fine.

Two thing could attribute to our better performance today. The trail, though much more uphill was gentler today, mostly dirt with minimal amount of rocks, and the temperature was much lower as well and at least I felt like the cooler air let me conserve quite a lot of energy.

It was windy today, one of our windiest day on trail. The breeze felt refreshing while we walked but in the evening when setting up camp at Blue Lake I got unseasonably cold and I ended up running camp errands in my down coat. 

View today consisted mostly of Mt. Hood, which is now seen further to the South, and Mt. Adams which is right in front of us. Occasionally we can also see Mt. St. Helens but her prime time is yet to come.
I’m curious if we can pull another 23 miler tomorrow and get all the way to Trout Lake where we’ll resupply for the next stretch. It would be good if we made it, rumors have it they make the best huckleberry pie on trail there, but I have a good back up plan in case we feel lazy or too tired for another long day.