Snoqualmie Pass to Stevens Pass on the PCT

I've always wanted to run the Pacific Crest Trail, and when my friend Murray Maitland suggested a 72 mile run last weekend from Snoqualmie Pass to Stevens Pass along the PCT, I jumped on it. Also joining us was his friend Christi Masi.

Our logistics worked out very well. Christi's husband drove us to Snoqualmie Pass on Saturday morning and dropped us off. Meanwhile, my girlfriend Kathy and Murray's wife Lisa drove two cars to Stevens Pass and dropped Lisa's car off for us at the end. Then they went backpacking, not wanting to waste a beautiful full moon weekend.

I brought my Gregory Iso pack, a 100 oz bladder, about 3 pounds of my favorite dehydrated food, a hat, a windshirt, arm warmers, leg warmers, gloves and a puffy jacket. I also brought Aqua Mira (pre-mixed) to treat water, sunglasses, a small amount of sunscreen, TP, a first aid kit, headlamp and handheld light (both with extra batteries), and my camera.

Are goal was to run the PCT in 24 hours, which was a reasonable 3 mph. No rain was forecast, and temperatures were 50 to 75 degrees. The night was particularly nice, with 50 degree weather and a full moon.

I'll update a little more when I get some pictures, but the short report is that we finished the run in 23 hours and 45 minutes, just about what we predicted, and my altimiter watch showed a little over 15,000 feet of gain. We only made one wrong turn in the middle of the night at Hope Lake, heading down a valley for a couple hundred yards, but we quickly realized our mistake. We saw one bear in the early afternoon, but he graciously stepped aside and let us pass unmolested. Scenery was quite spectacular. We stopped for water four times. Water was plentiful enough that we did not have any trouble with staying hydrated. Pictures later.