I have made it to Snoqualmie Pass mile 2402 nearly half way done with Washington. The border is only 258 miles away about 10 or 11 hiking days. This is a goal I've spent a lot of time working toward and envisioning being achieved.
In this last section I tweaked my inner ankle on my right foot. I thought nothing of it and continued hiking on another 70 miles to the next town. However it has gotten continually worse. I'm taking a day off here to help it heal. This has been my first physical hindrance on the trail, I've had hard days on the trail but nothing I couldn't push through and endure. I find myself now humbled and uncertain about my status to continue, waking up this morning I could hardly weight it. Things that are out of your control to change are often the hardest to deal with. I had a great talk with a good friend Dave Christensen last night about this injury. There are a few interesting things about it that I thought I'd share.
Timing: When first on the trail Cameron came out with a healing ligament in his ankle. There were many days that were extremely painful for him to endure and at times it was uncertain if he would be able to continue. Here I am at the end of my trip in the same predicament forming a Chiastic pattern. I remember when Cameron was going through his most painful moments how I wished and prayed that I could take the pain from him that would allow him to continue. I am now experiencing the pain he felt.
Plans: I've been thinking a lot lately about what I want to do when I return home. A predominant desire of mine has been to run an ultra-marathon, specifically a 50 miler. This desire grew out of pushing myself out here hiking and would require a lot more training, potentially taking up a lot of my time. I had started planning my return life around this goal ex. What will allow me to train? etc. Considering that my most recent job and field rotates around 8 days on and 6 days off I'd cut those jobs out as potential options. This injury has made me take a step back and evaluate what is actually most important for me to be working towards when I return home and think about where I need to be from a higher perspective than a physical goal.
I'm planning on resting until I feel ready to hike again. Your prayers will be much appreciated.
Trail Highlights:
I walked across Oregon which was a beautiful state, surprised me in many ways, as I'd heard it was mostly walking through trees (trust me that can become very monotonous). There were many hidden lakes and stunning prominent peaks. Crater Lake for sunrise dropped me to my knees. Navigating the meadows and ridges of lava behind the Three Sisters was another favorite. Picking wild huckleberries in the park like valley below the glaciated peak of Mt. Jefferson made me want to go back and spend more time there. Mt. Hood had an awesome high alpine feel with many cascading waterfalls.
Physically I really pushed myself through Oregon. I walked across it in 2 weeks and 2 days but two of those days were spend in town hanging out and not hiking. I averaged 32+ miles a day my biggest mile days being a 40 into Shelter Cove it rained and hailed on us that day. Then my biggest yet and ever was a 50 miler between Olalie Lake and the Timberline Lodge. It was a personal challenge that I'll probably never repeat again, my feet killed afterwards. Then Brandon and Breanne met me at Tunnel Falls and finished the last stretch of trail with me. It was a great way to finish Oregon. I was able to go into Portland with them and rest up, eat at some great restaurants, and make all my resupply boxes for Washington full of snacks from Trader Joe's. They were great hosts.
Washington has been gorgeous, but typical North West weather very rainy. Been through a lot of lush rain forest environments though because of it. On a clear day while climbing around Mt. Adams I scrambled up on top of a rock dome and found myself at the fulcrum point with Mt. Hood to my South, Mt. Saint Helens to the West, Mt. Adams to the East, and Mt. Rainer straight ahead of me to the North. It was one of my favorite panoramas of the entire trail. It was a special moment of gratitude for the beauty of nature that I've come to love so much. Next highlight was Goat Rocks which reminded me of the Sierras with its jagged peaks and waterfalls. I crossed a glacier on its North side and then hiked to an off trail summit of Old Snowy which is where I acknowledged the turning of the Fall Equinox. I then dropped to White Pass and out where I was engulfed in rain, sleet, and snow. Luckily we found shelter a couple nights in a hiker cabin and an abandoned weather station.
In this last section I tweaked my inner ankle on my right foot. I thought nothing of it and continued hiking on another 70 miles to the next town. However it has gotten continually worse. I'm taking a day off here to help it heal. This has been my first physical hindrance on the trail, I've had hard days on the trail but nothing I couldn't push through and endure. I find myself now humbled and uncertain about my status to continue, waking up this morning I could hardly weight it. Things that are out of your control to change are often the hardest to deal with. I had a great talk with a good friend Dave Christensen last night about this injury. There are a few interesting things about it that I thought I'd share.
Timing: When first on the trail Cameron came out with a healing ligament in his ankle. There were many days that were extremely painful for him to endure and at times it was uncertain if he would be able to continue. Here I am at the end of my trip in the same predicament forming a Chiastic pattern. I remember when Cameron was going through his most painful moments how I wished and prayed that I could take the pain from him that would allow him to continue. I am now experiencing the pain he felt.
Plans: I've been thinking a lot lately about what I want to do when I return home. A predominant desire of mine has been to run an ultra-marathon, specifically a 50 miler. This desire grew out of pushing myself out here hiking and would require a lot more training, potentially taking up a lot of my time. I had started planning my return life around this goal ex. What will allow me to train? etc. Considering that my most recent job and field rotates around 8 days on and 6 days off I'd cut those jobs out as potential options. This injury has made me take a step back and evaluate what is actually most important for me to be working towards when I return home and think about where I need to be from a higher perspective than a physical goal.
I'm planning on resting until I feel ready to hike again. Your prayers will be much appreciated.
Trail Highlights:
I walked across Oregon which was a beautiful state, surprised me in many ways, as I'd heard it was mostly walking through trees (trust me that can become very monotonous). There were many hidden lakes and stunning prominent peaks. Crater Lake for sunrise dropped me to my knees. Navigating the meadows and ridges of lava behind the Three Sisters was another favorite. Picking wild huckleberries in the park like valley below the glaciated peak of Mt. Jefferson made me want to go back and spend more time there. Mt. Hood had an awesome high alpine feel with many cascading waterfalls.
Physically I really pushed myself through Oregon. I walked across it in 2 weeks and 2 days but two of those days were spend in town hanging out and not hiking. I averaged 32+ miles a day my biggest mile days being a 40 into Shelter Cove it rained and hailed on us that day. Then my biggest yet and ever was a 50 miler between Olalie Lake and the Timberline Lodge. It was a personal challenge that I'll probably never repeat again, my feet killed afterwards. Then Brandon and Breanne met me at Tunnel Falls and finished the last stretch of trail with me. It was a great way to finish Oregon. I was able to go into Portland with them and rest up, eat at some great restaurants, and make all my resupply boxes for Washington full of snacks from Trader Joe's. They were great hosts.
Washington has been gorgeous, but typical North West weather very rainy. Been through a lot of lush rain forest environments though because of it. On a clear day while climbing around Mt. Adams I scrambled up on top of a rock dome and found myself at the fulcrum point with Mt. Hood to my South, Mt. Saint Helens to the West, Mt. Adams to the East, and Mt. Rainer straight ahead of me to the North. It was one of my favorite panoramas of the entire trail. It was a special moment of gratitude for the beauty of nature that I've come to love so much. Next highlight was Goat Rocks which reminded me of the Sierras with its jagged peaks and waterfalls. I crossed a glacier on its North side and then hiked to an off trail summit of Old Snowy which is where I acknowledged the turning of the Fall Equinox. I then dropped to White Pass and out where I was engulfed in rain, sleet, and snow. Luckily we found shelter a couple nights in a hiker cabin and an abandoned weather station.
