Timothy Lake. Mount Hood is back there somewhere. Water looked cold and miserable — so I didn't swim. First lake I actually planned to swim in and skipped. That says something. #PCT #OregonPCT #TimothyLake #MountHood #RainDay #Day12 #ThruHike #PNW

Timothy Lake. Mount Hood is back there somewhere. Water looked cold and miserable — so I didn't swim. First lake I actually planned to swim in and skipped. That says something. #PCT #OregonPCT #TimothyLake #MountHood #RainDay #Day12 #ThruHike #PNW
Day 5. Last fully dry day. Didn't know it at the time - just a warm tent, a calm lake, and the quiet before everything changed. Six days later, I'm still drying out. #PCT #PacificCrestTrail #PCTNOBO #Day5 #LastDryDay #Campsite #LakeCamp #Day11 #OregonPCT #Hiking
Day 7. Mt. Jefferson through the mist. Forecast said a storm was coming. I knew it. But standing here, staring at this mountain, I had no idea how scary it would be in person. I found out. #PCT #PacificCrestTrail #PCTNOBO #Day7 #MtJefferson #ParkRidge #StormComing #OregonPCT #ThruHike #MountainViews
Day 8. Sleet. Gloves failed. Poop bags - the ones I pack for actual shit - now on my hands. Never thought my waste-packers would save my fingers from frostbite. Desperate? Yes. Effective? Mostly. #PCT #PCTNOBO #Day8 #TrailHack #ImprovisedGear #SleetStorm #OregonPCT #HikerProblems #ThruHike
Day 8. Weather's still shit. Sitting in my tent, listening to rain, trying not to think about what that forecast meant. A little scary in here — but I made it over the ridge. That's what matters. #PCT #PacificCrestTrail #PCTNOBO #Day8 #RainStorm #TentLife #SoloHike #WeatherWait #OregonPCT #ThruHike
Nightly threesome: me, my headlamp, and my MP3 player. Playlist on shuffle — Don't Fear The Reaper came on as I snapped this. Rain on the fly. Cozy as hell. Solo hiking has its perks. #PCT #PacificCrestTrail #PCTNOBO #TentLife #NightInTent #RainyNight #Day7 #OregonPCT #ThruHike #SoloHike
Watching rain drip into my cook pot. Made it over Mt. Jefferson's Park Ridge. Now I wait. Wet forest, misty trees, and the sound of dripping. Zero day well earned. #PCT #PacificCrestTrail #PCTNOBO #MtJefferson #ParkRidge #ZeroDay #RainCamp #Day7 #OregonPCT #ThruHike
3 minutes total. 4 days of funk washed away. Cold, clean, and smelling human again. The view back was worth every shiver. Playing with this cinematic filter — making my desperate scrub feel like a movie. #PCT #PacificCrestTrail #PCTNOBO #HeadLake #AlpineLake #Day8 #OregonPCT #ThruHike #ColdPlunge
Four days without a shower & wet clothes. I could smell myself. Head Lake — one minute in, one minute to scrub, one minute out. High 50s, cold enough to steal your breath. But desperate times. In I went. #PCT #PacificCrestTrail #PCTNOBO #HeadLake #AlpineLake #Day8 #OregonPCT #ThruHike #ColdPlunge