June 12: Burney Falls State Park to Kosk Spring (PCT miles 1418 to 1440)
June 13: Kosk Spring to Deer Creek Spring (PCT miles 1440 to 1460)
June 14: Deer Creek Spring to Squaw Valley Creek (PCT miles 1460 to 1484)
June 15: Squaw Valley Creek to I5 near Dunsmuir (PCT miles 1484 to 1501)
The PCT is divided into sections bounded by major roads or resupply locations (for a list, see https://www.pctmap.net/maps/).
CA Section O is a 100 mile section that heads west from Burney Falls State Park and I5 near Dunsmuir. It is almost entirely in forested areas, except where it is clear-cut logged, but even with the shade and streams it was hot, up and down haul. The trail was poorly maintained and heavily overgrown in many areas
Yes, that is a trail disappearing into the brush. There was also a ton of Poison Oak everywhere in this section. Ugh!
The trees blocked the views, but every now and then I could see forested hillsides
A few rock outcroppings
And Mt Shasta to the North
The stream vegetation was very lush: I was amazed at the size of these plant leaves
And this Leopard Lily
After hiking about 20 miles each day my feet were in a lot of pain. New blisters developed and my arches were very sore. I would start the day feeling OK, but would stumble/stagger into my campsite every night dirty, sweaty, smelly and oh so sore.
Needless to say my mood was not so great and I was strongly considering quitting the trail when I reached Dunsmuir. The thing that kept me going was knowing that my wife, Liz, is driving up Friday to meet me in Dunsmuir.
My mood improved on Friday as I summited the last ridge and viewed the Castle Crags Ridge across the valley
And went for a swim in the Sacramento River
I quickly caught a ride up I5 to Dunsmuir and was dropped off at the local Brewery
Liz arrived a few hours after I did. Things are indeed looking up! We drove to the city of Mount Shasta to do my laundry and delivered a fresh pair of hiking shoes.
I went through my pack and cut about a pound of unused stuff, yes, including that headlamp.
We slept in a smelly hotel room in Dunsmuir, but the bed was comfy. Tomorrow is a zero day to help revitalize my feet.
Thanks for reading!
