July 8 – Final prep before I start my 2019 Ashland to Canada PCT Section Hike

I’ve been itching to return and finish the Pacific Crest Trail after the shin splints episode that ended last years hike. I’ll be starting at the point I exited last year: Howard Prairie Lake, 24 miles east of Ashland.  This year I’ll be hiking about 900 miles, which will actually be my longest Section Hike.

I was hoping to start my hike in late May, but the long winter prevented that, and the continued winter conditions prevented a June start as well. And so I’ll start hiking on July 11, after a nice visit with my good friends Rob and Alice Diefenbach.

My rough itinerary is as follows:

This section is a bit more remote than the California sections and so I will have 6 resupply boxes mailed to me on the trail.  I’ll be buying food at stores near the trail at 5 locations.  I’ve got my boxes all ready, and the first two are on the way.  Liz will send the rest for me (thank you Liz!)

Once again I am backpacking stove-less: All my food is dried and will be eaten at ambient temperature.  Breakfast is oat bars and fruit bars (a’la Larabars).  Lunch is nuts, apricots, Kind bars, jerky, Snickers and Gatorade.  Dinner is salami, cheese, Fritos and cookies.  It does not sound all that great, but I’ve found it is what I will happily eat on the trail.

I’ll be updating this blog on as regular a basis as I can, as well as intermittent Facebook updates.  Subscribe to get notifications of new blog postings.  My GPS texting device (DeLorme Explorer) no longer supports integration with Facebook (so, no more “Camping here, all is well” posts), but you can track my progress against my intended route at the following web page: https://share.garmin.com/DaleM

Wish me luck, and thanks for reading!

Dale