Aug 2: Cascade Locks to Rock Creek (PCT mile 2147.1 to 2166.7)

I had a great breakfast in town at the restaurant next to the Bridge of the Gods.

I crossed over the Columbia River into Washington. It was warm and humid with thick clouds, but the weather report showed no rain for the area today. I removed the leggings from my convertible pants to stay as cool as possible— today is a lot of uphill to get out of the river valley.

Unfortunately there is a lot of Poison Oak at this low elevation m, so I have to keep my eyes peeled until I get up to a higher elevation.

The good news is that there are ripe blackberries on the Washington side

I also these berries- those white ones are pretty scary

I passed a small lake early on, but since I hadn’t built up a sweat and I had showered this morning, I decided not to swim.

As I climbed higher, the clouds dropped lower

Soon mist was falling, large drops were raining from the trees, and my legs and shoes were getting wet from the overgrown bushes. It was still warm enough to stay in shorts and short sleeves, and except for my shoes, evaporation kept me from getting fully soaked. My feet were soaked, but not terribly uncomfortable.

I caught a few images of water on plants

I passed by the ruins of a wood structure destroyed in a fire in 1929. That long pile of wood used to be the side of s building

Take a short wall with me in the woods

I had a minor mishap when my foot slipped off the trail and my body followed. I skidded about four feet down the slope getting numerous scratches and twisting my knee a bit, but nothing serious.

The mist/rain ended in the early afternoon. I arrived at Rock Creek and selection a site uphill from the stream hoping that other hikers would select sites next to the water. By 8 o’clock I have two others very near me. Oh well.

Thanks for reading!