Mile 2382 to 2391

We pack up knowing that the Summit Pancake House in Snoqualmie is less than 10 miles away.  We hike past the campsite we had planned to hike to before switching to Mirror Lake and congratulate ourselves for a good call. The creek is a trickle and the campsite unimpressive. On our way we pass large rock fields where pika are cheerfully welcoming us, defensively sounding an alarm, or shouting out attack orders. We do not stick around to find out which it actually is. As we continue down the trail the roar of Interstate 90 drowns out the squeaking pika and our grumbling stomachs drown out the Interstate.

Approaching Snoqualmie

At the Pancake House we request a booth with electric outlets. The outlets are as important to us as the omelettes, pancakes and coffee. Other thru-hikers come and go at our table creating a confusing jumble of plates, cups and bills. While connecting to the rest of the world via WiFi we learn good and bad news. The good news is there maybe fire relief coming in the form of rain. Yes, that is also the bad news. Our next section is 4 days long and it looks as though it will be raining the entire time, some days over an inch. If you have ever pitched a wet tent and slept in a wet down bag, you know what we are in for.

Some hikers are planning to get off the trail for a while. We however have a date with infamy, or at least with Daniel who is off work next Monday. If we can get to Steven’s Pass by Monday he can shuttle us to Chelan where we hope to catch the ferry to Stehekin. From Stehekin we can take the bus to the PCT and continue north to Canada. All other routes right now are closed because of fires. So rain or more rain, we have to get to Steven’s Pass by Monday.

I pick up our resupply box sent by Terri. We move to a picnic table in front of the Chevron gas station and drown our sorrows in pints of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. We each choose the one with the maximum calories, which turns out to be Tonight Dough with a whopping 1,240 calories. 4 servings?! More like 4 bites.

Daniel arrives, chauffeured by my Aunt Peg and Uncle Lane McNitt. They have loaded their Honda Pilot with piles of magic including hot pizza, cold drinks, Texas cake, fruit, vegetables, zucchini bread, Chex mix and I don’t know what all. Complete strangers appear out of no where to join in the shark feeding frenzy. Some of the strangers are stranger than others, but all seem happy to partake, with particular emphasis on the take part.

After a few pictures our trail angels fly away and we are left to pack up and head across the interstate to camp at the trailhead. Tomorrow is a huge climb out of Snoqualmie. The good news is that the coming rain will probably keep us cool.

Kevin, Lane, Peg, Rick and Daniel