Start point
Pond at Mile 1939.3
End point
Devil’s Lake Trail Junction, mile 1961.9
Miles hiked
22.6
Wilderness area
Deschutes National Forest
Three Sisters Wilderness
Williamette National Forest
The day on trail
It’s so pretty out here, and we’re going to have a fun little detour! Elk Lake Lodge is a ways up ahead, but that’ll come when we get there.
The pond was so pretty this morning. It was a little idyllic oasis with just the most picturesque light and reflection. I felt like I was in a throwaway Bob Ross painting.
Ketchup and I made plans to have a late lunch at the Elk Lake Lodge. The allure of a drink and hot food we don’t have to cook is too much. She took off and I had a little brekkie, oatmeal and peanut butter with a Clif Bar side, which I’m sick of but need for the energy. I’m choking this down daily, and really just kind of have to or I’ll feel even worse when I bonk later in the day.
The trail is worth the misery of the food, though, because it’s just so pretty.
The air is thick with the scent of trees and the smell of rich, organic Pacific Northwest dust. The sun was bright, but not strong. At least, not desert section strong. And the mosquitoes were plentiful. Luckily there were good stretches without water which were relatively less populated with the little poker-suckers and my picaridin did a good enough job keeping them at bay.
There were a few little trail crossing signs.
And it was really just moving and moving, walking and walking, because we were aiming to eat 14 miles and change into the day, instead of around 10 miles in. This means we have a little tighter of a schedule before resting.
I like that kind of push. Some people like to do a 10 miles before 10am kind of day, but I’m a slow mover in the morning, so I’m really more of a 12 before noon or 15 before lunch. I like settling into my groove and stopping only when I really need to.
I was bopping along and found this broken paper wasp nest. Luckily it was well abandoned.
And another trail sign soon after it.
Porky Lake Trail. It was impossible not to chuckle at the stupid scenes that I remember from the movie Porky’s. A movie which does not hold up in modern times, except for the fact that they had a fair balance of male nudity to female nudity. But other than that, the misogyny was played for laughs, rather than the womanizers of the movie being the butts of the joke. At least they had a good take on racism. But you can’t win them all.
Why am I talking about 70’s movies in my trail journal?
I have trail to look at!
And just a beautiful stretch of trail with a fun bridge in it.
I love love love walking on a trail through meadows. There’s something so comforting about being able to see far, but having this little wall of trees holding you in the palm of its hand.
Look at this freshly made sign!
Not going that way though. I have a lunch spot to get to and a beer, or three, to enjoy.
Oh here it is.
I made a right and headed down the trail, then down the paved road. There was a truck that came a little too close as I was crossing a bridge on the road. But whatever, roads be roads and drivers be drivers.
I was engrossed in picking the blueberries, strawberries, and other goodies growing on the side of the road. No pictures, just munches.
It ended up that Ketchup had a ride on the truck that got too close, and she was at the lodge just before me. She had found Eva and Swiss Cheese and were all hanging out. I ran in and grabbed a beer and some pizza and joined them.
The lodge was cute. And Schwift was there, the wildfire refugee who picked me up with Lady and took me to Diamond Lake!
Swiss Cheese, Eva, Ketchup, and I hung out. There were a bunch of other hikers there, Vortex, Vibes, and that whole crew. Our little foursome really just hung out and caught up, because we’d split up. It’s funny how you can hike bigger days, and the zeroes will allow some slower hikers to catch up. I think Aesop wrote some story about it, you know, tortoises and hares. And we have lots of hair out here (okay bad homonym).
After about an hour and a half, Ketchup and I took off. It was time to go before we got vortexed into the lodge and I have a time constraint to honor.
We found our way back to the main trail via a different route, me a little ahead of Ketchup who left her gear at the trailhead, so she wouldn’t be tempted to stay behind.
It really feels good to leave those spots behind and be true to what my soul wants, not what my temporary desires are. My soul wants to walk, while my stomach wants food and my fears want rest. This is about feeding my soul, and feed it I shall.
On I walked. One of the Three Sisters imposing as I headed North.
I found these fat little mushrooms, which were too cute not to investigate further.
And continued along the trail, getting closer and closer to the trail junction where Ketchup and I planned to meet up. The sky was turning to gold and I stopped to wait for her.
We found a trail sign and went off to camp in a little nook of trees. Some other people had stealth camped there before us and left an abundance of garbage. They had dehydrated food meal bags strewn around with mold growing inside them and wipes and paper all over. I cleaned up, threw the trash in my bag, and we explored around finding the best spots for our tents.
We ate and sat around talking until it got too chilly and we got too tired. Then it was off to bed.