Start point
Skykomish
End point
Stehekin
Miles hiked
0 — hitch only
Wilderness area
N/A
People I met
Beth’s aunts
The day on road
I got up and checked conditions. The trail is still very, very much shut down. The fires are very much raging. There’s no rain in the forecast for the foreseeable future, at least in the areas on fire. Natch.
I got up, had my last shower for a little bit, and headed to the LouSkis for a little breakfast and coffee, while I waited for Beth and her aunts to come get me. A few hikers came by, including Sherpa. They all were given a huge sign that said “PCT Hiker to Trail” they used to flag down a hitch, then passed it through the drive-thru window back to the staff when they got their rides. Sherpa took a bit of time to sort out just due to the language barrier — he doesn’t speak much English and really only speaks Korean. We got him sorted though.
Soon Beth arrived with her aunts Laurie and her twin Carol. We made introductions and I’m glad I didn’t smell terrible. Showers and laundry for the win.
We headed off to Chelan, to get the ferry to Stehekin. It’s a long drive.
We decided on Stehekin, even though we’re skipping some area, because there’s a famous bakery and we both really want to see the area. There are no roads that lead to it, only a ferry. So you have to book a ride on the ferry in and out, or hike in.
There’s one place, Holden Village, that arranges rides to/from trail and whatnot, but it’s a Lutheran community tucked in the mountains. I’m leery of Christian organizations, especially after running into the SDA camp. Plus we have a ride to Chelan so…we don’t really need Holden. Maybe I’ll scope it out when I come back. Probably not, though.
We got to Chelan just before the last ferry took off. Beth was able to score tickets before we took off, so we were set and ready to go. I said bye to Laurie and Carol and we got on board.
Ferries are fun. Even when they take four hours. There was one other stop before we got to Stehekin, Lucerne, which is where Holden is accessed from. It was a long, but enjoyable ride. And it was wonderful to see Beth.
We got to Stehekin around 2 and looked around. We left our stuff in lockers for hikers and made our way to the bakery. It was a few miles to the bakers, but we stuck out our thumbs and scored a quick ride in the bed of a pickup truck filled with fishing equipment and children’s yard toys.
Yeah the bakery was lit.
This trail has been a pastryrific journey.
We started our walk back and came across a beautiful garden with an apiary and ridiculously beautiful flowers.
There was a gimbal machine with an unverifiable claim.
As unverifiable as the claim of last gumball for 42 miles is, it certainly seems legitimate.
The cool thing about the walk is that it was in forest, between mountains and had the most stunning views of this lake.
When we got back to Stehekin, we went to the lodge, got our stuff from the locker, and went to find the campsite. We got camp set up and went back to the lodge for an underwhelming dinner.
Back to the campsite, we brushed up and went to bed. Tomorrow is going to be hectic. We’re skipping some miles and have a lot of hitching to do.