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These photos were taken along the PCT by Weathercarrot back in 2012. The top image is of iconic Wizard Island in Crater Lake. The bottom left is the iconic Mt. Thielsen (9, 183′) just a little farther north.
Wizard Island was created as a part of the cataclysmic eruption of Mt. Mazama some 7,700 years ago. It is a volcanic cinder cone which forms an island at the west end of Crater Lake. The top of the island (6,933′) is about 755 feet above the average surface of the lake.
I have posted some of Anthony Mannello’s photos from his thru-hike before. Here are some wonderful images from the Mt. McLaughlin to Crater Lake stretch of trail. He captures the beauty of this land made by fire and rain. See his blog at:
https://anthonyspct.wordpress.com
“Lava flows and Mt. McLaughlin made for a Jurassic scene and beautiful sunrises and sunsets,” he commented. “It is colder at night in Oregon which is more comfortable than the hot nights in Northern California. The dense woods lead me into Mazama Village just before Crater Lake.”
This is the truly a world of forests forever connecting the string of majestic volcanoes that begin with Lassen Peak and ends with Glacier Peak. We will look forward to more photos from the miles ahead.
"Wild" Premieres December 5th!
During the rainy weather in Arcata over the Thanksgiving weekend, we spent some time at the movies. The trailer for "Wild" was featured prominently . . . momentum is building for this Friday's (December 5th) opening. Given that anticipation began several years ago, the expectations will be mountain high for "Wild". Initial reviews on IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes are very encouraging but the real test may be from those of us who have walked the trail. Does the movie feel authentic? Does it capture the trail experience?
Reese Witherspoon delivers her best performance since she won the Best Actress Oscar for 'Walk the Line' a decade ago.
Lou Lumenick, New York Post
Reese Witherspoon delivers her best performance since she won the Best Actress Oscar for 'Walk the Line' a decade ago.
Scott Mendelson, Forbes
From an interview after the film premiered at the Telluride Film Festival:
Reese, what made you want to make the film?
Witherspoon: (She first read the book on a plane to New York): "I called my agent and said I just read the best book ever. I have to call this woman and tell her I have to hug her."
In her first phone call to Strayed, Witherspoon said "This is the most beautiful story and if you will trust me, I want to make this into a movie."
Witherspoon: "I've seen the movie seven times and I can't control my emotions.'
Vallee: "I look for a beautiful, emotional story. Choosing a film is like choosing a lifestyle. For two years you are going to work and live this story. I try to find stories that will make me happy to be of service to the story."
Nature is like a character in the film. But you can't direct nature like another character. Were there times that was a challenge?
Witherspoon: "At the very beginning, the national parks shut down the day we were starting to shoot. The government shut down. We were in a panic. We had to shuffle locations."
Witherspoon: "We were filming hot desert scenes, but Oregon's October was incredibly cold. Here I had goose bumps, but it is supposed to be incredibly hot."
IMDb reports that the film was shot in these locations:
Bend, Oregon Crater Lake, Crater Lake National Park, Oregon
Ashland, Oregon
Vancouver, Washington, USA
PCT veterans will notice that the Kennedy Meadows scene wasn’t filmed on the actual PCT (the PCTA website suggests that it was at LaPine's Paulina Lake Lodge). Little of the film was actually filmed on the PCT.
Come Friday night, opinions will be shared. Let me know your review of the film.
I have this and several more posts of photographs from "Cheeseburger's" 2014 thru-hike. You can connect with his blog at www.cheeseburgerhikes.blogspot.com
When I was reviewing countless accounts of PCT thru hikes to find material for The Pacific Crest Trailside Readers, a pattern emerged. Since most accounts begin in the south and finish in the north, topics predictably unfolded like this:
Preparation for the trail
Arrival at Campo and the starting the trail
Adjustment to the rigors of the trail (feet, dirt, heat, lack of water)
Trail culture (trail names, trail magic, trail angels, trail towns, etc.)
Getting through the desert
Entering the High Sierra (the account is three quarters done and yet the trail has yet to reach the half way mark)
Between I - 80 (Donner Pass) to crossing the Columbia River on the Bridge of the Gods. . . a distance of 1000 miles . . . gets reduced to a story or two mostly about making big miles through endless forests; perhaps a tale about a fire re-route
Once Washington is reached, there tend to be stories of rain or snow
Anticipation of the end of the trail
Reaching Manning Park
Northern California and Oregon often receive a disproportionate lack of attention despite being stunningly beautiful. Cheeseburger's photos of some of the Oregon volcanoes help to remind us of what a glorious string of pearls those peaks are.
Perhaps this is part of what sets Cheryl Strayed's Wild apart. She starts at Tehachapi, skips the High Sierra, and focuses much of her story on trail life and experiences in that 1000 miles between Donner Pass and the Columbia River. I'd love to see more thru hikes start in the middle and finish on the ends. Then I believe that amazing center of the PCT would receive the awe it deserves.
These three photos from the Southern Oregon PCT capture some of the beauty of this stretch of trail . . . often maligned because of the unending trees and abundant mosquito habitat, cheered for its relatively flat and easy trail, and appreciated for its sunny and mild weather. The top photo gives a little taste of the incredible trail construction through the lava flows around Brown Mountain. Moving clockwise, Mt. McLoughlin dominates the horizon through much of Oregon's Section B and Section C (to Crater Lake). And, finally, Cliff Lake, a short and worthwhile detour from the PCT just north of the Lee's Peak/Devil's Peak Saddle.
As of the end of August, significant stretches of the PCT in Northern California [Highway 93 to Seiad Valley in CA Section P] and Southern Oregon [Highway 140 to the southern boundary of Crater Lake National Park in OR Section C] remain closed (check http://www.pcta.org/discover-the-trail/trail-conditions-and-closures/ for more current conditions).
The amazing bottom photo was taken on July 31st and shows the Bald Fire (foreground) and Day Fire (background) which threatened the PCT on the Hat Creek Rim (Photo credit: Walter Bunt). The PCT in that area has re-opened. But fire danger remains very real in the parched landscape of drought-stricken California and Southern Oregon.
My wife, Amy (aka Sock Monkey), and oldest daughter, Chisa (aka Trail Bait), and three decade plus hiking partner, Howard (aka Rocky), and I section-hiked the PCT from Crater Lake south to Hyatt Lake in southern Oregon. Although there were many highlights, we all enjoyed talking with others on the trail. Here's a cross-section (beginning with the top left photo and proceeding clockwise) with a brief backstory on each:
1) Legs and Nature. Legs owns a grocery store back east but would prefer to be hiking. Nature, mother of five and former registrar at Mt. Holyoke, was recently questioned by one of them about her addiction to backpacking. "People your age shouldn't be doing this." Ha!
2) Gabe and Nick. We are from Arcata, California. Gabe and Nick are from Arcata, California. We have been following their journey north. We met south of Brown Mountain Shelter.
3) The Mariele Sisters. Heidi (24) and Miranda (17) had started at the California/Oregon border and were backpacking the length of the PCT in Oregon.
4) Phil and Rick. Phil (76) was finishing up the Oregon PCT with support from his young friend, Rick (70).
5) Amy, Chisa, Rees, and Howard.
6) Nick and Caroline Kristof. Nick Kristof is a celebrated columnist for the NY Times as well as a long-time lover of the PCT. He has managed to pass along that passion to his 16-year old daughter, Caroline. They were heading for the California/Oregon border now and were planning to walk the PCT in the North Cascades later in the summer.
7) Blackhawk Down. Blackhawk Down was back on the trail after knee surgery and a fall that broke several ribs. He was going slow but was certainly the epitome of determination. We suggested a more appropriate trail name might be 'Blackhawk Up'.
I return today from a week of walking the PCT south of Crater Lake through the Sky Lakes Wilderness area toward Ashland. I will be with my older daughter, my wife, and my long-time hiking partner, Howard Shapiro. In the middle of the week, my wife and I celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary. It was 30 years ago now that she and I were finishing our bicycle ride from Seattle to Kansas, where we were married in my parents' home. Thank you, Amy, for these many years of love, friendship, and adventure!
