PCT Day 87 - 91

Some days I feel like the PCT is an adventure where I can go wherever the wind takes me. It takes a reality check for me to realize that my feet get tired of walking after 25 miles, so the wind can only take me so far. Read on to see where the wind blew me this week!

Day 87: 8/5/2025; mile 1347.7 - 1375.2

This morning we rose early and with purpose. We had to arrive at the Old Station post office by 3pm so Dennis could pick up a package. His beloved titanium spoon had been left behind at a hostel and he would be reunited with it today! 🥄 Today’s mission involved waking up at the ripe hour of 4:00 am, hitting the trail by 4:38 am, and covering 27 miles by 3pm. Spoiler - I didn’t arrive at the post office until about 6 pm, but Dennis did make it to his spoon on time! Read about it @adventurewithdennis on Substack!

We had camped just outside the park entrance to Lassen Volcanic NP, and were just about a mile from Terminal Geyser.

The sun hadn’t risen when we reached the geyser, but we could still see the steam rising in the dark sky. A few miles later we reached boiling lake, a body of water with thermal vents that quite literally made the water boil.

We had no desire to char our skin, so we hiked the loop around the sulfuric lake and continued on our way. A significant part of today’s hike was burned, but it added a cool and eerie element to our hike.

We hiked all around Mount Lassen with a view of pretty much every angle the mountain had to offer. It was hot and my feet were quite blistered, so it took me a while to reach Old Station. Fortunately for me, Dennis had befriended another Bruin grad who offered us cold beers and a seat at the table for family dinner. We ate a delicious feast full of pasta, salad, watermelon, bread, brownies, etc. My tummy and heart were full of great food and conversation. Dennis and I decided 27 miles was plenty for the day and camped back on trail at the first spot we saw. 

Day 88: 8/6/2025; mile 1375.2 - 1398.2

Today we got to visit the Subway Cave which I believe is inappropriately named. It should be called Subway Tunnel because there are two entrances. We took a nice stroll through the cave which was 46 degrees, very cool compared to the hot day.

After we hiked through the Hat Creek Basin which is a rim above Hat Creek. That meant we had to do a water carry for 20ish miles. Luckily for us it was a bit cloudy for the beginning of the hike, so it was very comfortable walking in the exposed area. We had beautiful views of Mount Lassen all day. From this point forward we should have views of super tall Cascade mountains until the finish!

Today we were also on a mission to make it to a certain mapped pin to meet one of my best friends!! Sarah was bringing us Chipotle and camping with us at Burney Falls! We were a bit behind on our hike, so Sarah planned to meet us on trail and taking us to the falls so we could see the beautiful state park together. We ended up hiking a dirt road parallel to the PCT in the evening so she could pick us up.

It’s been so amazing to have friends visit on trail because it’s such a special experience to share together! We drive back to Burney Falls in the dark and set up some tents before enjoying our Chipotle bowls together. 

Day 89: 8/7/2025; mile 1398.2 - 1420.6

Today Dennis and I had the genius idea to slack pack, which is where we left behind our tent and sleep system at the Burney Falls campground and Sarah would drop us off on trail where we left off. We first grabbed some coffees from the General Store and hiked around Burney Falls together.

It was the widest waterfall we had ever seen! Later in the day we all drove back to trail where Sarah hiked a few miles out with us.

Today’s hike was all downhill and we took an incredible lunch break at Baum Lake.

Then we arrived to camp right when the sunset and we enjoyed some beers Sarah left for us. Overall we enjoyed having no weight on our backs to give us a bit of a recovery day for once.

Day 90: 8/8/2025; zero miles hiked

Today we had a big fat unexpected zero in Burney Falls today. We decided we would wait for Flo and Pablo to catch up and rested for the day at Burney Falls. Dennis and I decided to have a cup of coffee before doing laundry/showering and exploring the rest of the state park. We walked to the historic cemetery, looked at the 6 headstones, and then hiked down to Lake Britton. We ended up doing an unexpected swim because Dennis really wanted to sit on a sandy beach, so we swam from large inlet over towards the beach before getting out of the water and hiking the rest of the way. We were on a mission to have some ice cream before 4:30pm when the machine closed down, and we arrived just in time to get the last ice cream cones. Then we sat at the visitor center writing our blogs, still eagerly waiting for our friends. I decided to walk around the falls to admire it’s beauty while I waited. Then, I spontaneously decided to back track on the PCT to meet up with Flo and Pablo. After about 1.2 miles I ran into them at a bridge. It was so exciting to be reunited and hear all about their Utah road trip! They were shocked to see us because we had texted them saying we were hiking on. We all cooked some dinner together and enjoyed another night of camping together once again. Although we waited for our friends, we would get ahead of them the next day because they had to pick up some packages from the General Store. 

Day 91: 8/9/2025, mile 1420.6 - 1443.7

This morning we were a bit groggy waking up, but still managed to have our tent packed up by 7:30 am. We headed to the visitor center to use the WiFi one more time, drank some hot instant coffee, and began our hike. It felt chilly at Burney Falls, but instantly it warmed up when we rejoined the PCT. We were grateful to be back on trail at an early hour because we would get the worst part of the day out of the way before the heat. Today involved a lot of climbing and we got the driest section out of the way before lunch. We had a second coffee break at a cute bridge and chatted with a Canadian man named Extra. After he left we didn’t see him for the rest of the day.

The trail is beginning to feel extremely solitary without the typical chatter of the bubble. About four miles later Dennis and I stopped for lunch and a nap near a spring. I enjoyed a 30 minute Power Nap and was woken up when a new fellow walked by on trial. His name was Shotgun and he was 23, a new grad like Dennis.

He ended up hiking the next 14 miles with us and kept excellent company. He was from the south and taught us all about his Alma matter Georgia Tech. At sunset Dennis and I decided to call after watching the brightest and most beautiful colors frame Mount Shasta in the distance. Shotgun left to cover 5 more miles and we parted ways.