Aug. 24th. Start Time: 12:30pm. Distance: 7 miles. Elevation: 2700 ft descent.
Sign post for the trail home.
After our morning jaunt to Liberty Cap, we picked up our packs, hiked back up to the trail and began to make our way towards the next camp. This trek ended up being a sustained downhill slog, dropping ~2700 feet over ~7 miles. The trail was essentially a long traverse down the valley to the east of Buck Creek.
However, even in a walk through the woods we once again witnessed the destructive power of an avalanche as we hiked over a mix of snow and snapped off trees.
An avalanche left this snowfield over the trail.
We also crossed a few areas where wind storms appeared to have blown a couple hundred meter wide swath of trees down, as if they were twigs. I was glad we were hiking down and not up, since at every stop on this section of trail we were attacked by swarms of biting flies. I could imagine it would be a little disheartening to hike uphill in the hot sun for 7 miles, and not be able to enjoy a moments rest because of bugs! Around a mile from our planned campsite we were able to start into a positive aspect of this trail – finally we found ripe blueberries and huckleberries. The late snow, and cold spring / wet summer knocked out most of the crop, so I was pretty happy to be able to sample as I hiked, though the pickings were sparse.
Campsite at Chiwawa River.
We arrived at our intended camp at Chiwawa River fairly early – and once again had to fend off the bugs. We quickly set up camp, then went down to the river, where we discovered that the cooler temperatures meant a bug free zone. I grabbed my pillow, found a rock and was soon reading, then dozing under the bridge. What a life! After a few hours of leisure, I took a bath in the river. Though snow melt is a little chilly, I manage full submergence which induced a little brain freeze. I was grateful that no hikers came by at that moment as they might be wondering what that glowing white animal was doing in the river…
Our traditional pasta with marinara sauce in honor of Fabian!
In honor of our hiking partner Fabian, we once again brought out the pasta and tomato basil sauce and prepared a feast for the ages. Hopefully circumstances will bring us together for another great hike, perhaps in the Alps or Pyrenees. With a full stomach, and feeling clean and refreshed, it didn’t take long to drift off to sleep this last night on the trail.
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