Day 143 - Friday, September 17

At Frank's friend Mary's house in Bellingham (Reached Hart's Pass and the end of the hike, southbound mile 30.6). Walked 26.9 miles today.

Last nights temperatures were comfortable and it didn't get chilly until near morning when the wind picked up. We got out of camp early this morning as the weather forecast is less than desirable.  There's an 80% chance of rain for most of today and it's going to be cold, so there could be snow mixed in at the higher elevations.

We set off and soon ran into Thin Mint who was heading down to the terminus.  She didn't stop to chat as she wanted to beat the bad weather (I don't blame her for that at all!).  We continued on the way we came yesterday.

About 8am it started to lightly sprinkle and it continued like that for a few hours.

We hiked without stopping much as it got cold quickly, especially with the wind.  We reached more sheltered areas and got a bit warmer as we climbed, passing Flavortown on her way to Canada.  We stopped at the campsite from the night before last and ate a tiny bit (but it was hard to with the cold).

With about 8 miles to go, we came across Frank's friend Mary hiking the other way.  She is picking us up from Hart's Pass today and wanted to do some hiking, but we didn't expect to see her so far in.  We continued on through much heavier rain, getting more and more soaked.

We ran into Magnet, Narrator, and Sunshine and said our congratulations and farewells.  Just after this, a hiker we've been leapfrogging the past week or so, Butt Tape, passed us.  When we mentioned that Mary was our ride, he asked if he could join.  We all agreed and he fell in line behind us.

The wind picked up, the temperature dropped, and the rain got worse as we continued toward the pass.  Finally, we reached the car at 4:42 pm, officially ending our hike.  Shivering, I went to the bathroom and changed into some clothes Mary had brought for us.  It was difficult to use my fingers, they were so cold.

We got in the car with the heat blasting and the temperature reading 37 degrees out.  No wonder we were cold.  Mary drive us down the pothole-filled and hairpin gravel road to Winthrop where we had dinner at a Mexican restaurant.

Mary drive us through the dark and the rain back to civilization.  We dropped Butt Tape off at his hotel and then got to Mary's house just before midnight.  Frank and I showered and went to bed, finally ending our long adventure but ready for another.

I don't really feel like this adventure is over yet though. I feel like we're just going into town for another stop, but this is the end of my PCT thru hike.

As for my next plans, tomorrow, Frank and I are going to her friend's wedding in Snoqualmie.  We rushed the last few weeks so that we could finish the trail before the wedding. That ended up being a good call as it's supposed to be snowy and rainy in northern Washington for the next three days. My mom and sister will be in Seattle next week, so I'll be touring and visiting with them before doing some more exploring on the west coast - not sure what, but I'm sure I'll find something to do before heading back east to Virginia. As for my career, I'm looking into the GIS field for my next venture (and plan on doing a GIS map of this hike in the meantime, so stay tuned for that).

As this trip ends, I want to thank everyone who supported me and followed along through this journey.  I did this walk and took the steps, but it could not have been done alone.  I had so much help and support along the way.  A huge thank you to my mom for coordinating my resupply boxes and keeping up with my 'normal' life while I was on the trail.  Thank you to my friends, family, former co-workers, and directors who followed and encouraged me, sent letters or emails, and sent resupply boxes or covered my resupply in town. Thank you to the trail angels who gave rides, meals, or helped me out along the way. Finally, a huge thank you to my friend and hiking partner for over 2100 miles, Frank.  She helped me through the rough days, up the big climbs, and through the pains of thru hiking.  My journey couldn't have been done without you.