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Monday, August 7, 2006

Start point: 44 25.752 N, 121 53.529 W

End point: 44 25.695 N, 121 43.856 W

We got up earlier AND the drive to our starting point was shorter, both of which resulted in our earliest start so far. The overnight chill was gone quickly, so no jacket was required at the beginning as it had been the previous two starts. We continued our climb through the forested lava beds, getting good views of Three Fingered Jack and Hoodoo Ski Area. At 3.25 miles we reached Santiam Summit (4,831 feet by the GPS) and crossed the Pacific Crest Trail. This would be our highest point until we cross the Great Basin and begin ascending the Rockies. The rest of this trip would be all downhill.

At this point, we also crossed the line from Linn County to Jefferson County. Traffic was heavy, but not as bad as the weekend had been. The area had a ghostly feel to it with large swaths of dead, white, standing trees from forest fires of recent years. To the south Mt. Washington stood out, stretching its thumb impossibly toward space. Beyond it the Three Sisters lurked through the slightly smoky haze. The final mile was above Suttle Lake with the unmistakable cinder cone of Black Butte silhouetted behind it.

Walk rating: 9.1

Money found: Day: $.68 Trip: $0.97 Project: $5.29

Distance: Day: 9.3 miles Trip: 27.3 miles Project: 152.2 miles

Elapsed time: Day: 3:33 Trip: 10:25 Project: 59.28

Significance: Crossed the Pacific Crest of the Cascade Range; highest point until the Rocky Mountains

After showers, we split a ham sandwich from Camp Sherman Store (try and find food anywhere else around Camp Sherman) and played more cribbage. Joe had his turn, running his winning streak to 5 games. We split the next 2, giving him the lead at 12-9. A large group showed up to occupy the site next to ours (4 tents). We walked up the road to the store again and made phone calls. Sandy told me that they had had thunderstorms for two nights in Klamath Falls and worried about us. I said that we had not had a drop. On the way back we paid for a fourth night at the campground. The camp host, whom we dubbed “Wilford Brimley” because of his lushly-thick mustache and stocky build, said we did not have to pay another $7 for the extra vehicle since we had already “paid enough.” He also told us that the Alaska pipeline had broken, but had no more details than that general statement. Since we couldn’t pick up radio stations or use our cell phones in this area, our imaginations grew somewhat on the significance of that.

We played more cribbage, but moved our table under cover in a barbecue gazebo when the thunder and lightning began. It rained off and on between flashes and crashes for two or three hours. Joe went ahead again 15-13 after I tied the score at 12 on the first skunk of the trip. Joe cooked pork steaks for dinner. We turned in early because of the damp. The new neighbors talked and played music for quite awhile.