The morning came clear and untroubled on my mountain ledge camp and I was on my way by 7 after a breakfast of freeze-dried yogurt and fruit.
The sun was tempered by a brisk breeze that made the first climb of the day quite bearable. It was a great day to hike.
Until I got to the top of the divide and saw a pillar of smoke ahead. Was the fire in the next valley? The one after that? Or the one after that? No telling. It could be ten miles away or it could be two.
Wildfire ahead
Either way, it was in the general direction that the trail was headed, and thus a problem.
I caught up with TimeWarp and we conferred and decided to keep hiking – we could always turn back to Highway 3 , 15 miles back, if things got sketchy.
We got to a divide overlooking civilization and he was able to call the Forest Service who assured him the fire was well west of the PCT, and we could continue hiking.
However the wind kept rising and the smoke got taller and denser and redder. We met up with Tumbles and agreed to make a beeline to Highway 93 and reassess.
At the highway several fire trucks zoomed by. One pickup came back and we flagged it down. It was being driven by Bill, a retired firefighter who said the fire had just blown up in the last few hours and nobody knew what was going on. He offered us a ride into Etna and we accepted. It would probably be ok to keep hiking but we agreed that “probably ok” was not the standard we wanted to apply to this situation.
The town of Etna (population 750) is full to overflowing with hikers. Although the main herd of hikers has passed there are more than enough to fill the 10-room motel.
More hikers are arriving, bearing tales of being turned away at the trailheads by rangers. So bailing was definitely the right move.
Although the motel is full Tumbles had the number of a hostel and secured me a spot there (she is opting to sleep in the park to catch up with some hikers she started the trail with at Mexico).
It is a work for stay hostel – no cash will change hands, but I agreed to install a low-flush toilet tomorrow.
Now it is off to the brewery where I will enjoy some fine craft brews and dinner, and no doubt meet with fellow hikers and exchange information and schemes for dealing with the fire situation. Most of them have already had to skip sections of the trail. This is becoming another core hiker skill, just like packing efficiently and treating blisters.
