PCT Day 110

Cascade Locks Zero Day

0 miles

Mile 2146.6

When I was finally forced out of bed to use the restroom, it felt as if all the bones in my feet had splintered as I hobbled to the toilet. A dose of Ibuprofen and a long shower had me feeling less disabled, but things still hurt.

I gathered our dirty clothes before limping down the street to make use of the local laundermat. While waiting I shot Superior Wilderness Designs an email. I wanted to buy their 30L pack, but couldn’t wait the 8-12 weeks of lead time, so I told them who I was and what I was doing in hopes they could put a rush on my order.

In no time I received an answer. Unfortunately, there was no flexibility in their lead time. Instead, they offered me a pack they’d just completed with some experimental features at half the retail price! Blown away by their customer service, I happily accepted.

The Superior 30 weighs in at 12 ounces, half as much as my current pack, it’s simple frameless design sans the hip belt. I’ll need my current pack, the Zpacks Arc Haul, for the Sierra, but the SWD pack should reign supreme in all other sections.

Laundry finished, I headed back to our room before cruising over to Thunder Island Brewery with Spikes to grab lunch. Situated beside the Columbia River, the brewery offered great view and better beer!

I ordered the meatball sub and a Dank Train IPA to enjoy on their riverside patio.

Our second round of beers, Forester IPAs, were on the house, something they do for all PCT thru hikers.

After lunch, we harvested some berries on our way to The Ale House to grab the boxes we’d sent there.

While waiting for our boxes we met Finley the pig. She was pretty cute, but I think a more fitting name would be Breakfast…

Boxes obtained, we headed back to our room to bust them open. I was pumped to open the box my good friend Franki has sent me. She’d previously sent me a box to Sierra City, but I’d be unable to locate it, so I was relieved things worked out this time.

The box was stuffed with candy, Oreos, firecrackers (not sure you’re supposed to ship those…), a nice note and most importantly, a bottle of tequila! Franki knows what’s up!

Thanks Frank for hooking me up!

Spikes and I were both excited to open the second box. Spikes had reached out to Safe Catch, our favorite tuna company, in hopes that they’d hook us up with some product in return for social media and blog promotion. Turns out they were happy to do so, and sent us over $100 worth of tuna packets! Thanks Safe Catch!

Finished with our boxes, we swung by the post office before hitting up the market to grab a 5 day resupply. For such a small store, their selection was on point. Clearly they know what hikers want. I picked up some margarita mix, so we enjoyed margaritas back in our room as we organized our food bags.

Chores done, we relaxed in the room for a bit before heading to The Ale House for dinner. Spikes and I both order the Hiker Trash Burger. This glorious culinary creation consists of one pound of juicy cow topped with a generous portion of bacon, lettuce and tomato all nestled between two personal pizzas.

True to its name, it made me feel like garbage, but it was worth it.

After dinner, we took our food babies back to the room and tucked them into bed. Today had been our first zero day in over 1000 miles, and oh boy did it feel good!

P.s. Shout out to our friends at Safe Catch for hooking us up with an incredible assortment of tuna packets! With flavors like Tandoori, Cajun, Chili Lime and Habanero Mint, they keep your backcountry meals fresh and exciting!

P.p.s. Thanks again Franki!

P.p.p.s. I’m hiking through a super remote area in Washington, so I rarely have cell signal. I’ll do my best to post when possible, but expect longer gaps between posts. We’re currently at mile 2330.

Cheers!