PCT: CA Section Q - Etna Summit to Seiad Valley
Day 111 - 8/25/25 - Back on Trail, Marble Mountain Valley
Distance: 24.1 miles
Mile Start / End: 1601.2, 1625.2
Weather: Sunny, H: 93°, heat warning
End Location: Marble Valley
Lessons Learned: Tree and Forest Floor need and are each other
Breaky at hostel
PCT
Coffee shop with Stork and Mud Skipper
An older guy named Roy was pushing me to ride with him, made me anxious and already had a ride
Post office, shipped some stuff back home and bumped a box to Ashland
Ride from Dusty with Stork, Mud Skipper, and Princess (another SOBO hiker)
Took pics with our potatoes and gave each other hugs
I likely would not see them ever again but really enjoyed spending with them in Etna
It’s nice when you just click with people and can fully be yourself
Started trail around 10am
“I’d sing along
with the birds
If I only knew the words”
Billy strings
Cool ridgeline but hot and directly in the sun
Listened to podcast on Buddhism and compassion
3 essences of the path and meditation:
Cultivation of compassion
Settling the mind
Bringing forth insight
“Over indulging people is folly”
“Don’t be in a rush but have urgency”
Compassion in surrendering the need for control but being mindful and understanding what comes up, reflecting on it, and trusting yourself moving forward
When the great tree falls
It finds a place of rest
On the leaf-littered
Forest floor
Meeting in this way
This kind of offering
Is the way of all things,
They need each other,
Tree and forest floor,
They become each other;
When we forget that
We live in peril
But it is never
Not present
It can always be remembered
Buddhism is a path of remembering, moment by moment, so that we don’t forget
Sheeeesh, lesson learned…
Took break just before 1pm, ate apple and got a view of the Marble Mountain Wilderness
Checked map and looks like there’s a possible scramble along a ridge that meets back up with the trail at a further point I could hit tomorrow
Hmmmm…
Walked along the ridge towards the mountains
Passed through a forest very recently burned, could still smell the fire
A very old and large sequoia still stood tall but lifeless, one day he will return to the forest floor and the cycle will restart
Passed Shelly Creek around 2pm
Hungry but gonna push 3 more miles to Fischer Lake
More burn scar
Ran into Tunes and Lauren
Storms clouds rolled in from the SE and started thundering
Made it to Fischer Lake around 3:30pm
Quick lunch and water and felt out the storm
Tunes and Lauren passed
The storm seemed docile enough, even though it was thundering, there was no lightning
Decided to keep going but got rain gear ready and out my mat over my bag since I did have a fly
Left 4:20pm
Trying to make it 4.8 miles to Summit Lake, I’ll hike to the junction at least and decide if I need to stop
It started raining shortly after I left the lake but was too hot and humid to put rain jacket on
The rain felt good, I had wanted to swim at lunch so I guess this made up for it
There was a junction with an easier route but I stuck to PCT which went up and over a pass
Was concerned because it was still thundering, but as I went north I moved away from the dark part of the storm
Top of pass 5pm
Man Eaten Lake (yes that’s the name) looked edible and delectable with its dark blue and clear water
Down
Then switchbacks up again
Rode the ridge line
Took a multivitamin
Passed Summit Lake, decided to keep pushing to the next lake
Passed the unmarked trail for Shadow Lake so figured I’d just take the next one
Looked like a new fire burning in the distance… that can’t be good but doesn’t seem to be in the way of the trail
Got to a view point of Ski High Lakes, the lake were far down
Showgirl Garmin messaged me that he was at Marble Valley Meadow only 3 miles away so decided to just huff it there
He also said he was down to climb Marble Mountain tomorrow so just made sense to camp together
Got an amazing view of Marble Mountain as sun set but no pics since I was rushing to get to camp 😕
The sun painted the smoke orange and filled the entire sky a peachy color
Made it to camp around 8:15pm
Showgirl was setting up in front of an old cabin
Found a flat spot near him
Grabbed water and set up tent
Heated water for Peak Meal, venison with rice and carrots and green beans - need the fuel for tomorrow 😤
The girls from earlier also camped her but a little bit away from us
Blew up pad while the meal warmed
Ate meal, so so good, might be a new favorite
Came up with a plan with Showgirl for tomorrow, alarm for 6am leave by 7am, climb the mountain and hike the ridge back to the trail instead of going back down the way we came
Watched last episode of season 3 of Geordie Shore
My food wasn’t spicy tonight but this episode was 🧐
Went to bed around 10:30pm
Day 112 - 8/26/25 - I Found My Marbles…
Distance: total 29 miles (26 miles of trail, 3 miles off trail)
Mile Start / End: 1625.6, 1651
Weather: Sunny, smoky, and hot… then rainy and wet
End Location: Grider Creek Campground
Lessons Learned: night hiking is efficient
Woke up just before 6am
Breaky and coffee to go
Left 7:30am
Time to go up Marble Mountain!
Steep hike up
Top of saddle around 8am
Scrambled up
Then basically rock climbed up
Top around 8:30am
Such a cool lil scramble but I could tell Showgirl did not feel as comfortable as me
But made it up all the same
Took a different way down the other side and hiked the trail back up
Back to packs just before 9:30am
Marble is sharp, we were both littered with scrapes
Ate protein bar and corn puffs, good mission
“I lost my marbles then I found my marbles… on Marble Mountain”
Showgirl said we should get shirts made
Left 9:40 a.m.
Going to try and go along the side of Other Marble Mountain and intersect the trail after Black Marble Mountain.
Traversed Other Marble Mountain to the side.
Decided to bag Other Marble Mountain as well, went the way of the rock.
Top of Other Marble Mountain around 10:30 a.m.
Wanted to Black Marble Mountain too, but smoke got bad and the back looked hard to navigate.
Went down to intersect the trail.
Back on trail shortly after 11 a.m.
Made it up 2 marble mountains and skipped 2 miles of trail all before noon, not bad.
3.5 miles to the lake for swim and water, I am pretty much out of water😅
Made it to the lake around 1 p.m.
Too shallow to swim, but I just really needed water.
Walked in lake mud a bit to get cleaner water.
Lunch with Showgirl.
Both had tuna tortilla with chips hahaha.
Showgirl left, and I napped a bit.
Left 2:15 p.m.
Saw Claire while leaving, chatted with her a bit, apparently a lot of blowdown coming up in the next 20 miles.
One comment said he counted 220.
Decided we would both count and compare numbers.
Down through overgrowth.
Accidentally got off the trail for a bit and had to bushwhack back up.
Ridge, down then up, but a nice breeze.
Then flat, hot, but honestly pretty lovely hiking.
Smoke covered the sun as helicopters buzzed by.
Thunder from the south.
Down through burn, blowdown, and overgrowth.
Exhausting.
Got to the creek around 7 p.m., saw Lindsay and Lauren there.
Washed off, filled up, and set up for night hiking.
Still 8 miles to go until the target camp.
Also ate tuna burrito and snacks.
Left 7:55 p.m., hopefully will get there around 10 p.m.
Thunder
Then a small black rattlesnake crossed the trail in front of me and rattled at me, scary
This is off to a good start😂
Light rain
Heavy rain
Going great hahahah
The elements caused me to hike fast
Crossed a few bridges
After 4 miles I bumped into some other night hikers
It was Here and There!
Fist bumped There and hugged Here
So fun running into them like this, haven’t seen them in weeks😂
There said “I was wondering who else was stupid enough to hike at night like us”
I was apparently hahaha
They were going to the same campsite, 4 more miles away
Passed them and Kate bushed it
Made it to the campsite around 10:30pm
Showgirl was there eating dinner
I ate a 3 musketeers bar and made dinner, ramen bomb with tuna
Set up camp while it cooled off
Here and There pulled up
Went to sleep just before midnight
Night hiking is efficient, lesson learned
Excited for breakfast tomorrow, now only 5 miles from town
What a day… 2 peaks bagged and 26 miles clocked and a whole lot of fun was had
Day 113, Part 1 - 8/27/25 - to Seiad Valley
Distance: 5.6 miles to Seiad Valley
Mile Start / End: 1651, 1667.5
Weather: Sunny, H: 88°
End Location: Kangaroo Spring
Lessons Learned:
Woke up around 6:30 a.m.
Packed up, ate breaky, cheese danish
Coffee to go
Left shortly after 8 a.m.
A little less than 6 miles to Seiad Valley
Road walked the entire way to Seiad Valley
Talked with Showgirl as we walked side by side
Klamath River looked lovely in the morning fog and light
Got to the Cafe around 10:30 a.m., just in time for 2nd breakfast
They have an infamous pancake challenge (5 pounds of pancakes in 2 hours, free if you finish it, $40 if you don’t finish) but the other food looked better and I didn’t think I would finish anyways
Ordered the loaded hash browns with eggs and pumpkin spice French toast
Got resupply box
Mailed back some stuff
Hung out
Waited for Ellie to arrive so we could say hi to her
Saw Ellie and Claire, Showgirl ordered them a burger and headed out separately after we caught up a bit
End of CA, Section Q
