Thank You Trail Angels and Trail Blooper Reel

It’s been over a week since arriving home and the transition to non hiker trash status begins. As Charles and I reflect on our five and a half month journey, I wanted to take the time to share this list of trail angels we encountered on the PCT. As I’ve mentioned before, we adore all of our trail angels. They bring so much cheer, whether providing some food on trail, giving a place to stay, or providing a water cache, any amount of trail magic will not be forgotten.

1. Mom and Dad– My number one trail angels from my very first hike where I could only ride in a backpack! Mom and Dad drove us to Campo, CA, met me in Bishop, CA and at Crater Lake, and mailed me shoes and other items from home.
2. Charles’ Aunt Lenny– She met us at Pioneer Mail Day Use Are to bring new shoes for Nick and extra food for all of us.
3. Warner Springs Volunteers– A few women who volunteered at the Warner Springs Community Center to help out hikers at the end of Section A.
4. Mike’s Place– Provided a water cache and made Nick and Charles breakfast burritos.
5. Trail Angel Mary– The lady who lives at mile 145 and set up the free little library. She also lets hikers camp on her property, set up a shaded area with picnic tables, built a shower and pit toilet, fills up a water tank, and puts out fresh lemonade.
6. Charles’ Aunt Susie and Uncle Richard-Let us stay with them in Idyllwild, CA and spoiled us!
7. I-10 Oasis– Several trail angels maintain trail magic under the I-10, providing treats and fresh fruit.
8. Charles’ Uncle Tom-Let us stay with him in Big Big Bear Lake and treated us to dinner.
9. Chauncey– A hiker from last year, she set up shop shortly outside of Cajon Pass with sodas and snacks for hikers.
10. Rodeo– A lady following the progress of her husband hiking the PCT, we met her twice where she had lemonade for hikers and some snacks.
11. Payton– My friend since third grade who took us out to lunch in Acton.
12. Hiker Heaven– The Saufley’s home in Auga Dulce, CA. They let hikers stay in their backyard, provided charging ports, laundry services, showers, and gear fix stations.
13. Casa de Luna– A home in Green Valley where the couple let us camp in their backyard and fed us dinner and breakfast.
14. Weevil Market-The owner gave us a ride to and from the trail and let us camp near the store.
15. The Hewitts– The parents of one of Charles’ friends, they let us stay with them in Tehachapi, CA and spoiled us! We even got to do a game night complete with Jenga!
16. Walker Pass Trail Angels– A group that provides water caches for hikers in the Mojave, the last section of desert on the PCT.
17. Jim– We were too late for dinner, but he gave us sodas, chocolate, and breakfast at Bird Spring Pass.
18. No Hawk– The guy we met back on day five, he provided dinner, snacks, and breakfast for hikers at Chimney Creek Camp, right before Kennedy Meadows.
19. Mrs. Starr– Charles’ mom picked us and Alex and Melanie up from Horseshoe Meadows and drove us to Bishop, CA. She let me stay with her and Charles for a night in Bishop and then drove Alex and Melanie to Lake Isabella, CA the next day. She drove out to pick Charles up so he could attend a wedding. She also mailed Charles various items and care packages throughout the trip.
20. Jeffery Kroll and the De La Cour Sage Ranch– We needed a ride back to Horseshoe Meadows, but were too late to get a hitch. Jeffery works at the ranch halfway up and offered us camping and dinner there for the night so we could get a hitch in the morning.
21. Lara and Family-We met Lara on an overnight backpacking trip with her kids. She offered us a place to stay in Mammoth Lakes, CA and treated us to dinner.
22. Limit Situation Trail Magic– A group that fund raises throughout the year to provide hikers lunch at Ebbets Pass. I had the most amazing pizza ever and Charles got a hamburger. They had sodas, snacks, and made hikers fried banana desserts. Their slogan is “the trail provides.”
23. Day Hiker near Carson Visitor Center– He gave us some extra apples and grapes.
24. The Sheltons– Charles’ family who let us stay with them in South Lake Tahoe, CA and spoiled us! They took us floating down the Truckee River. We also met them near Donner Pass and camped with them for one night after the Fourth of July.
25. Roaming Trail Magic– Two women hiking near the Peter Grubb Hut gave us candy and fruit.
26. Lutheran Church– A church in Chester, CA that lets hikers camp and provides charging stations. I stayed there three nights while waiting for Charles to return from attending a second wedding.
27. Fancy Pants– A former hiker who cooked dinner for hikers right before Burney.
28. Coppertone– Provided cookies and bananas for hikers.
29. Cache 22– A water cache maintained in the Hat Creek Rim section.
30. Word of Life Church– This church in Burney, CA opened it’s activity center to hikers, offering a place to stay, showers, loaner clothes, a kitchen, and free coffee!
31. Mary– One of Charles’ friends who worked at a summer camp near Etna, CA. She let us stay at the camp, fed us, drove us to Yreka, CA to resupply, and drove us back to the trail head.
32. Janet– She’s a trail angel in Ashland, OR who opened up her home to hikers as a place to stay. She and her husband put up with us boiling the ends of our trekking poles in their tea kettle in an attempt to change the tips.
33. Dad– A guy who was hiking the PCT with his wife, he got injured and followed his wife’s progress by doing trail magic stations. We saw him where the PCT crosses Highway 62 in Crater Lake National Park and just outside the park near Highway 138.
34. Water Caches– There were several water caches set out after Crater Lake due to limited water sources.
35. Magic Man– A guy we met at Highway 140 offering Gatorade to hikers.
36. Brian and Kori– Two of our friends from college who met us to hike on the trail. The made us breakfast the morning of their arrival and Kori made us cute leather tags with quotes for our backpacks.
37. Liana Ottaviano and Peter Werner– A couple in Bend, OR that opens their homes to hikers as a place to stay.
38. Nichole– A friend of mine from work, she bought us dinner in Bend, OR.
39. A guy near Little Crater Lake– I think his trail name was Coda, but I’m not entirely sure. He set up trail magic on Charles’ Birthday, providing sandwiches, soda, chips, fruit, and Oreos.
40. Trout Lake, WA– The community set up a shuttle service from the trail head to town. The general store lets hikers camp nearby.
41. Roaming Trail Magic– A couple out for a hike gave us treats and coffee.
42. Two Day Hikers– Two women hiked out to the Mike Ulrich Cabin with snacks galore, including items for sandwich making, chips and salsa, fruit, and cookie dough.
43. Two Former PCT Hikers– They were waiting at Stampede Pass with grilled cheese sandwiches and coffee. They also had the heat going full blast in their car to let hikers warm up after hiking in the rain all afternoon. We met the lady at Hiker Heaven.
44. Adrianne and Family– Charles’ cousin and family who live in Winthrop, WA. They weren’t home, but they let us stay at their house, organized a ride for us out of Winthrop, and contacted a neighbor to print Charles’ Canada entry permit.
45. Drivers– A huge thanks goes to everyone who gave us rides in between trail heads and towns and even within towns.  We received so many rides throughout the trip that hitchhiking became second nature. It was so much fun to briefly enter a random person’s life for about ten to thirty minutes (our longest hitchhike was almost three hours from Manning Park to Vancouver) and learn about a brief snippet of his or her life.
46. My Wonderful Readers– And last, but certainly not least, a huge thank you to everyone following our journey. We received an overwhelming amount of support since the start of our trip and it was nice to remember everyone cheering us on from home!

I hope that is everyone. Trail Angels are amazing humans and I learned a few lessons in kindness from them. In most cases we were random strangers, but that didn’t make our trail angels’ kindness any lacking and we will be forever grateful to all the help we received.

Now that you’ve made it through that long list, please enjoy this blooper reel and behind the scenes photo collection of mostly Charles (and a few appearances of Nick!) being a dork on the PCT (a few pictures are out of order due to last minute additions):

      

       

   

      

      

    

   

      

      

      

      

   

        

      

   

   

         

   

I hope you enjoyed reading my blog as much as I enjoyed writing it! This is my final post for PCT Ambling and Rambling. The big question for the end of this blog is where will Charles get such good coverage of his upcoming outdoor adventures? He was traveling with his own personal photographer and writer!

Until the next adventure, I’m Sprinkles, signing off!