Southbound on the PCT from Snoqualmie Pass

I am in the taper to my fastpack on Section J of the PCT, so I ran a short out and back on the Pacific Crest Trail today. I started at Snoqualmie Pass and headed south, where the trail begins in forest but then quickly relinquishes its shade for an exposed, rocky climb under motionless chair lifts. This was the only sustained climbing for the day, so it was really pretty easy.

Looking back at the ski lifts at the start of the trail

At about a mile, I entered the woods again as the roar of traffic subsided. The trail was lush and verdant, with gentle undulation and constant rocks to keep me paying attention. About two miles in, I came to an old structure--too big to be an outhouse but a similar shape--perched beside a pond. I encountered four northbound thru hikers early in the second mile as well.

In the center is the strange little building with round, metal openings

Around the third mile, I heard the noisy rush of cars from I-90 again, and a view of the west side of the summit presented itself. Soon after, I saw three more thru hikers. After crossing a talus slope, I plunged into deep woods for a mostly perfect path, occasionally interrupted by rocky sections. Then I was back into brush and rocky trail for a while. Eventually, I popped out onto a four-wheel drive road for about a quarter of a mile before grabbing the trail and forest again.

Typical trail with rocks, which look amazingly small in the photo

A nice section of trail ahead with small sections of rocks

The I-90 eastbound approach to the pass far below

Looking back up the trail from the same spot as the view of I-90 in the photo above

Soon, I crossed a dry creek bed and climbed some rocky steps. Around the fourth mile, I startled a large animal about five feet away from me, hidden in the brush. I didn't see it, but it sounded heavy. My guess is an elk or a bear. I don't think bears startle the way this creature did, though. The trail gave way to Ollalie Meadow next, where I saw four more backpackers, one of whom was definitely a thru hiker. The meadow was the prettiest part of the run, green grass with white granite and a view of Silver Mountain.

The rocky steps

I cross a dry stream bed. Shortly after, I spooked a large animal hidden in the brush.

Ollilie Meadow

Shortly after the meadow, I crossed a road where two cars were parked. I think it was the trailhead for Silver Peak or Mt. Catherine. After the road, I ran through a pretty area with shorter trees, likely a clearcut, and then into the tall woods again to reach the five mile turnaround. There was even a tree with a five on it on a small wooden sign.

Looking northbound in the clearcut

My watched chimes in at five miles, and I stop to take a picture looking back. I noticed the sign with a 5 on it on the tree.

I headed back the way I came and sent an Spot OK message. I tried to text John as well, but found I had no coverage. After another mile or so, my phone rang--my friend, Nicole. We chatted for a while and then I checked in with John. He said the Spot was doing a good job of tracking me, which is surprising since I spent a lot of time in the forest.

Once I was back on the road, I noticed that I could see the elevated part of eastbound I-90 where the Wallace Falls Trail crosses under it. I noted the short wooden posts marking the road as the PCT for reassurance.

One of many PCT sign posts

I-90 westbound elevated section in the distance

It seemed I was back in no time, and indeed, it took me less time to run the second five miles. It was an easy run, and a good chance to practice with the now-updated GoPro Hero Session 5 as well as the Spot. I have a better understanding of how the Spot functions in tracking mode and when sending a message. It can take longer than ten minutes to send an OK message, even with a clear view of the sky, and it is impossible to tell if the sending message light is blinking for tracking or an OK message. I determined that I will turn the tracking off when I stop for the night on the PCT fastpack so that I know when the message light stops blinking that my OK message has been sent. (If I leave the tracking on, it will continue to blink as it sends ten-minute tracking messages.) The GoPro was super easy to use. Next time, I'll have to take some videos, too.

It was also good to run a rocky trail to keep my ankles accustomed to the terrain I will face on the fastpack. I have one ten-mile run left, so I may do another PCT run next week.