Pacific Crest Trail - Day 172 - Chinook Pass

Start: Mile 2316.1 - Laughingwater Creek Trail
End: Mile 2359.2 - Mike Urich Cabin

Amazing orange and green forest and fungi textures.

The Eastside Trail up to Chinook Pass from Mt. Rainier National Park was easily the wettest and steepest few miles of our trek so far. Not a great combination :/

We eventually climbed up to a closed Highway 123 and walked up it to where it met Highway 410.

Highway 410 was a long meandering switchbacking road. We didn’t make it up very far along a cloud shrouded, shoulder-less two lane road before deciding to catch a hitch.

An amazing woman from Yakima swooped us up and took us a couple miles to Chinook Pass where we regrouped, had a snack, and set off into a cloudy trail.

There were a handful of day hikers out admirably hiking in the misty clouds. I suppose if you get two weeks off per year and decide to spend some of that in Mt. Rainier National Park you go hiking regardless of what the weather is doing.

We had lunch near this spooky misty lake.

This chipmunk made sure to show me that he was both dry and had an overhang to run back and forth under.

A very chilly misty stretch. Gorgeous, but challenging in an uncomfortably wet and cold way.

Eventually we hit a forest. Unfortunately, it was recently scorched.

These paragons of brilliance pitched their tents in a burned forest in a windstorm.

Goofus pitched his tent in a windy recently burned forest.

Gallant walks a few more miles to find a place to pitch his tent where he won’t wake up as a human toothpaste tube under a fallen tree.

We hiked into the night with headlamps for the first time to reach Mike Urich Cabin hoping we’d be able to dry off in a cabin near a fire.

We found the cabin already occupied by two women who had claimed the entire top bunk area and who hadn’t bothered to start a fire. We left them to their own devices in the place and pitched the tent outside near a couple of other tents apparently pitched by people who made a similar decision to avoid the cabin.