Another part of our amazing adventure done!
Remember you can always visually track our progress on:
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Day 16: July 10, 2014
Miles Hiked: 0 (Hitched a ride back to the trailhead)
*Bonners Ferry*
Woke up to the trains braking and making a lot of noise at the fairgrounds. Packed up and headed over to SoulShine (of course!) for some red rooster coffee and a Ham & Asiago Biscuit. We are so in love with this cute little restaurant. Sharlene (a PNT “Trail Angel”) offered us a ride up to the trailhead in the afternoon before we could even ask! And she even sneakily paid for our lunch. We then headed over to the library to update the blog and then headed to the Bonners Ferry Visitor Center for our resupply. Ants had gotten into some of our trail mix but the damage wasn’t too bad. Headed back to SoulShine for lunch. We got a Marrakesh Wrap and a Ceviche Wrap, both were so good. To top it off, they made us some rosemary shortbread cookies and triple chocolate sea salt cookies. We felt so spoiled. Chatted a bit with the owners, Tracey and Josue about their backstory. Made a last minute errand to get a new knife (Matt got his sharpened) and then headed up to Parker Creek. We then realized that it was only 94 miles to Metaline Falls, not 144, and thus realized we had way too much food.
Day 17: July 11, 2014
Miles Hiked: 18
Parker Creek -> Balls Lake
Woke up and climbed up Parker Creek. Beautiful trail up until mile 2.5 where we encountered a LOT of blowndown trees. Great trail after that. Finally gained the ridge and only hit a few patches of snow. The views were incredible! We kept along the ridge until we descended to Pyramid Lake. I felt really exhausted at the point. There were lots of creeks for water (the Trail Digest warned that this might be a dry area). We made one final push and climbed up to Balls Lake where we took a cold refreshing swim and made a fire to warm up. Great place to camp before a “nasty” bushwack tomorrow. We’ll see how it goes!
Day 18: July 12, 2014
Miles Hiked: 14 (22 in the Trail Digest aka we took a shortcut).
Balls Lake -> Upper Priest Lake
Started the day off with lots of caffeine (mate and coffee) to prepare for the bushwack. It began with a fun 1-mile rock scramble to gain a ridge. Then we walked the ridge for two crests and came down on the second saddle. The trail was 60% visible on the way down to lionhead creek. Then it got ugly & nasty. Finally rewarded after 3 hideous miles and found a swimming hole and natural waterslide. Lunch was a record 3 hours. My collapsible nalgene popped when it hit a branch….. will probably just by a Powerade bottle to replace it, as they are way more durable and cheap. Got in the groove and knocked out 5 quick miles right up until Upper Priest Lake. We navigated some potentially confusing forest roads (some PNT signs here would be great!). We avoided Lookout Mountain, which was supposed to be beautiful but we were simply too tired after the bushwack.
Day 19: July 13, 2014
Miles Hiked: 18
Upper Priest Scenic Area -> Jackson Creek
Great start to the day with a little stream crossing on the Idaho centennial trail. Followed the trail along the lake for 9 miles. Really beautiful, soft and shady trail. Be wary, about 4 miles in there was some angry mosquitoes (definitely recommend long sleeves and pants). Then we did some mellow (6) road miles with a dunk in the river. As you approach the Jackson Creek area, THICK mosquitoes and easy to get off trail. Stay postive and relaxed and you will find the Jackson Creek trailhead ( a possible future route in Li Branforths maps). Considered “uncharted territory”. Awesome trail with few blowdowns. Camped near the top and slept at a weird angle. New creation: Chicken Teriyaki Mountain House with Peanut Butter and Hot Sauce burritos. It’s gotten to that point where it’s time to get creative…..
Day 20: July 14, 2014
Miles Hiked: 20.8
Jackson Creek -> Sullivan Lake
Don’t know what it was about today, but we hit our stride. Maybe it was the easy terrain, but in finally feels as though we are adapting. We woke up to some light rain and climbed 1400 feet up the mountain. Great views and cool weather as the rain subsided. Logged 8 more easy miles before we ate lunch at TR 503. Delicious bologna (oxymoron?) fresh from Sandpoint. Cruised the rest of the way to Sullivan Lake. Audrey’s feet started hurting again….. Merrell shoes look so great but ain’t so….. Knees still feeling great as we descended. Camped at an actual campsite (table and all!), paid $15 to camp next to some people with generators… huh weird to pay to camp at a worse location with more noise. Oh well, Metaline Falls tomorrow! Anxious to hear about the World Cup Scores.
Day 21: July 15, 2014
Miles Hiked: 10.3
Sullivan Lake -> Metaline Falls
Woke up and booked it for 4 miles through Sullivan Lake and 6 more miles on roads to Metaline Falls. Went to Cathy’s Cafe (highly recommended!) and ordered a “Hungry Man” (pictured below). 5 eggs, onions, sausage, bacon, mushrooms, peppers, hashbrowns etc… Also ordered a chocolate shake. Then we headed over to Boundary Tours and met PNTA member Mary and her family. They were very nice. We picked up some Hamms (cheap, great beer) and headed to a rope swing out by the Columbia river. Rain into Benzo at the bar! We invited him to join us in our beer festivities, and soon we were planning a BBQ at Boundary Tours. I played some music with Matt for the first time in a while (felt so good!) and asked Mary for a ride to the Forest Road before Mt. Abercrombie. She couldn’t, she explained but her husband could. Slept in the tepee outside (great but a little mosquito-heavy).
Hiking the Pacific Northwest Trail 2014 