August 25:C3PO, Garbage Bags, and Rubber Gloves

We decided to take it easy in the morning and didn't head out to the trail until 11am. It was Mark, JZ, Boomer, and I; the rest had decided to take another zero day, but since we had to pay $100/night (split 4 ways) to stay another night, we were eager to head out to camp for free. It wasn't raining when we left, but the forecast called for rain and the clouds had the mountains socked in.

We were lucky! It did rain on us periodically, but only a couple of times for 10 minutes or so. There were clouds around, but they opened up a lot and gave us spectacular views! Even the clouds put on a decent show. The wispy ones would rise and fall in the valleys around us, altering the views and opening up new ones.

We had passed a couple hikers a ways back on the trail that told us that this section of trail was "notoriously
beautiful," and boy were they right! It was incredible! It was night and day from the previous couple days of clearcuts we had walked through into Snoqualmie Pass.

It was also a difficult terrain day. We did a lot of climbing over a lot of rocky trail. We even met a couple who said they got snowed on at one point!

We would laugh everytime we'd encounter other short-term hikers because we had aquired some new "gear" and probably looked like a comical ragtag group. Other thru hikers wouldn't bat an eye; we can be an eclectic group. But to most others, we probably just seemed wierd. Boomer had made a poncho and pack cover out of a mylar emergency blanket which was a lovely gold/bronze cover. When he was wearing it he looked like a mix between a knight and C3PO from star wars. Mark and I had made pack covers out of garbage bags. Mine was clear and his was black. They work pretty well if I do say so myself! Last, but not least, I was sporting some brand new, bought at a gas station, flourescent orange rubber dishwashing gloves. Someone had told me that they used them and that, not only would they keep my hands/gloves dry, but they would insulate from the wind as well. Sounded good to me! However, I can only give them a moderate rating so far. They did keep my hands drier than if I had not!
worn them, but they were still damp from my hands sweating inside them. I am also not convinced they are much warmer, and actually wonder if they make my hands colder at times. I'll give them a little more time and then decide. So, all that said, I can't imagine why we got some funny looks...

Since we had gotten a late start, we camped near one of the three Park Lakes in the Park Lakes Basin. The sky was getting continually darker, and we found a campsite just as it started to sprinkle again. It always feels great to get out of wet clothes and into a warm sleeping bag and tarp!

Total Miles:2417.0
Miles Today:15.3
Camp 120:Windy Park Lakes

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