3 Weeks Until the PCT!

Only a short few weeks until we put our first foot prints on the PCT.  It is a strange feeling, knowing that the routine that I have gotten into over the past winter, everything I have been doing, will all be flipped over on its head and life will be completely, utterly, unimaginably different.  All this planning and dreaming and finally, the time is right around the corner!  We are all extremely excited.

The picture to the right is of myself, Aaron Matsko, and Adam Winkler.  All of us fight fire together in John Day, Oregon and have been good friends for a long time.  We took this picture on a training hike along the Snake River out here in Southwestern Idaho.  We started from the Swan Falls Dam and hiked to Celebration park.  This is within the Birds of Prey National Conservation area and follows a deep canyon along the Snake River.  I was intending to go mostly for the exercise but, as with most hikes, there were constant surprises along the way that enriched the entire experience.

The canyon itself is beautiful.  It makes quite an impression as you drive along the flat valley floor to the South of Kuna and all of a sudden find yourself on the rim of a deep, expansive cliff face.  The birds of prey follow the currents along the cliffs walls as they hunt the canyon floor and we got to see Osprey, Eagles, and Hawks.  We also had to stop a few times to listen to the eerie cooing of doves who sat in droves along the cliff walls, letting their songs reverberate in the canyon.  It was funny to hear them, cooing louder and louder and then immediately silent as a predatory bird soared by.

Next, along the North bank of the river, we began to find ruins of old homesteaders.  Mostly these were just the fallen walls and foundations of old stone cabins but we found one which was still in great condition.  It stood strong enough that I would still feel comfortable spending a night in it.  It looked right out across the water into a copse of alder that were completely saturated with red-winged black birds.  Who ever built the cabin did a damn good job, and picked a great spot to put it.  I wouldn't mind spending a little time there myself.

We reached Celebration park and looked in vain for the Indian petroglyphs that I'd heard were there.  The Paiute Indians spent their winters in this area but we found no trace of them in the park.  We crossed the old Guffey railroad trestle and set up camp on a butte overlooking the Snake.  We sat down for a nice hot meal only to realize the fuel canister which I'd assumed to be fuel and leaked since the last time I'd used it and was now empty.  Ooops, my bad guys.  Enjoy your cold, tasteless dinners.  What an amateur mistake--been awhile since I've pulled something that dumb when it comes to hiking.  Don't get my wrong, I've been doing plenty of dumb things, but not when it comes to hiking.

In the morning we headed back along the South side of the river.  After walking for an hour or so, we came to some open fields with scattered boulders.  To our surprise, the boulders were covered in petroglyphs.  There were pictures of men, antlered animals, insects, the river, and plenty of things we couldn't distinguish.  It is such an incredible experience to be transported into the past.  The ramifications of such an encounter are limited only by the imagination.  The people who carved this drawings spoke a different language, thought in completely different ways, and in many ways, lived in a totally different world.  And here we are, bringing with us the changing of times and a new culture, standing in the same spot and sharing the same experience.  It is a beautiful thing to try to wrap your mind around.

There were hundreds and hundreds of petroglyphs as we continued hiking.  After a few solid hours, we were back at the dam, scaling across some scaffolding because the walk way was under construction and there was no other way across.  This hike was a great chance to explore parts of the canyon I'd never seen.  I was grateful for the opportunity and had a blast hanging with my buddies, getting ready for the PCT and shootin' the bull all the while.  It was a great day to be alive.  Fortunately, we have many, many more days like this to come as we make our way along the PCT.