Robert Francisco

Destination: Ashland
Starting Location: Grouse Gap
Today’s Miles: 10.70
Trip Miles: 1727.70
Grouse Gap Shelter (1715.9, 6630) to Ashland (1726.6, 4240) ascent (482) descent (3022)

Ian, the Northern California / Southern Oregon PCTA Regional Representative took a half day off work and really helped us out. Thai Food take out while we did laundry & showered, followed by chauffeur service to an outdoor store for shoes, and an early ride back to the trail in the morning. Thank you Ian.
Turns out David who we met last evening works at Dagoba Chocolate. This morning he told us to call him & he would hook us up with some chocolate. I had no idea. Dagoba is a fantastic (rated as some of the best in the world) organic chocolate and we had an impromptu sampling at their Ashland headquarters & David sent us on our way with some trail chocolate that should more appropriately be eaten after a fine meal. I take that back – the trail is the absolutely perfect place for exquisite chocolate.
Had to do a lot of planning, shopping & shipping here as Oregon is more difficult to resupply than California. Before we got everything done the UPS store & the post office had closed. Once again Ian came through & agreed to mail our stuff in the morning after he drops us off.
Have a new pain in my left foot. Odd pain on top of the foot. The pain does not respond to vitamin I & I am a bit worried. I think my miles are okay but the pace may be a bit fast for me. I plan to slow down & hopefully get some relief. It hurts like hell which in itself is okay. The problem is it could be a serious & worsening injury. Hope not.

Destination: Grouse Gap
Starting Location: Lowden’s Cabin Site Today’s Miles: 33.40
Trip Miles: 1717.00
Lowden’s Cabin Site (1682.5, 600) to Grouse Gap (1715.9, 6630) ascent (5663) descent (5095)

Today I entered the Oregon Territories. And while my journey is insignificant compared to those who came before me 150 years ago I have touched their world. I have experienced hardship and joy while developing relationships with kindred spirits. As I crossed the Oregon / California border I was surprised to be overcome with emotion. I just hiked 1700 miles encompassing the entire length of California and this milestone was a powerful reminder of the trail and all it entails.
To set up for Ashland we continued on and arrived at the Grouse ridge hut to find it occupied by 4 locals who came up for the evening to enjoy the full moon in the company of friends. The fire pit was going, food was shared and we all enjoyed a wonderful evening. I headed for my tent at 10:30 but I think the party may go late into the evening. We have several invitations for Ashland thanks to our new friends. The trail breaks down all typical barriers.

Destination: Lowden’s Cabin Site
Starting Location: Seiad Valley
Today’s Miles: 20.40
Trip Miles: 1683.60
Seiad Valley (1662.1, 1371) to Lowdens Cabin Site (1682.5, 6007) ascent (6821) descent (2349)

Dad asked when we needed to leave & I casually said “if we leave by noon we can easily make our 20 miles”. We are hiking machines & to think about that first difficult 20 into Lake Morena is a distant memory.
Had a scare as we realized my maps & personal items had been left in a box labeled “hiker box”. I am really particular about my stuff & being organized on the trail. Not having my maps concerned me greatly & I worried about it during the night. Dad worried more however and at 5:30 a.m. he said “let’s go find your stuff”. Fortunately, the box had not been put into view and we retrieved everything before the hiker trash woke up. My folks were sure no one would take my stuff, but unfortunately I have seen some behavior that convinced me otherwise”. The good news was my friends were there and they recognized the stuff as mine & kept it aside. I felt bad for dad because he felt really bad about putting the stuff in the wrong box. After it was retrieved however, we were able to enjoy a cup of coffee & talk about motorcycles. Mom had fallen back asleep by the time we got back. We woke her with coffee & we all enjoyed her brownies for a pre-breakfast.
That climb was a doozy at over 6800 + feet in 20 miles. Fortunately we had cool temperatures along with thunder showers. When I stopped I actually got really cold as I was soaked from pushing through the overgrown trail with wet leaves. At Lookout Spring Sunny was explaining the speed of light/speed of sound calculations and corrected me that it takes 5, not 1, seconds for the sound of thunder to travel 1 mile. Then we were blinded with a brilliant flash and an instantaneous & deafening explosion. Sunny does not curse but he sure did after that one. We quickly called out for Tadpole the hippo & Rolling Thunder as they had just left the protection of the trees & were above on the exposed ridge. No one was struck & we could not see any evidence of a strike but that bolt of lightning was literally right on top of us.
As I write this the sky continues to flash & rumble as a few drops of rain touch the tent’s protective wall.

?

Destination: Seiad Valley
Starting Location: Paradise Lake
Today’s Miles: 26.40
Trip Miles: 1663.20
Paradise Lake (1635.7, 6130) to Seiad Valley (1662.1, 1371) ascent (1988) descent (6424)

The completion of the last one thousand miles of a two thousand six hundred mile journey begins with the first step. After waiting out a thunder storm and waiting for thunder to complete the 999.9 miles to go sign, we took that step.
We were dreading the 6 mile road walk into Seiad Valley but then we discovered the road edge was overgrown with Himalayan berries. They look like a very robust blackberry and most people confuse the species. Regardless, the fruit was perfectly ripe & we walked, picked, ate, walked for several miles.
With a few miles to go a car approached very slowly & held out Coca Colas but kept going. I figured it was local jockettes so I just waved as if uninterested. The car then stopped and I heard Tadpole the hippo say: “they are looking for you go-BIG. PCTA board members Laraine & Melouise had tracked me down on their way to hike more miles on the PCT. They have both already hiked the entire trail in a couple of huge segments. We hared huge hugs, drank a cola, & shared tales of the trail.
The highway section of the road walk was terrible & dangerous. We constantly found ourselves standing on a very narrow shoulder in the star thistle as cars sped by. We were offered rides but had to decline as we are walking the entire way to Canada.
Mom & dad made it. They brought drinks for all & then the three of us went to Happy Camp for a great pizza dinner and a nice room on the Klamath River. Mom got a really cute short haircut in anticipation of her hair falling out. She said she also got a wig but I am advocating she go for the balk look. She has a perfectly round head & her ears are the right size for her head. Thus a perfect bald candidate. She is doing great but is extremely tired. We discussed her coming to Manning Park & we realized it is a long shot given her chemo schedule & my weather window. We will see. If she can not make it, we will celebrate at home

?

Destination: Paradise Lake
Starting Location: Etna Summit
Today’s Miles: 29.40
Trip Miles: 1636.80
Etna Summit (1606.3, 5960) to Paradise Lake (1635.7, 6130) ascent (4951) descent (4750)

We got out of Etna a bit late as we had the unfortunate luck of sharing a ride with the most self focused hiker I have ever met. He was late again. I have to admit that this guy got under my skin. Rolling Thunder and I discussed it and he observed that I was bugged because I had an unrealistic expectation that this hiker would respond to the significant & continual feedback regarding his behavior. He on the other hand resigned himself to the certain fact that this person is a certifiable narcissist beyond any hope. At first I thought he was off on his assessment of why I was bugged but upon 10 miles of reflection I know his is right. Expectations lead to disappointments!
I forgot to mention my hitchhike into Etna. Now I have never actually hitchhiked. My folks forbid it absolutely (to do it or to pick someone up) as it was dangerous and surprisingly this 43 year old guy still has that in his head. So I am at Etna Summit getting the fire scoop from a USFS representative, who was waiting for the helicopter to come in & be resupplied when I asked if any cars ever came down the road. She said about every 30 minutes or so and here comes one now. So without doing any of the recommended techniques (take hat off, take sun glasses off, smile, clean up. . .) I jumped to the road shoulder and boldly threw out my thumb as a Dodge Turbo Diesel hauling a trailer topped the summit. He pulled over & as I proceeded to hop in the bed he yelled to get up front. I complied and was met by Sidney the mean looking but loveable boxer who immediately jumped inty my lap.
The driver then asked if those X@#%& feds were kicking me out of the forest. Now the Marines taught me to curse like a sailor & I learned how to talk good old boy by hanging out with contractors on restoration projects, so I responded with a simple yep and then asked what ya hauling? Shit he replied. Pick it up twice a day from the fire line shit house. No shit I said. No shit he replied. Well at least it gets you & Sidney out of the house. Damn straight young fella, my name is Dick. Dick hauling shit. We were instant friends and Dick from Fort Jones explained how he had never picked up a hiker before but now that he met me he would start. He dropped me in town and stuck out a very dirty hand, but what was I to do but reciprocate with my dirty hand. Good to meet you Dick.
That evening Thunder, Tadpole the hippo, & Sunny got in around 9 pm. They were all smiles. They were certain they would not get a ride that late until a truck pulled over, introduced himself as Dick Shit, said he was a friend of go-BIG and told them to hop in. Thank you Dick and as we discusse4d, don’t worry about hikers they don’t want to steal your shit hauler.
Saw the uncles fire as we walked the ridge. No danger with several ridges separating us from a mostly smoldering fire. The next fire was also a non-issue but having a helicopter fly overhead with a very big bag of water was a bit exciting. Had a few lightning strikes but I think overall the situation improved as some rain fell, the wind stayed down, & the humidity shot way up. Passing through is perfectly safe but I understand the closure for those wanting to access other parts of the Wilderness. I want to commend the USFS and the California Department of Forestry for doing an excellent job communicating to PCT hikers. In front of the Etna grocery store was a huge sandwich board with maps, fire status information, & alternatives to skip the section by taking a bus. The information was updated frequently & twice I was stopped on the street and asked if I needed any additional information regarding the fires. I have been critical of some of your land use policies but the information officer on the Klamath NF has their act together. Good work & thank you.
The Marble Mountains are beautiful and their namesake is so appropriate given the rock formations that look like marble. This wilderness also holds a lot of deer & we saw them all evening.
Squatch, a talented independent documentary film maker, asked me to be on the look out for evidence of Big Foot. Seriously. So far nothing but I do have a scat headscratcher. Looks canine or potentially feline in nature and contains fur. Easy, right? It’s a coyote. Not. Here is the problem, it also contains what looks like berries and it would take a 400 lb coyote to produce a pile that big. I don’t know what it is. Saw about 6 piles over a 15 mile area. Mutant ninja Coyote or perhaps a wold was moved to California to explore a vegetarian lifestyle?
I should have taken notes but didn’t so I apologize for not remembering the names of those who posed questions on my guest book. Regardless, from memory there was an inquiry about Pang & Swiss Miss having a journal? Yes they do. Unfortunately it is written in Swiss. If you still want the URL let me know & I will get it for you. There was also an inquiry about me potentially talking to a local Boy Scout troop in Southern California. I was a boy scout and while I disagree with what I believe is unnecessary fear based discrimination at the national level, I think scouting is a great program and I would be honored to talk to your troop. And of course I would keep the focus to hiking the PCT. Let me know if you want to try & work something out. I also do some advocacy work in Washington DC on behalf of the trail that may be of some civic interest to the group.
Now Judith, I am not going to hold you to the offer of 10 lunches because I could not get a single date with you when we worked together. But a lunch date will be in order when I get home.
Our two day strategy into Seiad Valley is going to work well & I am really excited to see my mom.
The small ponds in this area are filled with newts. They are black on top with bright orange under bellies. They are really neat and look like some goofy combination of a lizard, snake & fish. When I was a boy, and fished with crude measures we used to use waterdogs as bait. They look somewhat like a newt. I guess a mudler minnow fly looks a bit like one as well. Bass like any of them.

Destination: Etna Summit
Starting Location: Etna Summit
Today’s Miles: 0.00
Trip Miles: 1607.40

Etna – Zero
Great day in Etna and a real rest.
Sugar Daddy, Pang & Swiss Miss got in late morning & decided to hike on today. This strategy was not ideal for me because it put me in the smoke zone for an extra day & night. So I decided to go tomorrow morning and push the 56 miles to Seiad Valley in two days. Rolling Thunder, Tadpole the hippo, & Sunny are doing the same.
We watched Life Aquatic & ate microwave popcorn. It was a significant diversion from hiking each day and the mental break was healthy. Distance hiking, while physical, is mostly a mental game and to be able to turn the focus off even for a few brief hours seems to have recharged me.
The atmospheric conditions have deteriorated some what with regard to fire behavior. These conditions provide a greater potential for the fires to expand. However, they have not done so and we are going through the recommended closure.
Section hikers Richard & Doodle Bug got in & we had a nice time comparing notes on trail conditions but more importantly getting caught up on our friends

?

Destination: Etna Summit
Starting Location: Just past Bingham Lake outlet
Today’s Miles: 13.10
Trip Miles: 1607.40
Bingham Lake Outlet (1593.2, 6867) to Etna Summit (1606.3, 5960) ascent (2047) descent (3300)

Etna is a great town & it feels like I am in a time warp. A real soda shop in the drug store & when you get a milkshake you actually get a glass with the extra shake. I am sitting in the local diner and the local radio station has not played a country music song recorded after 1970. The really neat thing is that it looks like the town is thriving with all the old downtown buildings fully occupied and open for business. The truck to car ratio is 9.9 to 1, and as Merle Haggard said “cowboy boots are still in style”. I love this town.
Met Turbo & her dog heading south after she flipped around the Sierra. She was bummed that she had “fell for the hype” and flipped. Which reminds me, I owe Scott Williamson a big debt of gratitude. Two days before Kennedy Meadows, when I was so apprehensive about the Sierra, I saw Scott & asked him his opinion. I appreciated what he said because the message was: form your own opinion & do not listen to the hype regardless of the source. He went on to recommend that we try it as “you can always turn around”. How right he was. As Turbo & I discussed she commented that she wished she had heard & followed such wise counsel. Instead she flipped to Old Station as suggested by some of the experts & this provided absolutely no advantages.
Mom said she was up for eating Mexican food and thus she clearly made it through her first chemo-nausea cycle. She is planning on coming to Seiad Valley in a few days to see us off into Oregon.
Staying at the Alderbrook Manor Bed & Breakfast. They have a separate hiker hut that sleeps 6 & for $20 you get a bed, shower, laundry facilities,& internet. The proprietors, Vicki & Dave are wonderful hosts and I have decided to take a real 100% zero day.
The trail is officially closed between Etna & Seiad Valley due to 4 fires burning on the Klamath Forest. That said, we have been told the trail is not burning and “while not advisable” we will not be stopped if we proceed. We proceed – unless the situation deteriorates to a more unsafe level.
I have been contemplating my strategy going forward & I am torn. The group is the best but going my own way is feeling very liberating & offers some logistical advantages. I think I will do a combination going forward where as I will stay close to the team but set a schedule more to my liking. Sunny, Tadpole the hippo, & Rolling Thunder are looking at an Oregon strategy that works for me, so maybe I will hand with them for a bit & see what happens. They hike much faster than me but at the end of the day I do the same miles.

?

Destination: Etna
Starting Location: Etna
Today’s Miles: 0.00
Trip Miles: 1607.40

Hello everyone, go-BIG here. In Etna, CA with a fire closure. Deciding what to do. Skipping is a very unatractive option so if conditions are safe, I will likley proceed. In the meantime I am eating milkshakes…two so far.
I want to thank everyone for the tremendous support. Your warm wishes are wonderful inspiration. If you have not signed my guest book please do so as I would love to hear from you. Liz prints them out for me and I read them along the trail…it is great.
Hike on. Oh yea, the photo Sheri labeled as a rattle snake looks a lot like a gopher snake to be…yes I do know the diference, but my sister… well that is a diferent story.

?

Destination: Just past Bingham Lake outlet
Starting Location: Saddle after peak
Today’s Miles: 35.50
Trip Miles: 1594.30
Saddle (1557.7, 6160) to Just past Bingham Lake outlet (1593.2, 6867) ascent (5650) descent (4948) 35.5 miles

The perfect end to a perfect day. Just as I was about to resign myself to sleeping on the trail I spotted a perfect cowboy camp bench behind a huge tree on a slope that must be 35%. The moon is barely visible through the tree canopy, the air is perfectly still, and with the thick smoke it feels like a blanket is over the forest.
Met some very nice trail rides at highway 3 who were just heading out. I think his name was Ed, I did not get hers, but the dog’s name was definitely Zeke. Also chatted briefly with a south bounder who introduced himself as a thru-hiker from ’05. But he was section hiking about 500 miles that he did not do last year because he flipped to Canada & did not come back or something like that. The story was getting pretty complicated so I asked for a fire report & moved on. And then no one for the rest of the morning and throughout the day. I loved it.
Decided to try & live up to my trail names even while it is a parody. So I put my 37” inseam to hiking & go-BIG pulled off 35+ miles with + 10k vertical change. It took 14 hours to the minute for a pace a split hair over 2.5 mph. When I finally pulled the clutch in at 8:30 sharp, it felt as though I likely had at least another 5 miles in me. That felt awesome. It took the go mobile 200 mg of vitamin I every 3 hours for the first 9 hours, then it took two doses of 400 mg to bring it home. It was fun to test myself & hey now I get to Etna on Thursday. I hope with all the fire activity I can secure lodging. I also wanted to experiment a bit with bigger miles in case I need to do some later. It is always good to explore what something feels like so if you need to go there you can. I am thinking I may need this tool later on. I may have to do some timing adjustments to my schedule as I get close to finishing. Only way to adjust the schedule is speed up or slow down and either may be an option. I know Liz has some schedule constraints before September 15 but I won’t beat that so no problem. However, Mom is committed to coming to Manning Park also if I make it & her chemo schedule might prove challenging. She is on a 3 week cycle. From what I understand week one is hell & travel is out of the question. Week two is better, & week three is pretty good – then do it again.
So I may need to adjust my finish date to correspond with week 2-3. Knowing go-BIG can go-BIG could help if things get tight. Now if you are wondering if this is consistent with HYOY (Hike your own hike) let me assure you it is. Having my wife & family, especially my mom, in Manning Park is my hike.
Bambi & in this case babies are really cute regardless of your age. Standing at full attention & gull of spots they watched me as I watched them. Then as if on 4 pogo sticks they bounded off after mom.
Lying to one’s self is a subtle thing. Looking back to when I was sick in old station I realized I had begun to write a lie in my head that went something like “yea, I was forced off the trail with a nasty staph infection . . . tough break”. Had I gotten off it would have been because I quit. But quitting does not play as well & so we, or at least me, write stories to make us look good & be right. Too bad we are lying to ourselves as well.
Castle Crags, the Trinity Alps & now the Russian Wilderness have all been great surprises. We are back in real mountains with rugged character again. As I kept seeing Mt Shasta over my left shoulder I knew my latitudinal progress had come to a screeching halt as the trail heads a whole lot south & a whole lot west. If I extrapolated my azimuth I would have ended up in San Francisco Bay & that is not the direction to Canada. Heading the wrong direction is a bit tough mentally even though you know the mileage is the mileage. I just kept saying to myself “they are great mountains even if they are the wrong direction”.

Destination: Saddle after peak
Starting Location: Ridge
Today’s Miles: 33.70
Trip Miles: 1558.80
Ridge (1524, 6150) to Saddle after peak (1557.7, 6160) ascent (3783) descent (3652)

First 30+ mile day – cool.
It was ironic that on my first day of solo hiking I met more people than on any other day on the trail. I passed section hikers Rita, Southern Harp & Travling Man along with thru-hiker Heiki early in the morning. Then I met 3 groups of Ameri Trek youth (13/14 yrs old) who were enjoying what sounded like a really cool summer adventure – 3 days backpacking, climbing Mt Lassen, white water rafting. The company is based in North Carolina but their programs are all in the west. One of the group leaders was an Appalachian Trail thru-hiker & he immediately hooked me up with a Snickers bar & even took my trash. Then I met the coolest people yet – 5 & 6 year olds on a field trip to Deadfall Meadow. Their daypacks were bigger than they were. The bold ones were running ahead chasing butterflies, & lizards while the reserved ones even pulled it off pretty well a few times, but it is hard & unrewarded work being not you.
I am camped right on top of a saddle, a partial moon has appeared and the mountain sticking through the smoke looks like islands in a sea of fog.
Weird seeing so many people in the morning & now I have not seen anyone all afternoon or evening. The constant chatter in my head is dramatically reduced & when it starts I am able to switch it off and simply enjoy my surroundings. I am in a great place right now.