D122-D125: The best vista of the whole trail 整條步道最美的景色

Days 122 to 125:

My cousin Scott arrived the night before and for our first day hiking together the weather was beautiful yet again. We got a ride to the trailhead from one of the Trout Lake locals who volunteer to shuttle hikers back and forth. Our driver today even had a couch set up in his truck for us. Coyote and Scott got prime seating here. Doug Anderson is the local PCTA member who organizes all the volunteer drivers. He had been in contact with Scott before our trip and even came out this morning to chat with him and make sure there were no problems. Amazing hospitality from the people of Trout Lake! By mid-morning Scott and I were ready to get back on the PCT.

表弟Scott昨晚到了，而我們一起走PCT的第一天天氣依舊良好。當地人幫我們送到登山口，像昨天載我的人一樣也是志願幫登山客的trail angel。這位司機還在車上放沙發，Scott和Coyote做得很舒服。車子後面的人是Doug，他是PCT協會的會員，Scott曾經透過email向他詢問過PCT行程和交通的問題，今早Doug特別跑出來找Scott確認他找得到接駁車，看Scott還需不需要幫助，真貼心！整體來說Trout Lake的人民很大方，很推薦以後走PCT的人到這個小鎮補給。早上我跟Scott就已經到登山口，準備出發。

Surprisingly, we were able to maintain 3 mph all day today. This was already my normal pace and Scott was keeping up on his first day. We were treated to incredible views of Mt. Adams all day today as we circled around the base of this volcano.

我今天感到很驚訝，我們一整天都維持5公里的時速，這速度已經算數我正常的速度，是走好幾個月才練出的體力，Scott卻在第一天就能夠走這麼快。今天腰繞時從不同的角度看這座火山，怎麼看都很美。

Today we crossed a raging river on probably the sketchiest log crossing of the whole trail this year. I’m glad somebody went to the effort of laying these trees out, but I’m not sure how they managed to do it considering how fast this river was moving.

今天過了一條水流非常強的溪流，我覺得是整條步道最有風險的倒木過溪點。我很感激有人幫我們把這些樹幹橫跨在溪流上，不過我很難想像他們到底怎麼辦到的。

Scott insisted on finding a nice place with a view for our lunch break. I’d gotten used to just stopping whenever I felt like eating on the trail, but I was glad he insisted on finding a good place today. Check out this prime lunch spot:

Scott一直堅持要找一個風景好又舒適的地方吃午餐，跟我平常的習慣不一樣，餓了就坐下來吃不管有沒有風景。我們有耐心地找吃飯的地點很值得，看看我們最後走到哪裡用餐：

As I was walking today, I once again could feel the chill of fall starting to set in. It was at this point that I remembered I had ordered a new long-sleeved wool top to wear in Washington, when the weather was sure to get colder and wetter. I also recalled that I had the top shipped somewhere farther up the trail when I ordered it, so that I could pick it up as I went through a town. Unfortunately, I also remembered that the town I’d shipped it to was Trout Lake! I was in Trout Lake for a whole day; I was at the store where they hold packages for hikers; the package had arrived several days ago; the store clerk had even asked me if I had any packages to pick up there; yet I still forgot about this top until just now! It was too late to hike back to the trailhead and wait for a shuttle into town, then another to get back out. What to do? If only someone I knew was going to be in Trout Lake soon, maybe they could ship it ahead for me.

今天走的時候雖然有照到太陽但還是有點涼，秋天的確已經到了。想到溫度我就想起另外一件事，我最近在網路上訂了一件長袖毛製的登山上衣，因為我知道華盛頓的天氣會比較冷又比較濕。想到衣服的同時我才想到這件衣服寄到哪裡，剛好是我們早上就離開的Trout Lake，可惡！我在那個小鎮待了差不多一整天，我也進去會過幫登山客代收包裹的店裡，昨天甚至進去過好幾次，店員還特別問我有沒有包裹要領，但我現在才想到那件衣服。現在回去還要等下一個進鎮的接駁車，領包裹後還要等下一個出鎮的接駁車，已經來不及回去了。我絞盡腦汁去想有沒有認識的人在我後面可以幫我往前寄，可是我唯一聯絡得上的人可能要10天後才會到Trout Lake，實在太久了。

Well, as luck would have it, a southbound hiker appeared not 15 minutes after I realized my problem. I asked him if he’d be able to get my top from the store and mail it ahead to Snowqualmie Pass. He said yes, and that he had to go to the post office anyway. But, he’d have to set an alarm in his phone because he forgets things easily. That should have been my first warning sign, but I had faith that a PCT hiker would be willing to help out another hiker. I gave him 10 bucks to cover the 8-dollar shipping charge, gave him the address, said thanks, and continued on with Scott. 

不到15分鐘後就出現了一位往南走的登山客。我問他到小鎮的時候可不可以去超市領我的包裹再幫我寄到我下一個補給點，他答應我，反正他自己本來就要去郵局一趟，但他當場設了鬧鐘提醒自己這件事，他怕到時候會忘記要去拿我的衣服。他那麼容易忘記，我應該要有心理準備衣服可能拿不回來，不過我也相信登山客都會儘量互相幫忙。我拿十元鈔票給他，郵資差不多8元而已，也給他補給點的地址，謝謝他願意幫忙，最後跟Scott繼續前進。

Because Scott kept up the bristling pace all day, we actually covered 27 miles when I was expecting to do maybe 22. Starting the PCT with a 27-mile day is almost unheard of. Most people, including me, hover around the 15-20 mile mark for the first couple week!

表弟今天的速度跟昨天一樣快，我本來預計可以走35公里，今天很意外走了43公里。剛開始走PCT就可以再一天內走超過40公里好驚人，大部份的人在適應的時候有一兩個禮拜每天走的距離大概在25-30公里之間，我也不例外。

The next morning, it was clear how far we’d walked the day before. Mt. Adams was now far off in the distance behind us.

隔天早上看得出來我們前一天走多遠，亞當斯山已經看起來很遙遠了。

Mt. Rainier, the next big volcano and Scott’s personal favourite, was getting closer. Today there was a nice cap cloud covering its peak.

下一座大火山越來越近，是Scott最期待的瑞尼爾山。今天有一片山帽雲覆蓋著山頂。

We continued along at a blistering pace today, spurred on by more good weather and good views. Scott hit a bit of a wall today around noon, but after a quick rest he was good to go again. The Cispus Pass area we were going through at this time was really photogenic; certainly the best part of Washington so far.

今天因為天氣和風景都很棒所以心情很好，速度也一樣快，中午表弟突然覺得有些累，但他躺下來休息後體力又恢復正常。我們中午經過的Cispus埡口是華盛頓到目前為止最漂亮的一段。

Crossing over the pass, we had beautiful valleys on both sides.

過鞍部時兩邊都有壯觀的山谷，又停下來拍拍照。

We found a nice spot to eat right beside a mountain spring, looking out on Mt. St. Helens. Scott had a lot of excess fuel and had a stick of salami, so he had the genius idea of roasting it on the gas flame. It ended up tasting so good he did this almost every meal afterward and even insisted that other hikers try a piece, earning him the trail name Roasted Salami.

今天又找到很棒的地方來吃午餐，在泉水源頭旁邊，正前方還看得到聖海倫火山。表弟的瓦斯還剩很多所以他決定用瓦斯爐的火來烤臘腸。這樣烤其實很好吃，他以後每一餐都會烤臘腸，還堅持周圍的登山客都要拿一片吃吃看，他就這樣就獲得PCT綽號「烤臘腸」。

As we continued through the Goat Rocks Wilderness, we came up to a very high pass with some snow. This was the first big snow field I’d had to cross since way back in the Sierras in early July.

進入Goat Rocks Wilderness後海拔越來越高，甚至走到一個鞍部下面有積雪的山坡，是我7月初離開內華達山脈後後踏上雪的第一次。

What we saw when got to the top of this pass I would call the BEST vista on the entire five months of the PCT. Scott was only going to hike with me for four days but somehow he had picked the most scenic stretch of trail that the PCT has to offer. There was rock, there was green, there was snow, there was Mt. Rainier ahead of us and Mt. Adams behind us, there was a deep valley, there were clouds moving in, and there was smoke rising from a nearby forest fire; it had a little bit of everything all at once.

抵達鞍部的時候眼前的風景我認為是這五個月的PCT行程當中最好看的畫面，Scott只走4天卻剛好看到整條步道最美的風景，好像很會挑路段。有裸露的石頭，有翠綠的針葉樹，有純白的雪，後方有亞當斯山，前方有壯觀的瑞尼爾山，有很深的溪谷，左邊有雲層要飄過來，右邊有森林火災冒出來的煙，能看到的地形、顏色、變化，在這一刻幾乎都在眼前。

From here we took an alternate route up near the peak of Old Snowy Mountain and down a knife-edge ridge. This is hiking at its very best!

這附近有支線可以通道Old Snowy山頂附近，再走瘦稜下去接PCT主線，刺激到一個極點。

After descending from Old Snowy, we arrived at an important junction on the trail. The PCT veered right here but is actually closed this year due to forest fires. An alternate route had been opened somewhere up ahead, but then another forest fire closed the alternate! At this point, the alternate for the alternate veered down and to the left. There was a campsite at the junction but there was no water and it was very windy so we decided to push on a few more hours to a better campsite. Unfortunately, the clouds were also rolling in.

從Old Snowy下來後我們抵達一個重要的岔路，在此取右走才是PCT本身，但前方有火災所以路不通，前方不遠本來有一條繞火災的替代路線，但後來替代路線也發生火災！現在只能走替代路線的替代路線，要取左下切。其實岔路這裡就有營地但因為風大附近又沒有水源所以我們決定再走幾個小時到好一點的營地。可惜這時候很厚的雲快飄過來了。

As dark was setting in, the rain started. We got out our headlights and our rain gear and I had a little outburst. Not only was I upset about the rain, I was also upset about once again having to keep walking through the dark without knowing where I would be able to camp. After walking into the dark almost every day for the past 2 weeks, I'd had enough of it. I vowed never to be hunting for a campsite in the dark ever again on the rest of the trail. Nighttime is for sleeping, not hiking. Scott was probably surprised at my sudden anger but it had been building up for a long time already and the rain was the straw that broke the camel's back.

天要黑的時候雨開始下，我們拿出頭燈和雨衣雨褲的時候還發了脾氣。現在不只要淋雨，還要再一次天黑的時候找營地，前兩個禮拜幾乎每天都走到天黑，我實在受不了了，畢竟晚上應該是睡覺的時間不是登山的時間，我當場發誓一直到PCT走完我不會再走到天黑才找營地，每天一定要趁天還亮的時候先找好營地。表弟可能覺得我突然發脾氣很不恰當，但今天是好幾天累積的挫折感終於得以發洩。

Eventually, we did get to a campsite and it ended up being quite nice. There was a little stream that ran right beside it, there was a lot of room for tents, and the rain stopped just as we arrived. After a 28-mile day, we finally made camp. The next morning it was still foggy and cold, but at least there was no rain and we were able to sit outside and have breakfast. Scott's creative use of a cheap tarp actually kept him dry through the night. Canadian Tire for the win!

我們最終走到營地，發現營地很不錯，旁邊有乾淨的小溪流，平坦可搭帳篷的面積很大，而且我們到營地的時候雨剛好停了。今天不知不覺走了43公里，終於可以放下背包休息。隔天早上還有濃霧，溫度很低，但幸運的是沒下雨，我們還可以坐外面吃早餐。表弟在加拿大類似小北百貨的店買的橘色帆布他拿來做帳篷，效果竟然很好，晚上完全沒有淋濕。

This morning's hike to finish the fire detour wasn't scenic at all, as we were stuck in fog the whole time. As the trail meandered back and forth in the fog, I got disoriented. Thankfully, the detour was well marked.

早上走完火災替代路線的替代路線都走在濃霧中，完全沒風景看，我甚至第一次在PCT上完全失去方向感，幸好替代線的路標很明顯。

One thing the fog didn't affect was the supply of blueberries. There are literally miles and miles of blueberries right beside the trail in Washington. There are so many that even with the number of hikers going through, the supply is never even close to being depleted. We stopped several times to snack on these tasty little morcels throughout the morning, and every other day.

不受濃霧的影響是藍莓的數量，沒風景看那就來大吃野莓吧！步道沿途好幾公里全部都長滿藍莓，就算每天有幾十個登山客經過邊走邊吃也不可能吃光。跟表弟走的每一天都會不時停下來吃。

Throughout the last couple days, Scott and I have both been looking forward to the next glimpse of civilization, which is a store called the Kracker Barrel at the next highway crossing, White Pass. No matter how tough things got, the promise of a warm indoor space with food was enough motivation to keep us going. Cold? Won't be a problem once we get to the Kracker Barrel. Rain? No problem at the Kracker Barrel. Craving pizza? Kracker Barrel. Sick of the fog? Kracker Barrel!! It became a sort of mantra as we trudged through the fire detour in the fog.

這幾天我跟表弟很期待下一次預計跟文明世界有接觸，是在前方要過的公路上的一家叫做Kracker Barrel的商店。情況再糟我們只要想到Kracker Barrel這個溫暖的室內空間和裡面的食物我們就有動力繼續前進。現在感到冷，沒關心，到了Kracker Barrel就不是問題了，在雨下淋濕也沒關係，解決此問題的Kracker Barrel也快要到了，想吃披薩，Kracker Barrel就有了，不想再看到濃霧，到了Kracker Barrel就好了啦！這家店的名字已經變成我們的一個座右銘。

When we finally finished the fire detour and arrived at the highway, Scott waited about 15 minutes and got a hitch three miles up the road to the Kracker Barrel. I didn't want to break my continuous footpath so I let him go ahead and just road walked the three miles. Unbelievably, I had phone service here so I called my sister and chatted for an hour as I walked in. Scott met up with some hikers at the Kracker Barrel that actually knew me from back in the desert, but they left before I got to the store.

終於走完替代路線接到公路的時候表弟等了15分鐘就等到便車可以載他5公里到Kracker Barrel，但我因為還堅持墨西哥到加拿大的主線我要全部靠雙腳走所以就叫表弟在店裡等我，自己在柏油路上踢了最後5公里。走路的時候發現這麼偏僻的山路竟然有訊號就打電話給我妹聊天，走這5公里就不算在浪費時間。Scott在店裡遇到在南加認識我的登山客，可惜我自己走到的時候她們已經離開了。

Finally, we had reached the promised land: the Kracker Barrel. We pigged out on pizza and American-sized soft drinks, enjoying the chance to be indoors in a warm space, sitting on real chairs.

兩人終於抵達Kracker Barrel天堂了，吃了大量的披薩，喝了超大杯汽水，享受在室內取暖的感覺，能在真正的椅子上坐著就很過癮。

Scott's knees were hurting a lot, and he was considering asking his girlfriend to come get him a day early. This would mean missing out on Rainier National Park, so he eventually decided to just tough it out and walk one more day.

表弟的膝蓋越來越痛，他當時在考慮打電話給女朋友請他早一天下來帶他回去，不過這樣他就不會看到他最期待的瑞尼爾山國家公園，最後他還是決定再走一天，把原本預計的行程全部走完。

I had a resupply box waiting for me at the Kracker Barrel. Once again, I had sent too much stuff to myself and I ended up dumping a lot in the hiker box here. I put a full unopened summer sausage in there, a jar of peanut butter and jam, some tuna, some SPAM... all really good stuff, and all immediately snatched up by some hikers at the next table! I'm glad someone will get to use it.

我寄過補給箱到這家店，今天打開的時候發現裡面的東西真的過多，好多好料理只好丟棄到hiker box裡，然後全部馬上被隔壁桌的登山客拿走。有一大條臘腸、花生醬和果醬各一罐、鮪魚、火腿碎肉，這麼好吃的東西能給別人吃我也很開心，根本不會後悔自己買東西買過頭。

I decided to call the store in Trout Lake to make sure that southbound hiker I'd given 10 dollars to actually got my package from them and mailed it ahead. Well guess what? The package was still there. Now I was out 10 bucks, and still had to figure out a way to get my shirt mailed ahead. Thanks for nothing, Matt a.k.a. El Patron.

我想確認往南走我給他10元的那位登山客到Trout Lake的時候真的去領我的包裹並幫我寄，所以打電話到雜貨店看看我的包裹還在不在，結果包裹還在她們那裡，El Patron根本沒有幫我領。現在事情就麻煩了，我那10元不見了，毛製上衣也可能拿不到，除非我可以想到另外一個辦法。

The staff at the Trout Lake store were very helpful, though. They offered to take it to the post office and mail it ahead for me out of pocket as long as I promised them this shirt was very important and that I would send some money for postage later. Now, the shirt should be on its way to Snowqualmie Pass and I should have it in about 4 days. Thanks again Trout Lake Grocery!

但我還沒掛電話前Trout Lake雜貨店的店員就幫我想辦法了，她說我如果很需要這件衣服她可以先幫我拿去郵局寄，但我要保證之後會補郵資給她。我當然答應了，所以衣服現在已經在往Snowqualmie埡口的路上，4天後就可以拿到溫暖的上衣，感謝Trout Lake雜貨店的店員這樣信任我且願意花時間去幫我寄！

I really wanted to make it to the campsite before dark, so we couldn't hang around the Kracker Barrel forever. By mid-afternoon, we headed back out down the highway to the trailhead, passed the 2300-mile mark on trail, and had our tents set up and supper on the go before dark. There was an American couple, Monster and Cheez-Its, sharing the same campsite with us that night, and it was so nice to sit in daylight socializing and just enjoying the camping experience for once.

畢竟我已經設了目標以後都要在天黑之前找好營地我們就不能在店裡待一整個下午，休息飽又回到公路往登山口前進，接上步道後很快過2300英里的里程碑，天黑前不只到了營地，帳篷也搭好了，晚餐也開始煮了。有一對美國夫妻或情侶跟我們睡同一個營地，今天終於能夠在天還亮的時候坐著邊吃邊聊天感受露營的樂趣。

The next day was Scott's last day, and it started off beautifully.

隔天是表弟的最後一天，早上天氣良好。

The trail entered Mt. Rainier National Park today and we got some epic views of this volcano before the clouds rolled in. Once again, Scott insisted on finding a lunch spot with a good view and we were not disappointed.

我們今天進入瑞尼爾山國家公園，下午雲變多之前我們有很多機會欣賞這座山壯觀的外貌。表弟再次堅持吃午餐時要找風景好的地方，我們最後選的地方在風景方面也不讓人失望。

After lunch we came around a corner and saw the highway carved into the mountain that leads up to Chinook Pass. This is where Scott's girlfriend, Kate, was going to be waiting to take him back to Canada.

下午轉個彎就看到前面有一條路，是通往Chinook埡口的公路，也就是表弟的女朋友Kate今天要等他下山的地方，晚上他們會一起開車回加拿大。

As we approached Chinook Pass, there was a little bit of rain; not enough to cause any trouble hiking, but just enough to leave a nice rainbow in the sky. This seemed like the perfect ending to Scott's hike with me.

接近Chinook埡口的時候有下毛毛雨，不過根本沒有影響我們的進度，只留下一個漂亮的彩虹，為了表弟跟我一起走的這一段時間劃上了完美的句點。

Kate was waiting for us at Chinook Pass and had brought two things along with her from Canada: her homemade banana bread, and their dog. She had even wrapped the banana bread in foil so it was STILL WARM. Kate is now forever in my good books for this small but highly appreciated gesture. Nothing beats some good food on the trail! The dog was also very happy to be reunited with Scott again.

我們到Chinook埡口時Kate已經在那裡等我們而且她從加拿大帶來兩個東西：她自己做的香蕉蛋糕還有她和表弟養的狗。她甚至在家裡先用鋁箔紙把香蕉蛋糕抱起來，所以我們到的時候蛋糕還是熱的耶！Kate永遠是我的英雄，雖然只是一片蛋糕但對平常在山上的人來說很珍珍貴。狗狗看到表弟也很開心！

Scott's knees were really hurting by the last day and he was even taking the downhill sections backward, but he managed to keep up about a 3 mph pace the whole time, finishing almost 100 miles in less than 4 days. Amazing stamina, basically unheard of for people just starting out on the trail!

到了最後一天表弟的膝蓋很痛，下坡的地方他甚至開始倒著走，但他這幾天的平均時速維持5公里，在4天以內走完將近160公里，這是很驚人的體力，在剛開始走PCT的人中也是極少見的耐力。

It was great to finally catch up with Scott after so many years. It was also nice to hear from him about his experience as a pilot these past few days. One major decision I've arrived at after months on the trail is that I will start my pilot training once I'm done the PCT, something I've had in the back of my mind for years but was never ready to commit to. Scott got his licence years ago and is working toward his commercial licence now, so it was also great to talk to someone about flying for a few days. 

今年終於能高再次與表弟相處我很開心，希望下次不會再隔個十年！這幾天我也狂問他關於開飛機的問題。我走PCT的時候做了一個很重要的決定，走完後我要開始訓練開飛機來開另外一條生涯路線，已經考慮好多年的計劃。表弟本身已經有私人機師執照，目前在努力準備考商用執照，所以他有很多經驗可以跟我分享。

We all said our goodbyes and parted ways. Scott and Kate should be back in Canada in a few hours, but it's going to take me at least 2 more weeks to get there! As long as it doesn't snow too much and block the trail, I'm feeling pretty confident about finishing!

互相告別後他們開車回加拿大，我回到步道上一樣往加拿大的方向走，不過他們今晚就會到達，我反而還要再走兩個禮拜才能到邊境。只要以後兩週沒有下太多雪我很有信心可以完成！