I woke up before sunrise in our tent behind the Lion's Den then went to sit outside and phone until the hiker hut kitchen opened for coffee at 6 a.m. Luckily, a German hiker showed up, ignored the posted hut hours, and fired up the coffee pot so I didn't have to wait too long.
Mary, the owner of the Lion's Den, somehow managed to tetris four hikers and our packs into her tiny two-door sedan for the ride up to Harts Pass. I landed in the middle of the back seat, perched on a cushion to spare my rear end on the bouncy dirt road. On one side of me was an Australian mine worker who had once summited Denali. On the other was a very tiny Frenchman. Jason rode shotgun as the tallest of the group.
We made a quick stop at Mazama Bakery for espresso and a bagel sandwich, then headed toward Harts Pass. Ten miles of dirt road followed, including sketchy narrow cliffside sections, one-way stretches, and a brief pause when we all crawled out from the backseat to clear a small rockslide.
We signed the register at the Harts Pass ranger station. Not a ranger in sight.
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| First trail marker! |
We started hiking around 9:30 a.m. The weather was overcast but pleasant. Mosquitoes were polite enough to only bother us when we stopped. The climb out of Harts Pass was steady, and I noticed the tightness in my lungs from the elevation. The views and wildflowers right from the start were stunning.
The trail was full of small critters. Ground squirrels, pika, and chipmunks darted around the hillsides and across the trail. Wild berries showed up often and were worth slowing down for.
We stopped for lunch at 1 p.m., sitting on a large rock and eating chicken salad with seed crackers. Just after packing up, the rain started. We waited it out under pine trees, then continued over Windy Pass.
On the other side of the pass, huge dark clouds rolled up the valley toward us. The wall of rain hit as we descended from Windy Pass, and a crack of thunder got us moving downhill quickly. We set up the tent as quickly as possible at the first available campsite and hid from the rain for the rest of the night.
Hike Details ⬇️
📍PCT NOBO Mile 2624 - 2631.1
🥾7.1 Miles
📈 1296 Ascent, 860 Decent
🕘 7 hours
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