Day 9

Another eventful one with a Plan B, the way I like it! But a lot of walking … 25 miles overall!

In Metaline Falls, I ran into Mo at the cafe and we enjoyed breakfast together. They even had a “Killer Bee” specialty drink, not sure what it is though! I had a cinnamon bun and hash browns … very good.

After some last organizing at the hotel I said goodbye to Arlie and the dog, and headed across the river. There was construction on the bridge, but the WSDOT workers were quite accommodating. I assume they will see some more hikers throughout the day!

The paved road goes on for a bit and then switchbacks up the hill as the Boundary road. It was quite the climb and, needless to say, it was muggy, and the sweat was dripping.

I walked about 5 miles to a wildlife viewing area, and then ran into Noah, an engineer from Spokane. He told me all about his work at the power station below the dam, his wife who is an avid hiker (just did Mont Blanc circuit), and other things. Fancy truck!

Funny snippet of conversation: I told him about the bear encounter when asked. He asked: Do you have bear spray? I said no. He said: Do you have Jesus? 😳😳😳 Well, I delicately avoided that discussion and told him more about bear spray risks and bear bangers, etc. He was a very nice guy!

By the time we got to his power station and dam, I was already 10 miles up the road and would’ve had to backtrack and then take the very steep Flume Creek trail up to Abercrombie Mountain, climbing to 7000 feet. There was also a severe thunderstorm warning and I dodged dark clouds and heard thunder all day. Not great for being on top of a mountain!

I checked the map and saw that Boundary Road goes straight west from the dam, just below the Canadian border. There was also a sign for Deep Lake Road (PNT route). So I knew I would come out back on the PNT on the other side.

I figured what the heck I will take this one. So I started walking up the hill, which turned out to be a very long hill and very steep. I know I got to about 4300 feet in about 7 miles or so. There was no traffic on this road, not a single car. Lots of logging areas and logging equipment.

Once I crested down to the west side, I thought I was done with the climb. I went through another logging area with lots of equipment parked; nothing was active, and there was nobody around. Just when I thought it was all downhill from there, I climbed back up to 4300 feet but then finally started the descent into the next valley. I hiked a solid six hours to get to the bottom and back on the PNT. There was literally only one truck going up the whole day and then the first truck going down maybe a mile from the end.

The clouds were dark around me all day and I had a little bit of rain but nothing bad. Heard lots of thunder though!

Once on the paved road, I realized there was also no traffic on Deep Lake Road. This is the boonies!The official PNT walk from here into town is almost 14 miles on a windy paved road, and it was 6:30 PM. So I knew I wouldn’t happen, and there’s no real camping around there. So I texted the trail angels in Northport, Jami and Josh, and and asked if they would pick me up. Of course I would pay them for it. Jami instantly responded that she’s sending Josh on his way, and he showed up 20 minutes later.

All the rave about this couple does not even do them justice. They open their house to hikers, provide them with everything necessary, they fed me dinner, after I showered, and the conversations have been wonderful. You know, those kind of people that just touch your heart, are so so welcoming and so open and so interested in others, it just makes the world a better place!! 🌍

Showered and fed, I set up my tent in the yard and had a solid sleep (Josh gets up at 3am to “tinker”, working in the shed on an old motorcycle). Tomorrow will be a rest day here in Northport. They will be working and I will be walking their dog and hanging around the house. It really doesn’t get any better 😍