Day 137 - Trout Lake to Lava Spring

I got up tired and drained of energy, like yesterday. I was hoping that it will get better on the trail.

Justin and I had breakfast at the restaurant. I had a big portion of eggs and hash browns. That was nice. I later packed my things and tried calling the numbers posted at the store, of people who will take hikers up to the trail. I finally got hold of Steve, and he came by after 10 minutes to pick me up. He is a retired electrician, that moved here with his wife 5 years ago. He goes out hiking around the local trails at least once a week. Sounds like a good life to me.

Up at the trail head I saw Coppertone and Rock Ocean, before I headed back into the woods, at around 10:00. They told me that Mrs McGiver & Veggie Gourmet were up around. I thought they were 2 hours ahead of me, but I probably got it wrong, since I passed them 15 minutes later.

I haven’t seen any other northbound hikers the whole day. I stopped at a very nice spring that gushed near the trail, with a tin bucket on a rope, to haul water up. The water were very good there.

The trail was climbing up the slopes of Mt Adams, but I could only see it occasionally through the trees.

Just after my next stop, I met a couple of section hikers who told me that right up ahead there’s a spot where I can see St Helen’s, Rainier, Hood and Adams up above me. I found the spot, and it was definitely very nice. Especially seeing Hood in the far distance.

The trail went over to the western slopes of Adams, and I got more views of the mountain from the creeks that surround it.

I was still feeling tired the whole day, even though there were no especially hard climbs, and the last five miles were all down hill. I finally got to Java Spring at 18:00. Definitely a slow day for me, but it doesn’t matter.

The spring here is amazing, filling up a small pool with clear and cold water. I filled up my water, then washed my feet in the down stream, before going into the woods to the campsite. There are 4 section hikers here, going up to White Pass, and two going southbound, not sure how far. But there are plenty of camp spots on here, so it’s not too crowded.