We had lots of chores to do in Portland. On Saturday we visited several grocery stores to buy food for the bulk of Washington. Most trail towns there are remote, limited and pricey, so we are mailing three packages and can supplement at local market when we need to.
We went to a local outfitter and I got my last pair of shoes, which I am sending about 300 miles ahead along with Paul’s last pair. This is #4 for each of us, we’ve been getting about 700 miles out of each pair. We visited REI and Walgreens for a few other things.
Aside from the shopping, we did laundry, sewed up holes in our gaiters and reinforced our shoes to prevent tears as they start to get worn. We washed our cooking supplies and replaced a missing screw in the stove, tightening everything up. Then we filled out paperwork and scanned our IDs for permits to enter Canada from the PCT Northern Terminus (something we should have done earlier and forgot).
It was a lot of work, but we also made sure to eat many good meals. We were sad to discover our favorite Thai restaurant burned down. Today is Monday, so we mailed the packages out today and got back to the trail in the evening. It rained while we were in town, but it has cleared up by now. So far we haven’t had rain since the rain/snow we got on days 2 and 3!
We crossed Bridge of the Gods over the Columbia River into Washington. We then hiked about 4 miles to a campsite on a lake. Blackberries were everywhere along the way so we made some progress and ate a ton.
