Day 1 - 7/6/2025
What a day. A roller coast of emotions truly. I made plenty of mistakes - dropped my sunglasses after the first hour and ran back to get them, went around a snow pile and had to slide down a hillside on my butt, developed a massive blister already (successful blister surgery!) - but survived! Marginally. I feel quite dead. But proud. 38.4 miles.
Day 2 - 7/7/2025
Stomachache this morning. I think because I swallowed my toothpaste last night because I was too lazy to walk away from my sleeping bag to spit it out. Bringing a pillow was the best decision of my life. Got rained and hailed on during a thunderstorm. 43.3 miles.
Day 3 - 7/8/2025
Anxiously hiked all day due to whisperings about an impassable snow patch ahead. Biggest glissade of my life! Pillow has a leak. Now I'll rest my head of my ramen pile. 35.5 miles.
Day 4 - 7/9/2025
I couldn't find my spork in the dark, so I ate my ramen out of the ziploc like a push-pop. 39.1 miles.
Day 5 - 7/10/2025
I was too traumatized to journal at all on this day. Got bamboozled multiple times by snow. I wanted to hike more north of Windigo Pass. I made it to the summit around 8:20PM to discover lots of snow along the ridge. Unsure if I could make it to the next tent site before dark (including circumventing a potential cornice), I set up camp where I was, only to be attacked by an army of mosquitos. My earliest stop to a day and lowest mileage of the whole trip. I was disappointed but proud of myself for knowing when to listen to my brain instead of my ego. 34.1 miles.
Day 6 - 7/11/2025
I feel like I turned a corner today. Not just because I reached my fake 200-mile halfway point AND the real 227.5-mile halfway point. My energy and body feel rejuvenated and renewed. Hopefully it stays that way! 38.7 miles.
Day 7 - 7/12/2025
After being so euphoric about being halfway ("I just have to do that again!), it dawned on me that I have to do that again. It was really hard the first time! Anyway, easy trail today so pushed for distance, making the day not-so-easy overall. 42.1 miles.
Day 8 - 7/13/2025
Lava rocks! I kind of like them. Very meditative. Would have liked them more not in the heat of mid-day. Got water from a hole in the ground and put snow in my shirt to cool off. 42.3 miles.
Day 9 - 7/14/2025
That should be the last of the snow!!! My goal was to get to Olallie Lake. I figured then I could have a chance of finishing in two days. The snow almost bamboozled me, but I would not let it win. Sweet dreams from Olallie Lake. Goodbye snow. 42.0 miles.
Day 10 - 7/15/2025
Ready to be done! Goal of today was to get as close to Timberline Lodge as possible to get myself in a good position for a final push. I've never asked myself the question "can I hike over 100 miles in two days?" before, but soon I'll have an answer anyway! Made it to a tent site 2.6 miles south of Timberline at 11PM. Good enough! Hiking was easy and breezy and all-around enjoyable. A quick pilgrimage to Little Crater Lake was worth it to stock up on its magical water. 49.0 miles.
Day 11 - 7/16/2025
I made a break for it. Alarm went off at 4AM, and, after some groaning and final prep, I hit the trail at 4:30AM. My goal: Bridge of the Gods (ideally before dark but I'll take what I can get). The Mount Hood Wilderness was absolutely delightful. The whole day felt like a celebration. The trail called me to run, and I acquiesced. I ran every single downhill, some straights, and an uphill here and there. The cocktail of bodily injuries and pains that I've collected the past 10 days, which are diverse and a little more than slightly concerning (but not worth denoting in journal entries) evaporated in the face of my adrenaline and determination. Fatigue and dizziness during the heat of the day had me worried that I bit off more than I could chew, but a 10-minute power nap, caffeine gummy, and dates set me right. I got back in the zone. 11 miles away from the end, I SAW A BEAR. My first wild bear encounter! My loud running scared it away, but I got a good glimpse of a small/medium black bear, and boy was it cute. There was no one else in the forest to hear my screams of "I SAW A BEAR", screams working two functions as my expression of jubilation and as a way to keep my bear encounters for the day to one. One is enough. I kept running, counting down the miles (and daylight), eventually pulling out the headlamp for the last two miles and making it to Bridge of the Gods at 10:04AM. My first 100-mile two-day stretch, my first double-marathon, my first FKT! 52.5 miles.
For the record, I completed this distance completely unsupported, eating only the food that I packed with me from the start, using only gear that I packed with me from the start, I did not dispose of or replace any damaged gear (ahem, pillow), I filtered water from natural sources, and I did not have any pacers or planned spectators.