Campground at South shore of Diamond Lake - forest near Howlock trail in Mount Thielsen wilderness
7 miles on the Diamond Lake alternate trail + 11 miles bicycle ride around Diamond Lake
Total 7 miles walk
Today it is time for a day of rest and recovery!
I wake up late at a luxurious free hiker and biker campground at the south shore of Diamond Lake. There's no need to dig a cathole for my morning duty: the restrooms are just a few steps away. I cook hot tea for breakfast and head along a bicycle path towards the Diamond Lake resort on the north shore where a store opens at 9 AM.
The path goes through another campground with cute cars and delicious berries. At the northern edge of the campground there is a nice secluded spot for a morning naked swim.
There is an expert swimmer living nearby: the beaver.
The Diamond Lake resort is a hiker friendly getaway place with a store, post office and café. First I check the store and unlike the store at Crater Lake, this store is a good one because it has the essential hiker food: oatmeal. And they have onions and garlic too! Then I go to the cafe for my favorite breakfast: coffee with rye bread toasts and homemade jam. Usually at restaurants and cafes that's the cheapest item on the menu and it's much healthier than having eggs :-) In the same building as the cafe is a little post office. Norma, the local postmaster, shows me a rich hiker box. Here are my today's hiker box findings:
I send an envelope with extra maps to Cascade Locks to reduce my pack weight and also send out a couple of postcards to my friends. Then I see that the resort rents bikes. One of the things I have been missing most on the PCT is riding a bicycle. An easy 11 mile bike trail goes around the lake and renting a bicycle for one hour costs $10. A perfect opportunity to exercise some muscles that have been unused for the last couple of months! Ian helps me to find a good fitting bike, I put on a helmet and start racing with the wind along the lakeshore.
There waves on the lake have white crests. There are ducks, geese and seagulls; and the whole lake is surrounded by pine forest. It reminds me of the beautiful shore of Vesijärvi in Lahti in Finland. In less than an hour I have made it around the whole lake, refreshed and ready for lunch.
For lunch I make my favorite low cost but nutritious town food: rice with a can of black beans and a can of diced tomatoes that I got from the store. Then it's time for an afternoon nap and for catching up on my PCT blog writing.
At the neighboring picnic table I spot two hikers. One of them is my old friend Natalie whom I last saw 750 miles back at Echo Lake. I'm glad she's still on the trail!
Before the evening arrives, I go for another swim (this time in swimsuit :-) and head out back to the trail. The connecting trail from Diamond Lake to the PCT passes a horse camp, goes under a highway, and soon enters the pristine forests of the Mount Thielsen wilderness.
I fill up water in the cold Thielsen creek; walk about two miles uphill; and before it gets dark, I find a hidden spot out of sight in shade of tall fir trees where I pitch my tent for tonight.
7 miles on the Diamond Lake alternate trail + 11 miles bicycle ride around Diamond Lake
Total 7 miles walk
Today it is time for a day of rest and recovery!
I wake up late at a luxurious free hiker and biker campground at the south shore of Diamond Lake. There's no need to dig a cathole for my morning duty: the restrooms are just a few steps away. I cook hot tea for breakfast and head along a bicycle path towards the Diamond Lake resort on the north shore where a store opens at 9 AM.
The path goes through another campground with cute cars and delicious berries. At the northern edge of the campground there is a nice secluded spot for a morning naked swim.
There is an expert swimmer living nearby: the beaver.
The Diamond Lake resort is a hiker friendly getaway place with a store, post office and café. First I check the store and unlike the store at Crater Lake, this store is a good one because it has the essential hiker food: oatmeal. And they have onions and garlic too! Then I go to the cafe for my favorite breakfast: coffee with rye bread toasts and homemade jam. Usually at restaurants and cafes that's the cheapest item on the menu and it's much healthier than having eggs :-) In the same building as the cafe is a little post office. Norma, the local postmaster, shows me a rich hiker box. Here are my today's hiker box findings:
I send an envelope with extra maps to Cascade Locks to reduce my pack weight and also send out a couple of postcards to my friends. Then I see that the resort rents bikes. One of the things I have been missing most on the PCT is riding a bicycle. An easy 11 mile bike trail goes around the lake and renting a bicycle for one hour costs $10. A perfect opportunity to exercise some muscles that have been unused for the last couple of months! Ian helps me to find a good fitting bike, I put on a helmet and start racing with the wind along the lakeshore.
There waves on the lake have white crests. There are ducks, geese and seagulls; and the whole lake is surrounded by pine forest. It reminds me of the beautiful shore of Vesijärvi in Lahti in Finland. In less than an hour I have made it around the whole lake, refreshed and ready for lunch.
For lunch I make my favorite low cost but nutritious town food: rice with a can of black beans and a can of diced tomatoes that I got from the store. Then it's time for an afternoon nap and for catching up on my PCT blog writing.
At the neighboring picnic table I spot two hikers. One of them is my old friend Natalie whom I last saw 750 miles back at Echo Lake. I'm glad she's still on the trail!
Before the evening arrives, I go for another swim (this time in swimsuit :-) and head out back to the trail. The connecting trail from Diamond Lake to the PCT passes a horse camp, goes under a highway, and soon enters the pristine forests of the Mount Thielsen wilderness.
I fill up water in the cold Thielsen creek; walk about two miles uphill; and before it gets dark, I find a hidden spot out of sight in shade of tall fir trees where I pitch my tent for tonight.
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