Into the Frozen Pines – The Trek

Hello friends, family, and thru hiker enthusiasts. Today’s blog post comes to you from the beautiful city of Flagstaff, Arizona. Sitting at MM 568/797, the second half of the trail is quite quickly blowing past as each section I now complete totals over 100 miles. With Flagstaff to Grand Canyon Village (GCV) and GCV to Kanab, Utah (the northern terminus of the trail) in my sights, I have a mere 9 days on trail remaining with my flight home already booked. Soaking up the last relaxation I’ll have for a bit of time now, my zero in Flagstaff has been filled with chores, logistical planning, and a hotel Jacuzzi and Sauna. 

After my zero split between Payson / Pine it was time to get busy with a 110 mile section in 5 days to Flagstaff. After road walking a few tenths of a mile out of the hotel, an amazing trail Angel named Felicia saw us and offered to take us to breakfast and the trailhead! I was quite surprised by the generous offer and we obviously said yes!! I was absolutely blown away by the trail Angel community in Pine / Payson because in 36 hours I ended up getting rides from 3 different angels. Massive shoutout to Wendy from the Strawberry Inn and Brady! You are all the best and have been such an immense help and inspiration to me on this journey. 

Felicia, Brokeback, and myself at the trailhead in Pine.

Elk in Pine!

View of the Mogollan Rim coming out of Pine.

The hike out of Pine had a few ups and downs and some gorgeous views of the terrain we would slowly be hiking into. The area also happened to be a burn area from a previous year that the USFS did a monitored burn of. With the trail leveling out soon, we were planning some big days and made it 19 miles to camp with my good friend Happy who was just a bit ahead of us. 

Cowboy Camped and a 16 Degree Night 

Hiking with Happy and Brokeback on the morning of day 2, we finished our one big climb of the section and took a mid morning break by an old USFS cabin. A chilly morning with some cool wind, we all sat out in the sun collecting the morning UV rays. The trail had begun to flatten out and we were shooting for a low 20s mileage day to begin to ramp up in the section. Taking a lunch break at a low flowing creek, I couldn’t help but think I was in Toulumne Meadows in Yosemite National Park as the lazy flowing rivers, towering pines, and blue skies gave me flashbacks to this section of the PCT. With word of a water cache near a road ahead, potentially loaded with some carbonated trail magic, we pushed on. Arriving at the cache, I decided to treat myself to a sprite and with only a mile or 2 to go for the evening looking for happy near a campsite, I decided to take the edge off and have a little evening drink. 

Bourbon and sprite; a surprisingly awesome trail combo

Feeling good and excited about the cool temps and blue skies above, we decided to cowboy camp deep in the pines at 7,000 feet. Staring at the moon and stars above me, I felt the temperature continue to drop and drop and a drop….until 3 AM came and I realized my small thermometer read 16 degree Fahrenheit!!! Completely bundled up in my liner, quilt, and layers, I truly debated hiking out to get warm. Buckling down in the cold temps, this was truly the coldest night I’d ever had on trail (minus Miller Peak but we’ll forget about windchill for this matter).

The Man Who Walked 500 Miles 

My precious but frozen water thawing in the morning sun.

Waking up half an icicle after that frigid night and all of my water frozen, we packed up as quickly as possible. With Happy screaming “ITS COLDDDD” the only option was to rip some jumping jacks and move. Passing the 500 mile marker just a few moments after waking up, I took a few photos of the milestone, played 500 miles by the Proclaimers and kept moving to stay warm. 

The man who walked 500 miles

Arriving at a sunny opening around 8 AM we laid out and thawed ourselves out in the morning sun. Taking a moment to look around, I began to notice how beautiful the Ponderosa Pines were and how the morning light was bringing life back into the forest. 

First light in the Ponderosa Pine forest of Coconino National Forest.

A 27 Mile Day and Tiki Punch

The cache where we refueled on water and tiki punch.

After surviving the frigid cold and mustering a solid day out of it, we were slowly creeping in toward Flagstaff. In order to leave a reasonable amount of miles to enter town on our last day (shooting for roughly 20) weeks decided it would be a good day to try and walk a marathon. With less than 2,000 feet of total elevation change over the course of the day, it seemed to be a perfect day to go for it. Arriving to a small stream at lunch around noon, we had already managed 14 miles and were on track for our goal. Hanging out with Happy, Brokeback, and our new Welch friend Jacob, we decided to buckle down for the rest of the afternoon and punch it into high gear. With water becoming surprisingly sparse all of a sudden, we aimed for a small water cache 10 miles ahead and potentially a larger pond a bit further ahead. Arriving to the cache, we each took 1-2 liters and discovered a Tiki Punch flavored Shasta soda at the cache. With Jacob never having tried the glory of sugary, red 40 filled Shasta soda, we decided we needed to take one. Managing a few more miles, we pulled over on a flat spot on the side of the trail which was a dirt road and quickly set up. Tired and sore from 27.4 miles, setting up camp and cooking dinner became monumental tasks. As evening fell, I saw a shooting star and a star link satellite array of 25+ satellites which was a cool site. 

Our camp set up after 27.4 miles.

San Fransisco Peaks and Jaw Dropping Views

Humphrey’s Peak in the distance at our morning water source.

Fascinating rock formations just outside of Flagstaff.

Waking up sore but motivated as we would be hiking into Flagstaff, we hiked the 0.8 miles to a large “tank” (a large pond) and mustered the strength to filter water. Scooping muddy water that was 6 inches deep in the entire pond, we struggled to get a liter. But looking up in the distance, I was awe struck by the beauty of Humphrey’s Peak (Arizona’s tallest mountain) in the distance. With still 20 miles to go in the day, we pushed hard having conversations about food in town and keeping spirits up during a challenging stretch. Hiking through a massive logging project, we struggled to find the trail and I was continually wacked by downed branches. Coming around the corner to another amazing view of Humphrey’s, I kept pushing hard. 

Arriving in Flagstaff and the Urban Trail Alternate 

A really cool option that the AZTA offers is rather than hiking the trail around Flagstaff, you can choose to do an urban alternate, directly through town. This is a unique and interesting change up which we decided to do, which also happened to cut off a handful of miles, helping to reach deadlines more comfortably. 

A Taco Bell that is quite literally, right on trail.

Getting my long list of chores done in town, I got new shoes at REI and received a package from my good friend Matt and Rachel, whom I’ve hiked thousands of miles with other the last few years on various through hikes.

My care package from Matt and Rachel. Thanks guys!!!!

Fueled up in town from Mexican restaurants, breweries, subway and Taco Bell, we prepared for the next segment of trail. With only 9 days left before I plan to hit the northern terminus, the Grand Canyon and end of trail loom closer and closer…

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