July 25, 2018 Of Smoky Sunsets, Showers, Shakespeare and Spaghetti

Mission celebrated his Oregon border crossing in style with a long, hot shower, laundry service and an all-he-could-eat spaghetti dinner at Callahan’s Mountain Lodge in Ashland, (famous for its Shakespeare Festival and Lithia waters) thanks to Trail angels cousin Holly, Huck and Louie Reece from Grants Pass.  The pictures below prove how spic and span Mission looked after that half hour shower and Granny Hat can’t help but admire how smart Holly Angel was to take her thru-hiker cousin out to dinner after a decent bath. This was Mission’s 5th shower since commencing the PCT on May 8th!

 

The Reece Angels furnished Mission with treats and supplies like Watermelon, Pop Tarts, Clif Bars, band-aids, batteries and earphones for his trail podcasts and music.  Holly said Mission plowed through three plates of spaghetti.  I asked her if he looked skinny and she said, “He looked good! Yes, he looked skinny but then all the Miser boys always look skinny.”  Word!

 

It was time for Mission to retire his third pair of hiking shoes in bitter sweet ceremony.  His first PCT pair hiked 700 miles and they stare reproachfully at Granny Hat every time she goes into his room. Toy Story and the Velveteen Rabbit have taken their toll.

 

Check out the bottom left circles, these shoes trekked from Mammoth Lakes, CA all the way to the Oregon Border, about 800 miles!  Look at that tread!  Still pretty good!  These shoes are made for walkin’! Granny placed an order with REI in Medford for his new La Sportiva Akyra Trail Shoes, an early gift from Mission’s Aunt Lori, Holly Angel’s mom.  Mission is blessed to have so many family trail angels all along the way.  He is welcoming his fourth pair of PCT shoes, says they are hiking well.  He has made some good NOBO progress today heading toward Crater Lake. His camping spot tonight is 42.27204, -122.27831.

 

Mission says the Oregon Trail is beautiful so far and full of wild life, he spotted deer, a mama bear with THREE cubs and even Benjamin Bunny showed up to say                         “Happy Trails to You!”

There have been at least two long detours around trail closures on the PCT due to fires in the area.  Many of Mission’s sunset views were too hazy to post but Granny added a few below to chronicle the trail.  The first is a farewell to Mount Shasta before crossing the border into Oregon, a shot of Seiad Valley, a little town Granny Hat never knew existed before Mission’s trek and one smoky sunset.

 

A beautiful welcoming view north into Oregon:

 

May God continue to guide your footsteps on the Oregon Trail, Mission.  And in honor of The Bard, so celebrated in Ashland, Oregon:

“We are all men, in our own natures frail, and capable of our flesh; few are angels.” William Shakespeare

Mission has met up with some of those “few” angels and his journey is all the better for their generosity and kindness.  Granny Hat is so encouraged by Angel Holly’s words: “I was blessed to be a blessing to him.  Safe travels Stephan, may God continue to guide your feet!”   Showers of blessing, Granny Hat calls that!