Day 127: (20.6 miles)
mile 1794.4 – 1815

It rained hard most of the night, and even hailed pea sizes balls of ice for a spell.  The good thing is that our tent preformed perfectly.  We woke warm and dry, however the mosquitoes were waiting impatiently for us to exit. These guys were big, like on steroids.  The big ones however are like cargo planes, easy to spot and a little slow to react, thus they were easy to smush before they could offload any of our hemoglobin.  Everything smelled fresh, like spring and energizing like a good cup of “Joe”.  Another benefit, was the trail was virtually dust free, a plus when wearing breathable footwear.  The yin and yang of it though, is while your feet are cleaner, they end up soaking wet from brushing up against the damp vegetation. And sometimes it’s hard to avoid assorted puddles.  Today we are heading toward Mazama Village at the base of Crater Lake.  We will set ourselves up so we get in relatively early tomorrow morning. There we will pick up a resupply box, a box of goodies from Paul’s older brother Mike and my new Osprey Exos 58 backpack. 

Seeing that last night was a pretty spectator thundershower, complete with lightning, the sound of helicopters overhead is constant.  We are hoping the trail to Mazama will be fire free.  While on the trail two hot shot fire crews pass us.  We figure they are on their way to mop up the fires behind us. Young and full of energy they hike past us with back packs and a tool over their shoulders. Each time they pass Paul jokes with them and asks if they will share the beers in their packs. They laugh and have the same response, “we wish”! Paul always answers, ” me too”. 

Today we also pass the 1800 mile mark.  Canada is getting ever closer.  The trail tread is pleasant and soft on our soles.  We literally play “frogger” most of the day for as we walk tiny little frogs, no more than an inch in size (or maybe they were toads) litter the trail and scurry out to the edges of the trail before they are stepped on.  Their coloring is such that they blend perfectly with the trail, and it is only when they move beneath or before our feet that we actually see them.  I tried to catch at least one for a picture but they were so small it was too difficult to catch let alone coral for a picture.  We hiked as far as we could before our feet and backs signaled it was quitting time.  Tomorrow Mazama and maybe something that does not require only water for preparation for consumption.

Dr. Seuss flowers