Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) Section J - Snoqualmie Pass to Stevens Pass, Trap Lake, Deep Lake, Escondido Lake & Spectacle Lake — Monday, Aug. 24, 2020

I did section J of the P.C.T. heading south bound this August in 4 days 2.5 hours. This is by far the longest trek I've ever done, as well as the most difficult. Pack weight was 44 lbs when starting, and by talking to some through hikers I quickly learned that was more than double their weight, which was quite amusing to find out. The mosquitoes were insane the first night at Trap Lake, and on the second night at Deep lake they were a bit of a nuisance, but on the third day they started to taper off. It seemed like there was an infinite amount of blueberries and huckleberries throughout the ENTIRE trail. On the third night I slept at 2 no name lakes/ponds about a mile past Escondido Ridge with spectacular views. On the 4th night I slept at another large no name pond a couple miles past Spectacle Lake. For whatever reason I woke up at 2AM on Friday and got right back to it and I felt great. I hiked for around 4 hours before the Sun decided to show up and within those 4 hours was some of the sketchiest parts of the trail. I made it past Alaska, Joe, Ridge, and Gravel lakes and stumbled onto the 'Katwalk', which is beautiful by the way.
Luckily there wasn't a drop of rain the entire trip, not a single critter stole any food (although some deer came within spitting distance and i'm assuming they were hungry), the berries were plentiful, and over all it was one hell of an experience. And for some reason about 50% of the through hikers I met were from  out of country and i'd say about 90% of the people I met were from out of state.

The main thing I learned, is that it might be worth it to save up for more modern gear, and that I need bigger shoes. I just about lost my toe nail on this hike, and the blisters were intense.