Day 7 – August 6
South Mowich River to Cataract Valley // 11.4 miles
Today was a tough day, wow. When we woke up, it was raining. We used the shelter at site 1 to help pack up since no one had camped there overnight. I did my best to keep my inner tent and my quilt dry. Then we had the big climb up to Mowich Lake to drop off Luke and get the rest of my food. Adam and I planned to take a break and have breakfast there.
Graffiti in the shelter at South Mowich River that says “Will it ever stop raining?” echoed my thoughts
The climb was long, the rain was pouring, and we were sweating from the inside of our rain gear. We finally got to the lake and sat in the car for a few minutes to get out of the rain. I checked the weather with my inReach and saw that there was a chance the rain would continue through Sunday.
Hiking in the rain is miserable. I came so close to quitting the trail. I didn’t think I could hike in the rain for two and a half more days. We stayed at Mowich Lake for almost 3 hours while I went back and forth. Adam told me he would go with me no matter what, even if I wanted to hike through the rain. I cried a lot. I really wanted to quit and go home and get dry.
Raining finally stopping at Mowich Lake
Finally, I really had to make a decision. I said multiple times that I wanted to go home but I ultimately decided to stay on trail. We got my food and Luke left. Adam and I cooked breakfast (at 12:30pm) on the porch of the patrol cabin and situated our stuff. During this time, the rain stopped and the sun started to peek through the clouds a bit. At this point I knew I’d made the right decision to stay.
Wildflowers in a misty Spray Park
We set off towards Spray Park. The climb wasn’t too bad, but the top was socked in with clouds. There was no view of the mountain. This was the only day on trail I haven’t seen the mountain so far. There were lots of pretty wildflowers though! Vibrant pink and purple flowers contrasted the grey clouds to create a gorgeous landscape. At last, we arrived at 6400 feet and began to descend. We had to cross two permanent snow fields, but they did not cause us any issue. We also saw a lone mountain goat as we were coming down!
Crossing a snowfield
Once we got down, the clouds began to clear a little and we got good views of Mother Mountain and other peaks in the area. It was really pretty. The sun was also shining and it seemed to warm my soul. We descended further into the forest and arrived at Cataract Valley. We set up site number 4. Thankfully the inside of my tent and all the important stuff is dry.
The only photo Adam and I took together for the entire two and a half days he was with me
Tomorrow, we are supposed to camp at Granite Creek, which is 12 miles away. But, we are going to try and hike the last 18 miles to White River and get out a day early. I just want to be home and clean and it would be nice to have a day to relax before going back to work. We are gonna play it by ear. We have to go the 12 miles to Granite Creek regardless, so we will see how we are feeling when we get there.
Day 8 – August 7
Cataract Valley to White River Campground // 18.8 miles
I finished the Wonderland Trail today. Saying that doesn’t even feel real honestly.
When Adam and I woke up, it wasn’t raining and hadn’t rained overnight. It was nice to pack up and not have to worry about keeping stuff dry. My tent was still a little damp, however, so I packed up the inner and outer separately just in case we decided to stay at Granite Creek instead of hiking out to White River.
Carbon River suspension bridge
We descended to the Carbon River and crossed the suspension bridge. It was bouncy, but not as high off the river as the Tahoma Creek suspension bridge. Then, we began the long uphill climb to Mystic Lake. I didn’t look closely enough at the map and thought it would be a moderate climb, but it was not. It was probably the second hardest climb of the entire trail (second only to the climb out of Stevens Canyon on Day 3). It also began to drizzle on us right after we started the climb. We didn’t bother with rain gear since we knew it would be too hot and sweaty. The drizzle would last pretty much all day.
Carbon Glacier
We got some cool views of the Carbon Glacier, but we were in the forest most of the time. Finally, around 5400 feet, the grade decreased as we walked through a lovely meadow. The wildflowers were gorgeous, all covered in raindrops. We had one more steep part to get up to 6100 feet before we finally dropped down to Mystic Lake.
We had breakfast at the patrol cabin at Mystic Lake, which is a quarter mile off trail. It was good to get some food and we both felt better after that. Adam also had some caffeine chews from the pack he randomly found on trail yesterday and he perked up a lot after that. We decided we still wanted to push to White River if we could get to Granite Creek by 4pm.
Mystic Lake
The trail was easy between Mystic Lake and Winthrop Creek and we made really good time. As we got closer to Winthrop Creek and Winthrop Glacier, we started walking on volcanic rocks and the scenery reminded us a lot of Mt. St. Helens. Winthrop Creek was roaring and the water was maybe a foot below the bridge. I was so glad the bridge was there because we could not have crossed otherwise. It was very cool to see the river coming from the mouth of the glacier and we marveled at the sheer volume of water it produced.
Winthrop Creek flowing from Winthrop Glacier
We took some photos and began the climb up to Granite Creek. We thought this climb would be just as brutal as the climb to Mystic but we were wrong, thankfully! It was a very moderate climb and we arrived at Granite Creek by 2pm! We took a break, filtered water, and decided to head to White River. The idea of getting home a day early sounded so good to me.
The last bit of the climb up to the pass on Skyscraper Mountain was just as moderate as the first part of the climb. We arrived at the top which was socked in with clouds and super windy. No views whatsoever. Finally, the last major climb of the trail was over and we began to descend into the Sunrise area.
View from Skyscraper Mountain
At this point, my feet really started to hurt, especially going downhill. We made it mile by mile through the fog. We could barely make out Burroughs Mountain and Frozen Lake, landmarks we are familiar with because we have day hiked in the area. We continued to drop down below the clouds and the fog began to clear once we reached Sunrise Camp. The sun even began to peek through the clouds a little, making the raindrops shimmer on the wildflowers.
Hiking through the Sunrise area
Finally, we reached the last turn to White River. It was a 2200 ft descent in 2 miles and I was in so much pain. My feet especially, but also my knees and left hip were screaming at me. But I was so close. Two miles from my car, two miles from finishing the trail. Adam counted the switchbacks on the map so we could count them as we hiked. He was so supportive and encouraging, even though he was in pain, too. We had already hiked 16 miles at this point.
The sun finally broke through the clouds over this meadow
Inch by inch, step by step, switchback by switchback, we made it down the hill. As we turned on to the last switchback, we could see tents set up at White River Campground. With 200 feet left, Adam asked me if I wanted to lead (he usually hikes in front of me) and I said yes. I hiked the last 200 feet and finished the Wonderland Trail. I completely sobbed at the end. I was so so proud of myself. Proud of myself for hiking alone most of the trail, for not quitting yesterday, for hiking nearly 19 miles today, for finishing the trail. Adam hugged me tight and took my photo by the sign.
The end!
I did it.
This trail was one of the hardest, most beautiful, and most amazing experiences of my life. I don’t really think words can describe how I feel right now.
