Day 83Skamania County, Washington

Most of the day remains in the forest, with the same climbs and descents without much sight. However, I find Early Bird, crossed into the Sierra and we spend almost all afternoon walking and talking together.

I pass an earlier campsite and continue 5 miles beyond my original goal. The landscape is finally beginning to open up, even though the mosquitoes remain numerous.

Early Bird gives me a lot of useful information about what comes next: the 30-mile hike back after the Northern Terminus, the uncertainties around Stevens Pass and the beauty and difficulty of the next sections. Washington finally seems ready to reveal what the other hikers have described.