This post originally appeared on The Trek, which you can read here.

If you want to see more from my 2025 PCT thru hike, make sure to check out my Instagram (@annamckinney22) and TikTok (@magicinthemountains) for daily vlogs!

*these posts are coming straight from trail, I apologize in advance for typos!*

Day 145: August 30, 2025

Location: Northern Washington
Start: Seasonal Stream and Tentsite – 2418.1
End: Deep Lake – 2437.9
Miles: 19.8
Ascent: 4304 | Descent: 3221
Sleep: Tent

Today was a good day! It felt good to have a good day since the last couple have been weird just because not everyone has been in a good mood. Everyone seemed happy today and the hiking wasn’t hard, especially compared to yesterday.

Most of our elevation was in the morning, so we tired to get up early to get it out of the way. We were moving by 7:30am so not actually early, but thankfully the hill was mostly shaded so we didn’t have to toil in the direct sun.

Truffles and I hiked together and talked about Tennessee football since today was the first game of the season (go Vols!). We passed D&D on the climb and they said they were stopping for a coffee break at the top of the hill. Their coffee breaks are legendary so we knew we wanted to take the time to hang out with them. The ascent had tons of switchbacks but never felt steep and it passed by quickly and easily.

By 10am we were at the top and wandered down to the pond where we were supposed to meet D&D. Pinky and Hangman were there and Pimento soon joined us along with D&D. We set about boiling water for the coffee and enjoying the pretty views at the pond. Truffles and Hangman skipped some rocks for our entertainment. When Mr. D prepared the coffee we were eager to see how strong he’d make it. It was just stout enough to keep me going through the rest of the day.

Truffles decided to get in the water and I joined him. We found a rock to jump off and enjoyed a little swim before drying off in the sun. We didn’t haven’t many miles to do today so it was nice to lolligag for a while. Finally around 11am we packed up and were off again.

We walked along a ridge for a while and got some pretty views along the way. After several miles we began the long descent to the river and began walking down numerous switchbacks. I’m discovering that switchbacks on the descent seem especially aggravating because I just want to get down already! It felt like it took forever but it only took a couple hours to get down to the Waptus River.

The rest of our group was already hanging out eating lunch by the bridge. We only have 7 more miles to do in the day so it was nice to take an extra long lunch and relax. I even took my shoes off! D&D arrived and Hangman asked everyone what their favorite conspiracy theory was. We cut up and had a good time before eventually packing up around 3pm.

The rest of the day would mostly be uphill, but it was gentle and gradual and didn’t feel like we were working all that hard. I listened to my book and talked to Truffles on and off. Apparently it’s Labor Day weekend and it’s obviously that it’s a holiday because of all the people out and about. We ran into so many weekenders that it felt like we were constantly moving on and off the trail to get out of their way.

Just before 6pm we arrived at Deep Lake. All the campsites we saw initially (and there were a lot of them) were full. Our group wandered around for a few minutes trying to find a site big enough to accommodate our 3 tents. Thankfully we found one tucked away from the main trail and pitched our tent. We had plenty of time to eat dinner and just hang out.

The sun sets earlier now and it felt chilly tonight. It reminded me that summer doesn’t last forever and that the seasons are preparing to change. We get to hike through the seasons in a thru hike, but it kind of makes me feel like we’re in an eternal summer. I like fall but it means all this is coming to a close so I am reluctant to meet it. I checked FarOut and we are exactly 218 miles from Canada. It still doesn’t seem real, especially since tomorrow we’ll be sub 200 miles to go. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it!

Day 146: August 31, 2025

Location: Northern Washington
Start: Deep Lake – 2437.9
End: Deception Creek Trail – 2453.0
Miles: 15.1
Sleep: Tent

My mileage numbers are a little off today because we took a side trail. We did about 8 miles on the PCT to Deception Creek Trail and then another 7ish miles down the trail to a campsite.

What an easy and relaxed day! Since we weren’t going very far today we slept in a little and got a later start around 8am. There were so many people camped at the lake I figured the trail would be extra crowded in the morning, but thankfully it was pretty mild. We had a climb first thing but it was really easy and not a bad way to start the day. The 3 miles went by quickly and we were up under cathedral rock before long.

We had a long and steep descent down that last several miles. It was still early in the day but I felt bored and wanted to be done. I think the days we do less miles are mentally more of a challenge because I can get bored or just over eager to get to camp.

About halfway down the mountain we came to a stream that had obviously washed out a good portion of the trail. This section of trail was actually closed to stock animals because of it! I wasn’t sure how bad it would be until we got there, but it was an easy rock hop across since the water level was low. D&D were at the creek having their morning coffee break so we chatted with them for a bit before crossing the stream and continuing on.

Our last bit of uphill was short and sweet, and just before the trail junction we caught back up to our tramily. We had a snack and then made our way to the junction. Hikers could either continue on the PCT to Stevens Pass, or they could take the Deception Creek alternate to a road and hitch to Stevens Pass. The alternate was 10 miles shorter and mostly downhill, so we obviously chose to take the alternate.

We weren’t sure what to expect when we left the PCT for Deception Creek because the FarOut comments made it seem like the trail would be hard to follow. Per usually, the comments were grossly exaggerated and the trail was lovely and easy to follow! It was shaded, moss covered, and had tons of mushrooms. It felt like we were hiking through a fairy wonderland and reminded me of the AT.

The trail loosely followed the creek and we crossed it several times on bridges or rock hops. We stopped for lunch at a large campsite by the water and ended up sitting there for several hours. Shorts days are nice because we can dilly dally as much as we want and make it to camp at a reasonable time.

The trial continued downwards and the stream got larger and larger. As we neared our campsite, the stream was more like a small river that cascaded over large rocks and boulders and tumbled down waterfalls. It was beautiful! When we arrived at camp D&D were already there and Mr. D was working on building a campfire. This was our first fire on the entire trail! We got our tents set up and then went to sit by the fire. We ate dinner around the fire and D&D told stories about all their travels around the world. This is their first thru hike but they’ve lived in motile countries and been to so many incredible places! As it grew darker we put the fire out and got ready for bed. What a lovely day!

Day 147: September 1, 2025

Location: Northern Washington
Start: Deception Creek Trail – 2463.9
End: Stevens Pass – 2467.3
Miles: 3.4
Sleep: Building

Town day! We didn’t have far to walk down the trail to get to the road. We woke up when the sun came up and got moving. It was all downhill to the road, and the trail was beautiful. It looked like it could potentially rain, but that just added to the rain forest feel. There was moss everywhere, hanging from trees and covering the rocks. We continued along the creek and saw lots of mushrooms hiding around every corner. It reminded me of the Smokies and made me a little homesick.

As we neared the road we were passed by Jinx. Truffles and I hadn’t seen him since NorCal so it was nice to catch up. We all made it to the trailhead and walked a short distance on a gravel road to come out on pavement. This 4 lane road was supposed to be an easy hitch according to FarOut comments. There had been several people at our campsite who hiked out before us, and they weren’t at the road still waiting for a hitch so we took that as a good sign.

We broke out our “hikers to town” sign and stuck our thumbs out. Lots of cars drove past on the busy road, but none of them stopped for us. Hitching can be so frustrating because you never know how long it’s going to take.

We were at the road for about 30 minutes before a big truck pulled over. 2 guys jumped out and said they could take us as far as Stevens Pass. Our goal was Leavenworth, but Stevens Pass would get us at least part of the way there. They were heading to the ski resort to go mountain biking and threw all 6 of our packs in the truck bed along with their bikes. All 6 of us piled into the backseat and chit chatted the 20 minutes it took to get to Stevens Pass.

We unloaded and bid farewell to our ride. Jinx headed down to the road to start trying to hitch into Leavenworth and the rest of us went to the resort to pickup our resupply packages. We originally hadn’t planned to go into Leavenworth so we had mailed ourselves a box resupply us to Stehekin. Once we had our boxes, we walked down to the road to try our luck at hitching again.

This was another place that was supposed to be easy to hitch from, but again it took a while. It’s hard hitching in a large group because no one realistically can take all 5 of us at once. A guy pulled over and said he could take 1 into town, so Pimento went with him. Another car stopped and could take 2, so Pinky and Hangman got that ride. Truffles and I were there for about 30 minutes and other hikers continued arriving to get in the queue for a ride.

Finally a truck with a camper top pulled over and said they could take all the hikers! Apparently they were section hikers who just finished their trip and they had the truck plus a vehicle parked at Stevens Pass. With 2 cars they were able to take 8 hikers into Leavenworth. Truffles and I ended up in the truck with another hiker, Veggie. The driver was originally from NC and Veggie had done the AT in 2023 so we all talked about the east coast for the hour drive into town.

We got dropped off at the Safeway in town and Truffles and I started walking to try and find our friends. They were on the other side of town so it took a while for us to get to them. We all reconnected at Munchen Haus where we ordered brats. The restaurant had 16 different types of homemade mustard and lots of toppings to dress up the sausages, and they were delicious!

Leavenworth is a Bavarian themed mountain town that is supposedly just a big tourist trap. A lot of people said it would be similar to Gatlinburg, but it was much less kitschy than that. It reminded me of a larger and nicer Helen, GA.

We couldn’t check into our AirBnB until 4pm so we had plenty of time to kill. We got into town on Labor Day so it was very crowded, but that also meant there was a lot of stuff going on. There was a crafts fair on Main Street with lots of booths set up so we wandered through there. I got to chatting with one of the artists that painted trial themed landscapes and found out she was also from NC and graduated from ECU a year before I did! What a small world. I bought a couple pieces from her to be shipped home.

Pimento, Pinky, and Hangman needed new shoes so we all went to the outfitter before going to Icicle Brewing Company for drinks. We hung out at the brewery for a while before we could check into the AirBnB. The condo was on the far side of town, but thankfully Leavenworth was small so it wasn’t hard to get to.

When we arrived we all took turns taking showers and just laid around for a bit before we ventured back into town for dinner. According to Google, the best German restaurant in Leavenworth was Andreas Kellers Restaurant. We were able to get in right away and the atmosphere was so cool! There was a love accordion player and the whole place looked like it was decked out for Oktoberfest. I had Snitzel and Spatzle along with splitting a pitcher of beer with the table. It was all delicious!

After dinner we walked down to Dan’s Food Marker to get snack for the AirBnB and stuff to cook for breakfast. We ended the evening back at the AirBnB watching movies and eating ice cream.