Miles: 0
Total trip miles: 884
I really did want to make it down to Seiad Valley. The section from Ashland to Seiad Valley is 80 miles and would have me crossing the OR/CA border, something I have been looking forward to for obvious reasons.
But it wasn’t meant to be. While I technically could hike down to Seiad from Ashland, that section of trail has not been officially closed yet, the air quality these past few days around Ashland has been awful. The smoke appears to be coming from the Dixie Fire and there is no reason to think things will get better anytime soon. Additionally, once I got to Seiad, I’d have no idea how to get around the numerous closures from the Dixie Fire. So I say goodbye to the possibility of crossing into CA by foot, and look at other options.
In my search for other options, I come across the Tahoe Rim Trail. It’s 150 miles around Lake Tahoe and shares something like 40 miles with the PCT. I could do the Rim Trail to make up some miles I’m missing from Nor-Cal and then rejoin the PCT seamlessly. That’ll bring me very close to my hometown in Bear Valley, where I can rest a few nights and continue my journey onward. It seems like a reasonable plan and I book a bus ticket from Medford, a town 10 miles north of Ashland, to Truckee, near the Rim Trail.
Before my bus leaves, I spend two full zeroes in Ashland. It’s an amazing little town that is home of 20,000 people, and has a host of cozy bookstores, cafes, coffee shops, restaurants, and the like. During these two days, I visit 3 coffee shops, 1 book store, catch a movie, make it to the hot spring on the outskirts of town, and eat a lot of good food. My hostel is clean and cheap, and I have a wonderful stay.
Sorry you have to skip so far South and not hike across the border. Hiking around Lake Tahoe should be beautiful.