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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (July 21, 2021)
Wednesday, July 21, 2021 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon TREKKERS: Local PCT hikers <Halo= and <Chief= halfway there Continued from page 1 <That was tough because we were not even two weeks in and hadn9t really even found our rhythm yet, but that was one of many adjustments we9ve had to make along the way,= said Melissa. Sasha began the jour- ney with the trail name of <Camel= based on her ability to go for miles without taking a drink of water, but it didn9t take long before she earned a new name based on her ability to organize, lay out plans, and generally take charge. <We referred to her as the CEO, but shortened that down to 8Chief,9= said Melissa, whose trail name is <Halo.= <She just started taking own- ership of the hike within the first two weeks and has con- tinued being in charge of a lot of what we do.= Chief also has taken on more of the video editing for the pair9s YouTube channel (HRC on the PCT), according to her mother. In reflecting how the adventure has gone thus far, Chief said, <It9s been a really, really amazing hike so far. Every section has some- thing new to bring. One of my favorite sections was in the Sierras where we crossed through the five big Sierra passes. For example it was so amazing to be up on the Muir Pass and to be able to look out and see forever.= Halo said that she has learned that being a through- hiker is much different from going on a shorter backpack- ing trip. <If you plan a four-day backpacking trip you get to cherry pick the places you want to go and the sights you want to see, but when you are through-hiking you have to deal with what you get, whether it is the heat, the mos- quitos, or whatever,= she said. <The PCT continually throws wild-cards at you forcing you to adjust and pivot. Plus, the daily mileage we are doing is much more than what you would normally do on a back- packing trip.= Chief remembered the one time so far on the trip that they hiked at night to avoid the heat of the day. <We picked a good section to do in the dark because the trail parallels the California Aqueduct for a few miles and it is barren country basically on a roadway,= she said. A particular highlight took place in late June near the Donner Pass when they got to join a group of fellow fiddlers led by Alasdair Fraser, a mas- ter musician and teacher who has performed at the Sisters Folk Festival. <Chief and I are both fid- dlers and had worked with Fraser in the past at his camps, so we planned a big fiddle jam up there in the moun- tains,= said Halo. <That was my favorite part of the PCT so far.= A video of the jam can be viewed on the YouTube channel. Overall the journey has gone according to plan and the two are holding up physi- cally quite well even as they have continued to average 20 miles a day. There is a down- side to their fast pace, accord- ing to Halo. <One thing we didn9t fore- see is the lack of flexibility we have because we need to finish earlier than most other hikers,= she said. <We have met some amazing people who are our 8trail family,9 but we can9t readily take rest days with them just to hang out because we need to keep moving.= Halo, 49, admits that her body is taking a beating. <You are hurting every day,= she said. <My body is basically destroyed.= Yet, she continues on, remember- ing that she heard from one through-hiker that it can take three months after finishing for the <hurt= to dissipate. She had plans to buy some new shoes on the stop in Shasta to help combat a very sore Achilles tendon. A common issue among PCT through-hikers is either starting out with too much, too little, or the wrong gear, but Halo and Chief said that 9 PHOTO PROVIDED Melissa “Halo” Stolasz and Sasha “Chief” Stolasz mark the milestone crossing the California/Oregon border along the Pacific Crest Trail. the only gear change they have made thus far was to give up on the solar phone chargers and add an extra charging brick instead. <After two different solar chargers not working out for us, we ditched them,= said Chief. <Other than that, we have had all the right gear from the very beginning.= Halo and Chief expect to be passing through the Sisters area in late July, where they will once again see family, along with friends. <It will be exciting to make our way into Oregon,= said Halo, <but we need to take this journey one day at a time.= Nothing says quality like true hand-forged ironwork “Your Local Welding Shop” CCB# 87640 541-549-9280 | 207 W. Sisters Park Dr. | PonderosaForge.com
