OTT Take 2: Day 7: Clear Lake to Shedd Camp area
This was a no-good-very-bad day. We got an early start because we knew this would be a big day. We only had planned 18 miles for the day, but there was a ton of single track and TONS of elevation gain. We headed over to the Clear Lake “resort” which is really just a little cabin type thing, but they service hot breakfast, so it was rad. This little resort store also has a few amenities, but don’t count on it for a full resupply, if you were wondering.
The Crescent Mountain climb started out alright - some gravel roads, a little trail and then up through a palatable climb through the Fish Lake Scenic Area. Then it wasn’t so alright…the steepness escalated and I immediately fell to the back of the pack (which is totally fine with me).. Then after the steepness started, shit got real. The climb was difficult and hike-a-bike in a lot of places. Mentally, I felt like I was in a good place and stopped when I needed, took pictures, picked a couple wild flowers (shhhh don’t tell). It was great weather and the view half way up the hill was filled with almost every significant mountain peak in Oregon. You really could see for forever! It was during this time that I took a break to record some of my feels, because once again, I was thinking about how much I was going to miss this beautiful state of Oregon whenI move to Arizona.
After we got to the top, we had lunch at the summit. There were views of Mt Hood, Mt Jefferson, Three Fingered Jack, Mt Washington and the Three Sisters. How can you beat that? It was truly incredible. After lunch, it was one of the most amazing descents of the entire OTT. Flowing single track, some drops, but not too crazy, everything was rideable and exciting. We bombed down with smiles on our faces! I think I was giggling the entire time. THEN: It happened.
We got to Shedd Camp at the river crossing and decided to stay there for the night. I went to get into one of my Salsa Anything Bags and realized that it, along with it’s Gorilla Cage attachment, was missing. I lost my cool. I knew I had had it at lunch time, because that’s where I got my lunch from, but it could have come off at any point during the super long descent - I think the descent was maybe 6-8 miles…. At first I thought it was the bag that I had my puffy and medications in, so I was really distraught, but then I realized it was my mug and fuel and a couple of other things, so at least it wasn’t so bad. I could borrow other people's fuel and go without coffee in the morning. Aliza was kind enough to hike back up the trail with me for an hour. Not sure how much distance we covered, but we didn’t even get half way up the trail, and didn’t find anything, so we hiked back down. Now, this said, I have never had an issue with this bag attachment system. I used it for the Great Divide route and many other shorter packing trips including last year on the OTT. I made sure to check my other one and it was securely fastened. The rest of the evening was a somber one for me, moping about my loss, but at least we were next to beautiful river, got to clean off a bit, and soak our legs in the cold water.
