Four friends, 27 weeks into walking the Pacific Crest Trail, have crossed Oregon's last stretch — and their week captures everything that makes this hike so fickle. One day they're sheltering from sleet behind a boarded-up mountain inn; two days later they're standing alone behind a 50-metre waterfall, then crossing the Bridge of the Gods into Washington.

The week began at Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood, where the group had been stuck in a classic trail-town 'vortex' — the phenomenon where zero-day plans quietly stretch into a week. They tacked on a side loop of the Timberline Trail as penance for a skipped section, and promptly got hammered by weather: drizzle became sleet, sleet became snow, and the historic Cloud Cap inn turned out to be closed. A kindly local couple driving past gave them a 40-minute lift down to Parkdale, where hot chocolates at a brewery restored body heat, and a trail angel ferried them back to Timberline. Such is PCT life — plans made, plans undone, strangers helping.

Better weather followed. The trail delivered Ramona Falls, sunlit forests still dripping from rain, and lingering views of Mount Hood as the clouds finally relented. Then came the Eagle Creek alternate, a rocky side route that many PCT hikers swear by, culminating in Tunnel Falls: a curtain of water pouring off a cliff, with a tunnel carved behind it so hikers can walk straight through the fall. On a busy weekend, the group had it entirely to themselves.

Their reward for all this was an arrival beneath the Bridge of the Gods at Cascade Locks — the symbolic end of Oregon and start of Washington, and the spot where Cheryl Strayed's famous hike in 'Wild' ended. After burgers, laundry, resupply and reunions with other hikers, they paid the toll bridge's pedestrian crossing a good ten minutes of rumbling metal grating and celebratory Fireball, and walked into their final state.

Not all news is good, though: significant fire closures in Washington are now looming. Roughly a quarter of the trail ahead — including the Northern Terminus at the Canadian border — is shut, forcing hikers to improvise alternates or skip sections by road. It's a reminder that a PCT thru-hike in the current climate means wildfire smoke and closures are as much a part of the planning as resupply points.

Why should a regular traveller care? Because this corridor is one of the Pacific Northwest's best walking country, and most of it is doable without committing to 2,650 miles. The Timberline Trail loops Mount Hood in a long weekend. The Eagle Creek Trail to Tunnel Falls is a spectacular day or overnight hike from the Columbia River Gorge, an hour from Portland. Cascade Locks makes a handy base, and the Bridge of the Gods walk is a memorable half-hour for anyone — no tent required. Just pack for all four seasons, even in late summer; this week proved Oregon can serve snow and sunshine in the same 48 hours.

Story as reported by The Trek.