September 14
1610 – 1625
Good news! I finally got the coffee down perfect! I know I sound like a crazy person with my coffee infatuation. 
Here’s the coffee base. I mix it with the chai I got in Mt. Shasta. And brown sugar, which is heavy, but yummier and not as messy as white. I’m learning what’s really important on this trip.
The trees were burned on one side, green on top. You can see where the flames licked up the trunks.
What kind of animal digs up wasp nests? A skunk? A bear? Twice I came upon the the remains of dug-up underground paper nests. The hexagonal honeycombs shredded. Ants scavenged through the leftovers.
I went over a little pass and in the distance there was a shimmery alpine lake. It looked cold. I was trying to ignore the icy nip on the wind. But I was grateful for my new long sleeve shirt. The extra layer was crucial.
My favorite plant of the day was these tall purple stalks gone to seed. They were like dandelions x1000. The puffballs are pink and very explody.
This area is called Marble Mountains. It’s really pretty. There are big rock formations and hawks gliding on updrafts. Red tails, by the sound of them.
I passed some hunters. Then a platoon of cheerful sobo hikers. They left a discernible cloud of funk in their wake. Stinky hikers.
Spinstera 
Lovin’ these descriptions of everything you eat/drink and see. I’m driving to Kansas going through Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado and a touch of Nebraska. Thinking I should have walked due to your inspiration – but that’s never gonna happen. Pretty proud of you.
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I have been following you since u started… I jumped on the trail at Anza with my gran babies…. we rolled for about mile just to “feel” the trail…
Going back next April 2019 to begin my time…so excited for u and love reading your journey!!!!!! Now of course, I’m thinking we become besties!!! Lolololol.
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Enjoying your blog. You are now in the most botanically and geologically unique part of the entire PCT. The Marbles are the only ultramafic mountains in North America. The marble began as a tropical reef about four hundred million years ago. Because the mountains are located at the juncture of three distinct eco-regions, there are more than 500 species of plants forming a complex floral mosaic.
The plant you show is fireweed, Epilobeum angustifolium. It makes the best honey in the world. Those wind blown seeds are going out to colonize burn areas.
Also the lake you show is called Man Eaten Lake by the native Karuk. They tell a story of a man who ate his family and then himself and turned into a supernatural creature.
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