Not technically. Not this time around. This time, I'm actually a section hiker. Which seems kind of ridiculous, since my first section was 1800 miles and my second section is 800. Isn't that enough to be considered "thru"?
No. It's not.
On the way to Cascade Locks I became very aware of the many ways that I am no longer in thru hiker mode.
Last year, I remember the feeling when I crossed into Oregon. After 1700 miles in that long, long, - at times breath takingly beautiful, at times mindnumbingly monotonous state - I felt the excitement of being 2/3 done. I wanted to just blast out the last 1/3 of the trail and be done.
I don't have that feeling now.
I I can see it in the thru hikers eyes, though. The desire to just be done. I want to enjoy Oregon. I want to take side trails and look at waterfalls and jump in lakes, not push big miles. I'm thinking like a section hiker.
I was hiking with a bunch of people who decided we needed to do a minimum of 27 miles in order to get to the breakfast buffet at the lodge. I don't care about the breakfast buffet. ( a thru hiker would never say that) But when the temperature is in the 90's and my choices are to swim multiple times a day or go to the breakfast buffet, I pick swimming.
Besides, there was a lunch buffet.
Then, there was the mad rush to get to Trail Days. I don't care about Trail Days. Even when people doing back to back to back 40 mile days tell me it's the best party on the trail. If I want a good party, I'll go to Burning Man.
So I hiked into Cascade Locks like a section hiker. I took all the alternate trails to look at wildflowers
Acting like a me a section hiker.