Assistant trip leader LaRae reported Thursday for the Trip 2 team:

“A couple people in our group had a quick turnaround before their next PasstoPass hike tomorrow, so we wanted to get an early start to give them as much time as possible. We hit the trail at 8 a.m. to tackle the last 2.8 miles. We rolled in to the White Pass Trailhead horse camp parking lot right around 9:15 a.m. and were greeted by trail angels Sandy and Deb. They brought some trail magic in the form of ice cold drinks, fresh fruit, chips, fresh sandwiches, cookies, brownies, and more. There’s nothing better than some ice cold water and fresh food after 6 days on the trail.

“Vital statistics for Trip 2:

8 hikers

4 llamas

29 miles

6 days

Lots of stories, laughter, and a few mosquito bites.

“We never did solve the mystery of what llamas do with their heads while they sleep. Do they sleep with them up, tucked in, or straight out in front of them? We may never know, but we did unlock the secret of crop circles. It’s the ‘camels.’ (One of the kids in the group we helped back on day 4 exclaimed, ‘Wow, camels’ when they first spotted the llamas, so now they are forever camels in our group).

“Final post-trip thoughts: We are all out here hiking our own hike, but that doesn’t mean we are alone. If we are open, there are plenty of people ready to walk beside us and support us. Thank you, PasstoPass, for being that support for our Parkinson’s community.”

Highlight reel from CA Trip 13

Trip leader Derek sent a video with highlights of the Trip 13 team’s recently completed hike.

What’s next for the llamas?

The llamas will spend tonight at the White Pass Trailhead horse camp with first-time PasstoPass trail angels Sandy and Deb. Sandy hiked the Trip 2 route with PasstoPass last year and wanted to volunteer this year.

Then, starting Friday, the llamas will support the Trip 3 team as they hike from the White Pass Trailhead to the Chinook Pass Trailhead (the reverse of the Trip 2 route). One of the llamas is Amos. He has supported PasstoPass hikes for several years and knows that trail well.

This is the first of two llama layovers for Sandy and Deb. They will also move the llamas over to the Walupt horse camp to support other PasstoPass hikes later this month.

We love our trail angels! They are essential to making the trip logistics work for all our teams.