This is a reanimation of the Vicaribus blog as lived by Miro Kazakoff and Ehren Foss in 2004 and 2005. The photos may be spotty.

Cold, wet, wonderful?

Posted by Miro

I emerged from the wilderness today as smelly as I’ve ever been outside of a hockey rink. For Sean, a high school friend of Ehren and our guide, the three days and two nights in Olympic National Park were an easy jaunt. For me, this was the longest I’ve ever camped, the farthest I’ve ever camped from a car, the first time I had to treat or boil water before drinking, and the only time I’ve camped in the rain.

The experience was gratifying in an unexpected way. As a child I imagine I would have hated the cold and rain, but putting yourself there by choice makes the experience energizing. That said, my feet stayed dry the whole time. We had excellent equipment, Foss has plenty of camping experience, and Sean has even more.

A quarter mile from the campsite are natural hot springs. Apparently the whole area was a resort in the 1940s with a road leading all the way up. Now it’s a 2.5 mile hike to get to the springs. They fit my romantic notion of what hot springs should look like. Along the side of the train are a series of pools created by man made rock walls. Each of the pools is warmed by a thermal vent under the pool or fed by a small stream of very hot water from the mountainside that leaves a white mineral crust over the rocks. Mists curl above the pools, and the whole stretch of forest smells gently of hard boiled eggs.

On the downside, the pools can be thick with silt and a bright green algae that enjoys the warm temps. The water only comes to about mid chest when seated in the deepest pool. The pools are pretty easy to get to and therefore crowded, but we found one empty both days we went. It still boggles my mind that warm water can come from the earth rather than a tap.

I learned how to pitch a tarp: Start with a good tarp. Stretch the backbone tautly between two trees: higher up if it’s clear and sunny, lower if it’s windy and raining. Our’s was about 6 feet off the ground. Tie three points on each side to anchors, such that the tent is as taut as possible. We used rocks as anchors. Sean knew several knots that allowed you to tie first and then tension the rope. Leave the upwind side of the tarp angled down to face the wind. Use long branches on the downwind side to help hold the tarp flaps higher. We used 6 foot branches where the ropes tied met the tarp. As long as the whole thing stays under tension the water doesn’t pool up on the tarp.