To make matters even more confusing my coworker committed suicide just a couple of days later. I work for a small landscaping company where my boss employs only myself and the aforementioned coworker so I got to know him really well over the last 5 years. He didn't have many friends or much family left and was working as a landscaper in his early 60's(not an easy task). Often times you just wish you could have said or done something that would have helped this person in their time of need. But these losses of loved ones or those close to us(as difficult as they may be) will affect all of us at some point in our lives. Maybe the most important thing we can do in this life is to remember how fortunate we are just to be alive, and to make the most of it while we have the chance? Somewhat in shock and carrying heavy hearts Jojo and I set out from the Lava Camp Lake TH off hwy 242 to finish a loop we have dreamed about for years. Big thanks to Retired Jerry for his field guide write-up and detailed info on water sources throughout the route, it was really helpful! We started quite a bit later than planned but we were still able to knock most of the hike out in the daytime. Here's me grabbing some H20 at Alder Creek:
Making our way through the burn was surreal as the sun began to penetrate the early morning cloud cover. I'm not religious nor do I have a taste for the super natural, but this scene was incredibly powerful:
Hiking through the Pole Creek burn early on offered an interesting look into a forest attempting to recover after the devastating fire. Here are a few as we made our way south:
Looking back at the rugged North Sister over a glacial stream:
Pretty soon we were approaching the highpoint of the day at Green Lakes Pass(7,000ft) where South Sister and Broken Top became the main attractions:
After an emotional morning things were really looking up once we hit the pass:
Heading down from the pass was amazing with South Sister right in your face:
Niether Jo or I had ever set foot in the area but I can totally see why Green Lakes is so popular, it was amazing!
Definitely an area with beauty that is hard to match:
Next up was the leg over to Moraine Lake:
Hopefully I can visit this place many more times over the next few decades, it was awesome
Making our way past Wickiup Plain and onto the PCT heading north around the west side of the Sisters was amazing, probably my favorite part of the day
We could see Middle Sister peeking out!
Bachelor?
These flat pumice plains were a trip to hike through:
Here's a pano:
And my fav pic of the day, Jojo surging North across the plains:
We took a nice break at a beautiful meadow just before this junction:
Here's me studying the water source list RJ posted in the field guide, yes I printed it out and carried it all the way around lol
Raw emotion, a lack of sleep and the overall exertion required to get to our current point had taken its toll and we started slowing down pretty good. Jo had some relatively new sneakers on and she had built up a couple of nasty blisters under her right foot. I double bagged it most of the rest of the way while she toughed it out like a true champ:
Middle Sister offered some hope before the darkness settled in
Things soon turned to pitch black before we hit the Obsidian Limited Use Area. We were both unsure of what to expect but had faith(ok i'll stop)
that we would make it back around North Sister and finish this puppy off. Ofcourse, the night air brought out many creatures(mainly deer) as we made our way north with their eyeshine peeking through the woods every so often. Both of us would really like to get up to Opie Dilldock Pass before the snow comes back as it looks amazing up there! Here is some Obsidian and my foot 
A few more ups and downs and a couple of stream crossings sat before us on our way back to Lava Camp Lake:
This was one of the most memorable hikes I've ever been on and it felt really good to knock it out before the days getting any shorter. The Three Sisters Wilderness is a gem that warrants its popularity in every sense of the word and will continue to amaze those who recreate inside its boundaries. On this day, it served as the perfect trip in our time of need and although I say this everytime
this truly is an advenure I will never forget On a closing note, I would like to say thanks to all who follow along and who have helped shape the person I am today. Im finally just starting to realize how lucky I am to be surrounded by such a caring and inspiring support system in terms of my family and friends. I guess I would just like to say, take every chance to let someone close to you know how important they really are in your life and how much you really love them, as you never know when you might not get the chance to do it again.
