PCT 2018 Day 78, July 9, Monday Start mile 1778.0, tent site
End mile 1810.2, campsites
Miles walked: 32.2
Skeeters are hungry in the morning, as they were last evening. I am a pint low. Haze from a forest fire and the faint smell of woodsmoke is still here, lessening later in the day. 
In the afternoon the trail crosses talus fields of loose flat rocks, and the forest cover opens for some views. 
I meet Foodie, who was last seen at Burney Falls. We walked and chatted for a while along a large burn. 
Also seen today is Magic Bean, Viking, and Nicki. Foodie and Nicki and I are at the same exposed windy campsite, where skeeters do not dare to fly.
Finished audiobook Prince of Hazel and Oak, by John Lenahan.
The understory is grass and fern, and a large variety of low-light plants unfamiliar to me. The bright-green moss on trees is not as common now as a pale-green beard-like moss, that quite covers some old trees.
The slopes of mountains are gentle in this region, and the rocky cliffs of northern California are gone. Water tastes funny, like silt, so perhaps my filter needs additional cleaning. In the afternoon I get to Brown Mountain, and a series of crossings of lava rock talus, on path that is packed dirt over stone, easy to walk on. 
Several dozen of these short talus crossings to the next stand of trees make for an interesting walk. 
Here is a tree with three different kinds of moss mixed together. 
Smoke, and sometimes the smell of wood-smoke, are still here to remind us of the wildfire to the south. 
The mosquitos are fierce by 6PM. This is a dry area with few water sources, so why so many of these hungry critters? A look at the map gives the answer. The trail may have much water close at hand, but several lakes, large and small, are nearby.
The PCTA website still does not show the trail as closed due to fire, but some details are updated. The devastation of the fire along Interstate is something to remember. 
The ground is still smoking in places. Some level ground is spared, where hillsides are likely to be charred. 
We can see where the fire has jumped across the interstate in places. Incident response areas are full of firetrucks and equipment. We are dropped off at an Ashland hostel, and the other hikers decide to enjoy one of the coolest towns on the trail. The Ashland Shakespeare Festival is going, and many restaurants, museums, and shops beckon. Just kidding– they are probably headed to a brewpub or three.
The path starts easy, with no big climbs, and the air is hazy with smoke at first. 
A trail angel stops on a forest road to offer pizza, which helps make up for the meal I skipped.