The white sage is at its most aromatic this time of year. The outdoors smells like a giant smudge stick. … I wonder whether PCT hikers have any clue what they are smelling. Perhaps, they’re not even smelling it at all, with their heads down, grimacing, grinding out the miles.

It was clearly time to replace the ancient (technically, seven-year old) handmade box that houses the hiker register after a hiker lifted the top and it fell off. So, out with the old and in with the new.