Daily Log: Day 55

Day 55 – Saturday 9/5/2020 – 2159.0 – clear, sunny, cool, partially cloudy, no monsoon rain. We both woke at 5 am in the hotel. We left at about 5:30 am to drive back to Wolfe Pass and arrived at 6 am. After eating breakfast I was off with my slack pack on my back. I listened to the Stranger in the Forest audio book. Justin had enjoyed it. I met Milk-jug CDT hiker on the trail. I arrived at Elwood Pass at 1:30 pm. Justin had quite a 4×4 adventure getting there and had arrived only 8 minutes ahead of me. I downed a Squirt. I unloaded my daypack and began to fill my back pack. On the fly I decided to continue on for a few more miles. I thought maybe 4 miles, but actually I continued on for 10 miles. I had trouble finding a reasonably flat and level campsite. I finally set up my tent about 7 pm. It was the latest in the day that I’ve done that. Knocking off these miles changes this section from 50 miles to 41 miles. With bad weather coming I did this to shorten my third day. I don’t know how far I’ll go tomorrow but I just want to get out of Colorado into New Mexico and have less mountains and difficult climbs.

Daily Log: Day 54

Meetup: Zero: Day 54 – Friday 9/4/2020 – 2132.3 ZERO IN PAGOSA SPRINGS – clear sunny very hot in town. At the hotel I slept in until after 7 am. Wow! We went to McD’s for take-out breakfast. Then we relaxed in the hotel room. We went over the plan for the next few days. This included the weather forecast that expected rain and snow on next Tuesday from Pagosa Springs CO to Chama NM. Ugh! So I added long underwear to my kit and removed down vest. I counted how much remaining food I had for the last days and wrote short shopping list for Justin. I did a little email and blog posting. I trimmed my beard. I packed a day pack for my slack pack tomorrow. We are planning on getting BBQ tonight. It is still very hot (it is in the eighties Fahrenheit) and dry here. I am constantly drinking liquids. Independently Justin did more laundry for his Autohome, such as, washing his sheets and pillow case. Altogether it was a relaxing, slow, non-hiking day – the definition of a ZERO DAY.

I had a much needed shower and trimmed my beard in the Pagosa Springs Quality Inn. I’m a new man! (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)

Daily Log: Day 53

Hiking Together: Meetup: Day 53 – Thursday 9/3/2020 – 2132.3 – clear, sunny, hot. Justin and I woke at my normal 5 am, packed up in our limited campsite among the pines, and were on trail with headlamps at 5:50 am. I kept my puffy and gloves on. We immediately began to climb. By the end of the climb I had to take my puffy off. I was too hot. The rest of the day the climbs and trail were more forgiving. The weather was pleasant or maybe a bit warm. We stopped to talk to an archer hunter with a compound bow looking for elk. During one descent as I focused on the trail immediately in front of me I ran into a log hanging partially over the trail. OMG! When I collided I saw stars. My hat brim shielded me from seeing it. Justin looked and saw I had a dime sized scrap on my head. Justin applied Neosporin to it. Although shaken by the very sudden impact luckily I wasn’t hurt. Further down the trail we met and talked to several day hikers. Even though the weather and trail was good I was tired. For the final descent to Wolfe Creek Pass Trailhead I again let Justin lead. What was especially exciting to both of us was we were going to town for a zero day. In town we bought two pizzas then went to the hotel. As Justin unpacked his stuff I went in and took a hot shower. It was marvelous. Then Justin did our laundry, a stinky mass of hiking clothes, in the hotel machines. Just having this little oasis from the trail and his help with chores was such a relief. I made telephone calls to Katie and Kathy and Justin called Stephanie. All is well with the world – or at least the small corner that we’re in.

We had one more day’s hike to Wolfe Pass and we’d take a ZERO DAY in Pagosa Springs! (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)
Smiles in the early morning sunshine. We’re hiking together and we have things to look forward to doing. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)
So let’s get going. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)
Leaving Weminuche Wilderness. The long 80+ mile Stony Pass to Wolfe Pass section is almost done. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)
Back at Wolfe Pass relaxing with a Squirt soda. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)

Daily Log: Day 52

Hiking Together: Meetup: Day 52 – Wednesday 9/2/2020 – 2117.0 – clear, sunny, cool, no rain whatsoever. I am jointly camping with Justin. We woke at 5 am together. We were on trail at 5:50 am. We started with a series of medium (500’) climbs. They went by OK. We stopped every two hours for a snack. We met and chatted with a hunter on horseback. After the medium climbs we had a big one 1800’. We stopped at noon about 25% up the climb for lunch. Then it was back at it. We went up and up and up. I was getting tired. It ended in a double summit. On the second one there had been a small landslide and when we got there Justin said it looked like it had been repaired. Then around the corner, out of the wind, we stopped on the side of the mountain for my final snack. I was sitting on a downward sloped rock on a very downward sloped trail looking straight down a 45 degree slope. Suddenly I felt I was going to fall. Was it vertigo? Wow, that never happens to me. I finished my snack. Carefully I got up and continued hiking on the side of the mountain, but I was having a hard time shaking that “if I fell off trail I’d be a goner” feeling. That was very spooky. After all the thousands of miles to have that happen. But I gotta say that spot was particularly unnerving. After that episode, the rocky trail, the steep descent, and how tired I was I let Justin lead and I slowly descended. It was still a few miles to our campsite. When I got there I was beat. We got our tents up. We went and got water. This whole 80 miles section in the San Juan mountains and pushing to do 16.5 miles per day was too much. I think we should have slowed down and taken another day. So while we were hiking Justin made the executive decision to go to Pagosa Spring, get a hotel room and take a zero day on Friday. There we can get a shower, do laundry, and maybe eat pizza, or BBQ I think I need this break as a pick me up since the trail had been so hard recently.

The next day we continued southbound towards Wolfe Pass. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)
Sometime the trail was rocky and difficult to traverse. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)
At one point we stopped on the side of a rocky mountain. While sitting facing out I had a snack and suddenly felt I might fall. It unnerved me. Meanwhile Justin got a cell signal and was making a motel reservation in Pagosa Springs. The next day we’d take a ZERO! (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)
Justin returned to the campsite he used on his northbound hike to meet me. Now it was both of us in the trees that helped to block the wind. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)
If you thought yesterday’s campsite was cramped well today’s was even tighter. Regardless we survived and didn’t even trip on each other’s guy lines. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)

Daily Log: Day 51

Hiking Together: Meetup: Day 51 – Tuesday 9/1/2020 – 2100.6 – some clouds, sunny, cool, no monsoon rain! I woke in my weird campsite in the pine trees. It had rained overnight. The water had leaked into the tent tub. The foot end of my sleeping bag was now wet. Regardless I packed it away in its stuff sack. Rolling up the wet tent chilled my fingers so I couldn’t feel them. I did not have my normal morning poo, because it was rocky, I was late and never dug a cat hole the night before. It will have to be delayed. I ate my breakfast pop tart in my tent. That was a first too. Once on trail I descended to a saddle and immediately started the next climb. It’s the story of my trail life in the mountains. Ya can’t complain. Ya just gotta climb, climb, and climb. I stopped to make sure I’m on the trail. I was. I stopped to poo in a pine grove worried that someone might come by. I did about 5-7 climbs. In the afternoon I stopped at a lake to fill all my water. because I had to dry campsite tonight. Finally I got to the end around 3:30 pm. There was no Justin there. Oh no! But who should look over the hilltop above me at that moment? Yup! It was Justin. He just got there. Perfect timing! I hiked up to him, hugged and then we hiked 0.8 miles southbound to a campsite he had just passed. I setup all my stuff. It was flat, and dry. I had a camp buddy. Justin! That is excellent. Two more days and we’ll be back at Wolfe Creek Trailhead. Justin said we have only 70 miles left in Colorado. I so look forward to being out of these big mountains and their ascents and descents. They are beautiful, but so hard to climb.

Rain cloud threatening but I’ve got to keep going to meet Justin.
We met within a few minutes of us getting to our meet-up point. Justin and I had adventure stories to tell from him getting snowed on and me camping in the trees. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)
Together as the top of the hill with the southbound trail behind us. We followed it to a less exposed campsite. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)
We camped at the top of the hill where we met up. it was tight but the trees protected us. There was a steep rocky drop off behind my tent. (Photograph Courtesy of J. Watt)