A day by day account
Aug 17: I carpooled with another hiker from Denver to Durango. A long car ride with a stranger can be a bit of a gamble, but Varun and I enjoyed great conversation for almost the entirety of the six hour drive. He had just completed the PCT a week prior and was excited to put his trail legs to use in Colorado. By the time we dropped off the rental car and made it to the trailhead it was 6pm and raining steadily. We started out in the rain, but it let up after about an hour and by the time we were making camp, the skies were clearing.
Aug 18: First full day of hiking! I woke up early and excited to be on trail. I was moving fairly quickly for my standards, and while Varun and I leapfrogged a bit in the morning, we didn’t see each other for the majority of the day. I saw lots of other hikers heading the other direction, nearing their finish, excited to share some enthusiasm about the trail. About 15 miles outside of Durango, I stepped aside to let a bikepacker ride by and he stopped to introduce himself. He was one of Mark’s friends from Aspen, he recognized me from the photos of our ski traverse of the trail! It was a neat small world moment, and it made me feel excited to be a part of such an incredible community on trail.
There were tons of ripe wild berries on trail and I had to show quite a bit of self restraint to not stop and pick all of them. I hiked to the base of Blackhawk pass where I set up camp near a hiker heading the other direction.
Aug 19: I packed up in the dark in the company of another headlamp, a Colorado Trail Mountain Bike racer. I chatted with him for a few minutes before we headed our separate ways, he said he had rolled in at 3 am the night before and just stopped for a couple hours of sleep before the final push (he ended up finishing third)!
When I stopped for a break at the first light of day, I was surprised to see Varun walking up behind me. I had assumed he was somewhere ahead of me, but was excited to have some company. We hiked together for the better part of the day, enjoying conversation and some beautiful trail. It drizzled all afternoon, but again, by the time I was making camp, it was clear.
Aug 20: I overslept my alarm, the sound drowned out by the raging elk creek I was camped next to. I was disappointed to be starting two hours later than planned, but did enjoy the luxury of packing up without a headlamp. Varun was now well ahead of me, but I got regular updates about him from hikers coming the other way. There are far less NOBO hikers than SOBO, so we were easy to spot to the people coming the other direction. I remembered this section as being challenging hiking, and indeed the high alpine climbing and descending was tiring. Given that most of the day was above tree line, I was very lucky that the weather stayed relatively calm all day. Around 6pm I realized it was my birthday and when it came time to camp, I decided to join some hikers having a small fire to celebrate with them. We shared some candy and some stories, but even after just a few days on trail, I couldn’t stay up past 9pm to share in the revelries.
Aug 21: I broke camp before my companions had started to stir on my way to my resupply in Lakecity. I crossed the Colorado trail high point and hiked in and out of the fog atop Jarosa Mesa. The last 10 miles to Spring Creek pass felt long, but I made it there in time to catch the trail angel shuttle into Lakecity. I spent the afternoon in town, resupplying and catching up with friends and family. I attended a community sponsored hiker dinner, along with quite a few other hikers in town. I found a ride back up to the trailhead that night, but on the way up the pass, realized I had left my inreach plugged in at the dinner. We turned back around, and as the sun was now setting, the couple driving me graciously offered to let me stay in their guest room and take me back up to the trail early the next morning! I am appreciatiave of their patience and kindness and for a bed for the night!
Aug 22: We left Lakecity at 6 am and Jimmy, who was driving, and I, chatted away the 30 min drive to the top of the pass. I got out of the car into a cold fog and started up toward Snow Mesa. I spent the majority of the day traversing the incredible La Garita wilderness. Once the trail leaves the wilderness it drops into cattle country near Cochetopa pass. I spent my evening sharing the trail with herds of cows. It had drizzled all afternoon, and as the sunset, it poured for about an hour. I hiked late to get water from a spring trampled by cattle then set up my tarp in the dark, tired and frustrated, struggling to find a spot to sleep in between the cow patties.
Aug 23: The morning made for fast hiking on the dirt roads that the trail follows on the edge of the Gunnison valley. I crossed highway 114 and started a 20 mile stretch between water sources. I intended to push the whole stretch before I camped, but ended up camping short of the next source for the night with just enough water to cook dinner. There were loads of raspberries near Lujan pass, and I enjoyed picking handfuls, then walking down the trail savoring them one at a time. I met an incredible couple who were hiking the trail with their 19 month old daughter. I stopped and talked to them for a while, and was excited to find out that they had read about our ski traverse! Chatting with them was a rejuvenating break. Later that afternoon, I heard word that Mark’s mom was going in for major surgery. Mark was with his mom, and assured me that I should stay on trail. I was worried about Mark and his mom, but trusted them, and knew that the real time to be helpful would be not when Kelly was in the hospital, but when she got out. Mark kept me updated via InReach text, and by the end of the day Kelly was out of a successful surgery.
Aug 24: I hiked over Sargent’s Mesa in the dark, where I was greeted by more cattle and their poop. I only stepped in one fresh cow pattie, but it still felt like one too many. When I got to the next water source, I took a break to make breakfast and enjoy the first warm rays of sun. The climb up towards Marshall pass was a butt kicker, but I was greeted at the top with a spot of service to call mark. I took a long break to talk with him and catch up on the events with his mom and niece. He left his summer job early to take care of them back in Denver. The call left me a bit drained, emotionally, but I was relieved to have been able to talk. I shortly caught up to another hiker, Ted, who was also heading North on the trail. We hiked together for a ways as we headed to the Monarch Crest store. I had a resupply package there and he was looking to pick up some mayonnaise packets– an essential for many hikers to pair with their tuna. He deemed the climb up to the pass “the mayonnaise march” which passed quickly amid the beautiful views and fun conversation. I stayed at the crest store for a little over an hour, snacking and repacking my food. Ted and I left the store together and camped near tree line just a few miles past the pass.
Aug 25: I hiked the north section of the monarch crest in the dark, the sun rising as I dropped into the Boss Lake drainage. The shin splint that had started bothering me the day before was screaming at me on the descent. I slowed down and paid careful attention to where I was stepping to help alleviate the pain. It was manageable, but I would spend the day moving through some challenging terrain in the Collegiates and by the end of it, I was tired of the careful hiking and unable to find a cautious enough step to keep the shooting pains at the front of my leg at bay. It was the second day in a row that I hadn’t met my mileage goal, and while I was disappointed, I was more than happy to be at camp.
Aug 26: I woke up achy from a terrible nights sleep with a painful spider bite on my right leg. My shin still hurt and as I wandered the trail towards cottonwood pass I could see the grey drizzly day in the making. I spent most of the day with my rain jacket on and my umbrella up as intermittent showers persisted from the time I left camp to the time I made camp near the base of hope pass. At cottonwood pass, staring down a huge downhill (which would be painful and painfully slow with my shin splint) I seriously considered taking a day off. I tried to call Mark, he was coming through the area to race Vapor Trail, but he was out of service. I’m thankful he didn’t answer, because I’m sure getting off trail at that low point would have made it extremely difficult to get back on, and after a few hours I did start to feel better. By the time I was starting the climb up Lake Ann pass, I was happy to be on trail, even if it was cold and rainy. I set up my tarp that night over the softest bed of pine needles I have ever seen and had a great nights rest.
Aug 27: I woke up to my alarm with the awareness that Mark was riding his mountain bike; the Vapor trail race starts at 10 pm and Mark finished in 18 hours. I thought of him as I hiked up the steep trail to the top of hope pass. The high point was windy, but I was glad to see the wind come in, blowing out the low pressure system that had been sitting over central Colorado for the past several days. I hiked down to Twin Lakes where I collected my resupply at the general store. I met another hiker there who also worked as a raft guide and ski instructor. She was lots of fun to talk to and I left feeling rejuvenated. My shin splint wasn’t as painful as it had been days prior, and Mark had left my trekking poles at the resupply point, which did wonders taking some of the weight off my feet. This section of trail had been one of our first really hard days on the ski traverse, and walking through it brought back lots of vivid memories of this spring.
Mark finished his race around 5pm that evening and we made plans to see each other. Initially he had planned to camp with me near turquoise lake, but I wouldn’t be getting there until late, and after the long day he had had, we decided to get a hotel room in Leadville. He picked me up around 8pm and after we each took a quick shower we fell shortly to sleep.
Aug 28: I decided to take a half day in Leadville to spend some time with Mark and buy some extra food so I wouldn’t have to make another resupply stop. We enjoyed sleeping in and had breakfast at our favorite restaurant in Leadville, The Golden Burro. After the sparse communication and intense experience of the last ten days, we were glad to be able to talk in person. We had a lot to catch up on, and it felt good to be in one another’s company. At some point in the conversation, I told Mark that I had been thinking a lot the past week about getting married, and he told me he had already put a down payment on an engagement ring! We gave each other a big hug and I tried to keep my tears as inconspicuous as possible. Obviously we had been on the same page about wanting to get married, but it was a bit of a surprise to both of us to be engaged at that moment! I got back on trail without telling my family and friends and when I told the first hikers I ran into, they had me pegged right away: “Are we the first people you’ve told? Is that why your voice is all shaky?” I felt great after the morning off and excited to be engaged to the person I love and had a great afternoon of hiking.
Aug 29: I started early, but was slow moving, stopping often to make adjustments and eat and drink as I hiked out of Camp Hale. Near the top of Kokomo pass, I had service and took the opportunity to call my family and tell them the news of my engagement. After a few fun phone calls I hiked over Searle pass and down towards Copper. The long downhill was still slow as I took care of my shin splint, but eventually I made it over Copper Mountain Resort and then climbed up and over the ten mile range and through Breckenridge to camp just a few miles outside of town.
Aug 30: I was feeling the anticipation of the end of the hike all day. Between the shin splint and everything that was happening with Mark and his family, I was more ready to be off trail than I had ever felt before. Hiking over Georgia pass, I was struck by how easy it felt compared to the effort it had taken this Spring in the snow and howling winds. I ran into quite a few people coming into Kenosha pass, and enjoyed stopping and talking to them. Since I left Twin Lakes, I had started to hear a lot of “you’re almost there” from the people I saw on trail. Now it was starting to feel true. I cowboy camped for the second night in a row, enjoying the dry air that had blown in the past few days.
Aug 31: I hiked into and out of the Lost creek Wilderness in a day, somewhat uninspired by the rolling terrain. Compared to the rest of the trail, this section can feel less impressive, since it doesn’t boast the same views or challenging terrain seen in other areas. Hiking into the Buffalo creek area, I met some day hikers who gave me some cheese and grapes! For the entirety of this trip, I had been pretty uninterested in the food that came out of my food bag, so any snack from someone else came as an exciting treat! I found my last camp for the trip after the sun had set, again relieved not to have to set up my tarp.
Sep. 1: I set my alarm for 3:30 and woke up ready to start hiking. When I finally made it to my first water source for the day, it was 10 am and already very hot out. I took a quick dip in the South Platte before pushing the last 20 miles to the finish. I knew Mark was going to meet me at the dirt road in Waterton Canyon and the miles to get there felt long, hot and slow. I was a little earlier than I had planned to the road, so I hiked about two miles down it before I saw Mark roll in with the tandem bike. I was so happy to see him and the bike. In a few more minutes we would be at the official end to the trail. We had some folks take our photo, explaining that, no, we had not ridden the bike the whole way but just the last five miles. Mark drove me back to his mom’s house where I took a much needed shower. We ate a big meal and then went to visit his mom. I called my parents and sent out text messages to let people know that I had finished. I was happy to be with people I loved, and thankful that they are so supportive of the things I do.