Day 30: Mile 412.1 to mile 432.9
8.20.21 -
20.8 miles +3,900 -3,700 ft
Segments: 25
I woke up very slowly, as usual when I’m in such a comfy bed. I slept so well last night thanks to the lovely accommodations of this hotel. I quickly got my pack together and then went out to the coffee shop, which opens at 6:30 to get a latte and a muffin for breakfast, then went back to the hotel to finish packing and be ready for my 7 am ride. Larry and Redbird were also on the ride as well! Our angel, Chilli, hiked the AT and was hiking the CT this year but had to get off due to injuries. So she wanted to help hikers out while she was still out here!
We got to the pass in about 15 minutes and the views were spectacular! So much better than the rainy day yesterday, and the sun was shining bright! The weather forecast shows no rain for the rest of the trail. I can only hope that it holds true! Larry and I started hiking together as we said bye to Redbird - he sped ahead as he has to finish in 3 days vs. our 4. We took our time in the morning as we slowly climbed up a pass. The mountains were red and green and gorgeous and we saw some in the distance with fresh snow from last night! The scenery was truly beautiful, and we were also hiking in alive forests! Such a change from the bark beetle devastated forests. It was nice to see living trees. Even though it was sunny, it was a cold morning. It feels like fall is moving in up in the mountains. We climbed all morning, and Squid, Berry, and Stretch caught up at a creek near the top of the pass. Squid and I ate lunch together near the top, and then we all split up in the afternoon.
The afternoon climb was mostly in the trees, with little peeks at the mountains in the distance. I passed by waterfalls, a rarity on this trail, which was super nice! It was a long afternoon, as I was just trying to hike to a certain camp site at Celebration Lake, the end of segment 25, to put in 20 miles for the day. It was long and started to drag on, but there were some nice views of new mountains at the top of the climb! Eventually I made my way to the lake and found Chaney and Bullwinkle camped, so I joined them. Larry is ahead of me, Bunker, Squid, Berry, Stretch, Deep Thoughts, Splash & Bee are behind somewhere. Today was beautiful but tiring, and I can feel that my body is both strong, but also ready to be done with the trail. I also broke my left shoe today: the upper split at a seam, so yeah, the trail needs to be coming to a close! It was also relatively colder for most of the day, especially when I was getting to camp at only 6 pm. It’s cold enough that I’m sleeping with my water filter in my quilt with me tonight. I don’t want to risk it freezing on me!
