Day 28: Another road walk out of town, this time alone, led to this trail. Uphill for several thousand feet but creeks everywhere so no worries about water.
OMG a sign!!! Guess I am in the right place! Trail levels off here and I start going through some wet grasslands and bogs. Thankfully I have my waterproof socks with me to keep my feet warm and dry.
Back in the high country. I love it up here! I briefly talk to Moon Dancer who was taking a break along the trail.
Heading back down again. I noticed later that I did not take any pictures in this desert valley. It was not very wide but I think I'm tired of the desert and ready for some mountains.
Back up top. Need to find a place to camp. 24 miles, 8:15 hiking.
Day 29: Another fine morning on the trail.
I spent much of the day trying to coordinate my Chama resupply box with my mother while hiking. Spotty cell service made this difficult but I had to make sure all the snow gear needed for Colorado was being shipped. Trail rumors say there is a significant snow ahead.
Another wilderness area done. These seem to get smaller each leg, but it must be the state.
A miserable road walk for several hours this afternoon. Rafters driving be going way too fast, wind really picked up, and rain clouds in the distance. Trying to make Ghost Ranch tonight, I need a zero!
Crossed this rickety old bridge a few miles away from Ghost Ranch. There was supposed to be a museum and historical trail here but everything was closed down for what looked like a number of years. By the time I made to Ghost Ranch it was 8:30 and the front desk was closed. Found out from other hikers they charge $25 to camp here!?!? Frustrated, I found a bench to sleep on and waited for them to open the next morning so I could get my resupply box and GTFO. Come to find out a week later they charge $5 just to enter the premises. Guess my timing was perfect? 33.1 miles, 10:45 hiking.
Day 30: $2000/night Ghost Ranch luxury suite but the door was only 4 feet tall. Awesome dirt floor though. (Skip Ghost Ranch in my opinion!)
Box canyon outside of Ghost Ranch. Very cool echo but no way out! This was only a short side trip I did in the morning.
I met Rip and Mac later in the day, two experienced thru hikers but slower so had to leave them.
Nice cattle ranch that I passed through. A nice place to call home.
Found this epic camping spot with a fire ring, firewood, a stump to sit on, and a few hundred feet off the trail. Best camping spot to date! It ended up snowing during the night so some of my stuff got wet. 19.1 miles, 6:40 hiking.
Day 31: The snow melted off pretty quickly in the morning. Put on my waterproof socks so the wet shoes did not matter.
Had lunch at this picnic area/campground. It did not look like it had been used or maintained for a while. Ended up being too windy to enjoy lunch but I was able to get clear water from the lake to filter.
More scenic trail.
This creek was deep but I was able to carefully cross it on the small logs on the left. It was over knee deep so it would have flooded my waterproof socks.
Back in the snow which means water everywhere. Getting colder each day as I get further north and higher up.
Parting shot for the day. Scenery keeps getting better as I get closer to Colorado. 20.1 miles, 7:00 hours hiking.
Day 32: Have not seen any hikers for a while now. A local couple with their daughter on a four-wheeler stopped and gave me a Gatorade and some perspective on how much snow there was ahead. They were very optimistic that I could easily make it through to Cumbres Pass.
Crossed this bouncy log with some difficulty. While crossing, I was concentrating on the log but the water was flowing so fast undernear that I started to get dizzy. Based on hiker reports, sounds like most just waded through instead of using the bridge.
Trail 41, I follow this for several hours. Muddy and wet in some areas, perfect in others.
Parting shot for today. I should pass the 700 mile mark tomorrow. 25.5 miles, 8:35 hiking.
Day 33: Antelope for breakfast...
Porcupine for a mid-morning snack. Also saw some elk and a black bear running across the trail.
Followed by some awesome views along this ridge all afternoon.
Ended up passing by this wilderness area in late afternoon. I cannot see much snow in the distance which is good news for tomorrow.
Parting shot for today, I thought this ranch entrance I passed earlier was epic! I got within 10 miles of Cumbres Pass before camping tonight. This should put me in a good position to finish the last stretch if there is snow. Passed 700 miles on trail today and will be done with New Mexico tomorrow. 28.1 miles, 9:30 hours hiking.
Day 33: I ran into snow about 20 minutes from where I camped last night.
I did not take any pictures while trudging through the deep soft snow in the trees on steep slopes. It was very tiring but less than two miles and I had my kneehigh gaiters, waterproof socks, and microspikes which all helped. The trail led to this snowmobile packed road which was easy walking. I'm in Colorado now and New Mexico is complete!
Snow was deep in places but very manageable. Only postholed about 30 times throughout the morning.
Cumbres Pass in the distance. Looking north to the section ahead, the lack of snow seems promising, at least for the first day out.
A view to the west towards Chama, NM. Trail angel LB, who hiked the CDT in 2014, gave me and a couple other hikers a ride down to Chama. I was able to get a very nice room at a very reasonable price at Cumbres Suites. Terrie even offered to wash my laundry and drive me to the post office tomorrow to get my resupply box! So happy to find such a homey place to stay. I will zero here a day or two and get rested up for Colorado. I have been hiking every day for the past 25 days and need to give my body some time to recuperate. 9.5 miles, 3:35 hiking.
Congrats on making it to Colorado!
ReplyDeleteKeep it up! Loving the posts.
-Evan