Day 37 (6/02) - Colorado

Several guests at Cumbres Suites recommended that I take the train up to the pass before heading back out on the trail.  The train left the station at 10 AM where I met another hiker named Double Shot.

The "little engine that could" is what the locals call this coal powered steam engine.  Apparently it was not designed to pull as many cars as they are using on the scenic ride and there were multiple occasions when the drive wheels spun out on the tracks heading up the 6 percent grade to the pass.

Crossing over a trestle as the locomotive bellows steam and smoke.  My first ride behind a steam locomotive and it was amazing. The horn was deafeningly loud, even in the back of the train.  Had to avoid the occasional cinders flying through the air from the coal smoke.

Back on the trail, heading up for the next four miles. The train dropped us off at Cumbres Pass around 11:30 AM.  My snow gear was shipped to Chama, NM, thus the gaiters. Not sure at this point how much snow I will hit today but soon to find out.

Hiked with Double Shot for a bit but could not keep up with her.  She decided against snow gear so I am carrying quite a bit more weight.  I will probably catch up when her we hit snow.

A view of Chama in the distance as we gain elevation, still going up.

Looks like snow up top, glad I have snow gear with me.

Sure enough I hit significant snow by 4 PM.  Had to throw on my snowshoes and hiked in snow for the rest of the day.  Caught up to Double Shot shortly after hitting the snow, she was post-holing.  We were pretty exposed in a high alpine meadow, trying to find where the trail went down for a safe place to camp.  The snow was soft enough that I was post-holing occasionally, usually on small lakes hidden under the snow but the snowshoes had enough flotation to keep me dry.  I finally found a dry place to camp just before dark.  I went back for Double Shot but could night find her.  Looks like I had the right gear, for today at least. 13.8 miles, 6:30 hiking.

Day 28-34 (5/24-5/30) Cuba to Chama

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.

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Day 23-27 (5/19-5/23) Grants to Cuba

Day 23: Back on the trail north of Grants, NM after another road walk out of town. From the left is Burnie, Jacklin, Patience, and me. We all stayed together at Motel 6 the night before and decided to head out together.

We found this critter greeting hikers less than a mile from the trailhead.

We had a decent assent up out of Grants before hitting this plateau. That is Mt Taylor in the distance and we decided to take the route that goes over the top.

By the mid-afternoon, we were in the aspens and starting our assent of Mt Taylor.

We found a great place to camp about two miles below the summit. There was fresh water near by and we were low enough that the temperature stayed above freezing all night.

An awesome ending to another great day on the trail. The plan for tomorrow is get up early and try to be at the summit for sunrise. 23.4 miles, 7:25 hiking.

Day 24: Moon setting in the west. The lights in the distance on the left is Grants. I headed out at 5:20 so I could try to summit as early as possible.

Double Magic who we had met in Grants passed us last night and camped up here in the cold. Frost everywhere but I was working up a sweat going up and could feel the altitude after several weeks in the desert.

Sunrise on Mt Taylor. The sun was already up when I got there at 6:20. It was windy and cold but I stopped to have breakfast and wait for the others.

Heading down the north side of Mt Taylor we ran into snow. Deep and steep in places but it lasted less than a mile and we managed fine.

Great views to the north all morning as we walked down some old forest service roads. No traffic at all so it was pleasant!

Trail ends and road begins again. Down here the road was pretty rocky and rough so my ankles got a workout. There was a water trough out here with incorrect GPS coordinates that we spent almost two hours trying to find. After finally locating the algae filled tractor tire another half mile down the road, it was past 3 PM and we were still about 15 miles from the next water source which was our goal for today.

A lot of this for the remainder of the day. We ran into Colorado Pete headed southbound from Ghost Ranch and he gave us information about some rain water that had collected in some rocks about half way to the spring so we headed there, watered up, and camped for the night. Because Patience and I had spent so much time looking for water earlier in the day, we figured Burnie and Jacklin must have passed us on an alternate route. Hoping to catch them tomorrow. 25 miles (+3 looking for water), 9 hours hiking on trail.

Day 25: Headed out alone today, Patience is taking a zero on trail because it is Saturday. I met some motorcyclists first thing in the morning but they were not very talkative.

Finally made it to the spring trail. It was a steep hike down into the canyon and then back out but the water was so clean and cold and delicious!

Spent most of the morning and part of the afternoon hiking on a mesa. Easy hiking and a great change of scenery from the dirt road yesterday afternoon.

I reach the north end of the mesa and start heading down into this valley by mid-afternoon. Some awesome views but the trail down was steep in places.

Looking back after crossing the river chasm. It was deep and sandy but dry. Lots of salt in the river bed from recent rain.

Later in the evening I look back at where I was just a few hours ago and realize how fast the miles are going by. It would be nice to slow down and enjoy the scenery more but the urge to keep moving pushes me forward.

It is getting late but I am across the valley now and headed back up. I have not seen any hikers today, only a large rattle snake. I wonder where Burnie and Jacklin are...

I find a place to cowboy camp behind a large shrub tree to block the wind and watch the moon rise while eating supper. Another great day on the trail, looking forward to what I will see tomorrow. Hiking alone seemed like a more enriching experience today.  28.4 miles, 9:30 hiking.

Day 26: Some interesting terrain this morning...

I thought these looked cool. They were probably 40 feet high or so.

All of these little peaks were north of me yesterday afternoon, now all are to the south.

Trail magic!!! Thank you Trujilla family! Much needed clean water should last me until Jones Canyon Spring this evening.

In the afternoon, there was a lot of walking on uneven sandstone. Ankles and feet were really started to bother me. I realized later that the sun was making the rock so hot that it was cooking my feet. No permanent damage but my shoes were still hot to the touch several hours later when I took them off at camp.

The last mesa before Cuba. I'll camp near the base tonight and go into Cuba, NM tomorrow. 26.8 miles, 10:20 hiking.

Day 27: Near where I camped last night. It is still early and I can already feel the heat.

Up, up, and away. Steep climb up the mesa but the BLM had built steps and chiseled steps into the rock. The trail has been easy to follow the last couple of days.

Almost to Cuba, NM. Mountains and trees in the distance so I'm looking forward to exploring that tomorrow.

Welcome to Cuba! I got a room at Del Prado Motel where Mrs Yang was holding my resupply package. Ate a huge lunch at El Bruno's (3 entrées) which was delicious! Burnie and Jacklin ended up joining me in the evening as I had an extra bed. Great to see them again! They ended up having trouble finding the water trough also but arrived in Cuba only an hour behind me. 12.9 miles, 4:35 hiking.

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