July 27, 2024
34.2 miles
6033′ gain/3967′ loss
After a few hours of sleep at the airport (less than anticipated due to a 1.5 hour delay), I caught the A train to Union Station. I felt extremely nauseous first thing; I took some ondansetron, which thankfully resolved it. I met up with Clare and her partner, and they kindly gave me a ride to Waterton Canyon and delivered my trekking poles and tent stakes.
I started at 5:40am along the Canyon, with sunrise incoming. I even saw mountain goats along the ridges! The canyon was a dirt road walk with a river alongside, beautiful views, and frequent bathroom access. There were lots of mountain bikers and trail runners, including some folks biking to go fly fishing.
When I stopped to filter water for the first time, my filter’s plumbing O ring fell out as I leaned over to get water and despite searching for 10 minutes, I couldn’t find it. I took the white Sawyer O ring and installed it. It took a while for me to adjust it so it didn’t leak. I’ll need to grab a few washers at the Frisco Walmart.
At a ramen snack break, I saw a hummingbird and then just after, an adult mule deer and a tiny baby! I then descending to the river, where I filtered up 3L, drank one, dunked my hat and gloves, and headed out for the final large climb in a burn area. I had trouble later in the day with standing after leaning over or squatting, feeling super dizzy, but made it work by modifying my movements.
Afternoon and early evening thunderstorms rolled in; I heard thunder, saw dark clouds and was lightly rained on three times. I arrived at my planned end point at 4:40pm and decided to push on. I had anticipated setting up camp at a particular creek, but I found all the sites taken so I pushed another mile or two to find a nice campsite. Luckily I found a quiet spot all to myself, getting to camp and setting up my tent by 8:15pm, and headed to bed by 9:30pm.
