August 8, 2024
36.8 miles, 7552′ gain/6532′ loss
I was up at 5:30am and started out at 6am after saying farewell to O-Ring and Ghost.
After a brief dirt road walk, I started walking along a very extended valley segment. The high grass soaked me even before I got to the Cochetopa Creek crossing, which was slightly higher than usual due to all of the storms. I crossed in my shoes, since it was a wade and I knew my feet would dry out as I climbed. It was an endless uphill climb, all the way to the base of San Luis Peak. I’d been considering summiting this 14er, but the weather was questionable so I kept moving forward. There were so many passes and saddles, including San Luis Pass.
I met SheTroll at the top of one of the climbs, relaxing in the breeze. I was chased by thunderstorms and rain clouds for the 2nd half of the day. For the day’s high point, it was raining and windy, but thankfully there was no thunder or lightning. My pack cover and rain jacket did the trick of keeping me warm and cozy. I saw lots of pikas and marmots throughout the day, as I hiked through their backyard.
As I got closer to the highway, I saw a fox later in the evening. I arrived at the road at 8:15pm; there was zero traffic for the next 30 minutes so I decided I’d need to sleep at the trailhead and then hitch into Lake City in the morning. Since making that choice over an hour ago, only 2 vehicles have gone by in the right direction since then.
I set up my wet tent off to the side of the parking lot. I tried to dry out my tent, but it was very wet so I wiped it down instead before setting up for the night.
I hitched into Lake City the next morning with Ed (from VA, supporting his wife who is thruhiking the CT), had breakfast, went to the hiker center to charge my devices and borrow a bicycle, got a spot in a hiker cabin at a campground in town, dried out my wet gear, and did laundry. It was a nice reset after bad weather and big miles.
