Sunday, April 13, 2025
Miles: 34.6 miles
Gain/Loss: 4281’/3789′
I was up at 5:45am, packed up my cowboy camp, and was hiking by 6:20am.
I left the dry rocks of the Middle Fork of the Gila River very early on, walking past the pond that comprises the headwaters at this point in the season. I walked on dirt roads for a very long time, often in direct sun with no shade. It was quite hot but I made good time. And then the route took me onto very rough trails that were full of prickers through a young burn area (maybe 1-2 years old), then more dirt road walking.
Some of the day’s water sources were cold and easy to filter, and fairly frequent for the first half of the day. I met Wayback, Spokes, and a Scottish hiker camped out by the last water source, which was the nastiest tasting water I encountered for my entire trip. They chatted with a NH fish & game officer while I lay on my stomach to reach the water in a deep cistern. I filtered up 3L and headed out into the fading light.
I pushed onward for a while until I could find a flat place to set up my tent. I stopped after dark at 8:45pm and was asleep around 9:45pm.
Transcending Mountains 