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Elderly Ellen
State: AZ
Country: US
Begins: Jul 6, 2014
Direction: Southbound
Daily Summary
Date: Sat, Aug 30th, 2014
Trip Distance: 495.7
Journal Stats
Entry Visits: 3,471
Journal Visits: 16,020
Guestbook Views: 763
Guestbook Entrys: 6
Gear list Journal Plan
Colorado Trail Map
Final thoughts on scattered subjects.
I am grateful to so many who helped me on this journey. My loving husband, who encouraged me to continue and came back to help me where ever he could. My brother and his wife, who cheered us on and opened their home. The various people who were helpful and friendly along the way. It helps sometimes just to hear another person's voice. But the ride to Salida (from the hostel owner, free of charge), the help with mailing a box from Debra's son, taking care of resupply boxes in various towns (all done for free), the offer of a shower at the Princeton Hot Springs, Apple's trail-stop and treats, the people who helped us when Yeahbut became ill...and so many other encounters that I can't begin to name you all, but you are all special angels!
What was hard about the trail? The sections at high altitude (over 12,000 feet) seemed harder than the Sierras, perhaps because there is no descent. One is continuously up high and that becomes tiring in itself. Couple that with the high rainfall this year, which can also be discouraging. The bonus was that the wildflowers and lighting could be beautiful.
Gear: I am so glad I brought all that rain gear. When others I met got wet, I and my gear stayed dry. I was also glad I brought some no-cook meals. When the weather was bad, or I was just pooped, I could sit in the tent, eat and relax. I brought a heavier set of gloves, which kept my hands warmer when I hiked in the rain/hail/snow. I had a squeeze filter with Aqua Mira drops as back-up. There were a few questionable water sources that needed the filter, but I probably could have gotten by with just the drops (and boiled the sketchy stuff).
Would I do anything different? Not really. I liked skipping Leadville for a resupply. By resupplying at Twin Lakes, it made the stops between resupplies a bit more equal (Copper Mt, Twin Lakes, Salida). Twin Lakes is small, easy to get around, and hiker-friendly. Leadville is a ways from the trail and bigger. Plus I've been there before.
A warning: The Silverton hostel housed several other hikers that I'd met on the journey. Nobody had anything good to say about it. It was noisy, there were disruptive people staying there, etc.
Yeahbut is editing our photos and I'll add them as they become available.
Would I hike the trail again? If you had asked me the day I finished, I would have said NO! But as I look back on the experience, I realize that it is a special and beautiful place. All the passages beyond Kenosha Pass had something to recommend them. So, I would do it again, especially if Yeahbut ever wants to go see these places himself. Or as Robert Heinlein once said, 'anything worth doing is worth overdoing!'