The Unpolished Princess

Start: Great Divide 30.4

Stop: Great Divide 61.1

Today’s Miles: 23.8 

Total CDT miles: 756.1

We got so lucky last night!! It had just gotten dark, we were curled up in our quilts on the platform, hoping we were going to be missed by the sprinklers whenever they decided to come on. A man yells up to us, “hey, yall gonna sleep up there tonight?” I tell him yes, we were planning to.. he tells us about the sprinklers, basically says we’d both get drenched where we are.. and then.. and then he says he’ll just turn them off for the night! How freaking nice!!??

As we were packing up, a crazy squirrel kept trying to steal Pebble’s food.. when Pebble’s called him a name, the squirrel put his hand on his chest like he was offended, like he was saying, “ME?! How dare you!” It was so dang funny that I had to sit down from laughing so hard. Pebbles cracked up, too, but it could have been more at my reaction to it all. It didn’t stop squirrel boy from continuing to try to steal from us though. Sneaky sneaky.

We walked to a pastry shop in town, called Raisin Rye to get breakfast. Yall. I got in that line THREE times! Their food was so good! And they had savory items that I loved! I’m not much for sweets, especially in the morning, but their jalapeño cheddar bagel was delicious, and their spinach and feta croissant was so dang good I had to get back in a line and get another one! 

We stayed there until close to 8am, eating, talking with some bike packers, and getting our water bottles filled up to start our roadwalk out of Del Norte. Also, of note-they don’t say it “Del nor tay” they say it more like “Del Nort” which feels very odd. Ha. 

We started our roadwalk on a two lane highway. It was HOT right from the start! The terrain seems to feel more like desert than mountainous. Strange to flip back and forth like this. There were mosquitos so bad that be both had to quickly douse ourself in picaradin lotion.. it’s amazing how well it helps, but it doesn’t stop the bugs from buzzing near our ears constantly. That noise alone will make me go nuts. 

While on the road, a girl turned her car around and came back to chat with us and to see if we needed anything. It was so sweet! She was headed to meet friends for a backpacking trip and was so excited to meet “real CDT hikers!” We saw some cyclists pass us on the highway, and then a couple more after we left the highway for the dirt road. 

The mosquitos calmed down as the day got hotter,  but they came back with a vengeance as the sun started to lower. We ate lunch on a bridge over a creek, which we propped our umbrellas up in the guardrail to give us some relief from the rays blaring down at us. We passed tons of horses and watched a beaver swim in his pond. There were tons of cool rock formations all around, including one named “Hells Gate.” It literally looked like a massive rock gate opening right where the dirt road passed through. Real neat. And it was a nice distraction from the monotony of road walking. 

We ended up taking an hour break in the shade of a tree by a creek, just to get out of the sun and relax our feet. That part was pretty nice, until the bugs started to move in on us. Ants and mosquitos absolutely everywhere. It was very nice while it lasted though! And we were able to hydrate.. so, it wasn’t all bad by any means. Actually, besides the feta and spinach croissant, this was the highlight of my day! 

Now, we’re cowboy camping down the hill from the road near the creek. It’s a sloped spot, because honestly, there was nothing better anywhere nearby.. and our legs and feet were tired of walking. My legs feel dead! From the 30 mile day yesterday, to almost 24 today.. I’m worn out. Hopefully I sleep well on this slope.. something tells me I’ll be too tired to care if I slid down into the water! Haha, ok, just kidding.. I’d care. 

Alright. Time to lather on more Picaridin lotion because these mosquitos are trying to kill me. Goodnight yall. Enjoy sleeping inside! 

Start: Elwood Pass 12.4 

Stop: Great Divide 30.7

Today’s Miles: 30.4 

Total CDT miles: 732.3

I slept pretty well, for the most part, once I was able to quit tossing and turning. Our stuff stayed dry overnight! I thought for sure being so close to the river would mean condensation all over my quilt. I’ve never been so happy to be wrong! 

We were packed and hiking by 6:30, and man oh man did we cruise! We knocked out 13.4 miles to the town of South Fork before 11am! The dirt road we camped off of had stunning views, following along the river. There were lots of campers and vans out camping in gorgeous spots along the water. I’m glad we stopped where we did last night, because I think we took what looked like the last official “spots” along the road. 

The very first van that passed me offered me a ride, thinking something must have happened to my vehicle if I was walking this early. I explained I was hiking the CDT and they sounded genuinely impressed. I asked Pebbles if they offered him a ride too, and apparently they only waved at him as they rode by. He joked that he would have definitely gotten in the van if they had asked him. 

When we made it to town, we stopped in a fishing store to abuse their bathrooms and to let me buy some Velcro for my gaiters since my new shoes need to have some super glued onto them. I’ll be so happy to have them back! It’s amazing how much crap somehow manages to get into my shoes when I walk. I’ve been lucky that we’ve been on dirt roads and highways since I got them in Chama. 

From there, we debated on a food truck.. nothing looked overly appealing to Pebbles, so we kept walking. He picked up his new shoes and things from the post office and we got a few things at Dollar General. I had reached peak hunger level, and the restaurant we picked to go to was over a mile away. Spread out towns blow sometimes. As we were walking, Pebbles went into the Visitor Center to see about the road walk we were going to start this afternoon. I kept trudging along, hungry and irritable. 

I did pop into the grocery store I passed, just to see if they had dehydrated beans-to no avail-and then got to the restaurant only 5 ish minutes before Pebbles. I organized my Dollar General stuff into my pack while I waited for him, since they had a huge trash can sitting on their porch. Very helpful!

We left our packs on the porch and went into Gone Rogue to order lunch. I got a fried catfish sandwich, loaded with tomato, tartar sauce, and coleslaw, with a side of tots and a fried pepper appetizer that came with ranch. I loved every single bite! Pebbles got a burger with mushrooms and some other yummy looking toppings-he said it’s the best meal on trail he’s had so far! That’s high praise coming from him. 

We left just after 1:10pm, with Pebbles in his new shoes, insoles, and calf sleeves. We made it to the Family Dollar in Del Norte, Colorado by 6pm! That’s over 16 miles in just under 5 hours. It was all highway road walk, which was annoying-but quick. There was no shade, nowhere to pee, so so SO many cars and trucks constantly coming and going the entire time. I was so happy to hobble into the Family Dollar!

We finished our resupply, sat outside for a bit, then hobbled down to this park we’re currently sitting in. It’s got bathrooms and outlets, and tons of gorgeous green fluffy grass.. that we won’t get to enjoy because apparently sprinklers will come on during the night. We have to figure out where to actually set up here soon. I can’t believe we did 30 miles and still have some down time-eating lunch in a restaurant and chilling in this park now. Honestly, I could have had dinner in a restaurant too, but I’m not hungry and as good as a glass of wine sounds, I’m afraid I’m a little dehydrated and shouldn’t risk that aftermath..

But damn, wine sounds so good! Not to mention, we’re also currently in our rain gear because the mosquitos have shown up for Colorado! My God they’re torturous today! Since about 3 miles outside of Del Norte, they’ve made constant attack, and even when we smash their fellow soldiers, they won’t relent. We’re covered in Picaredin lotion and still im swatting like a lunatic. I don’t think we’re allowed to set up our tents here, so, between the sprinklers and the demon insects, tonight should be fun! Ok, that’s all I got for ya! Sweet dreams!

Start: Gold Pan Cabins 

Stop: Elwood Pass 12.4 

Today’s Miles: 27

Total CDT miles: 701.9

We knocked out some miles today! Sadly, they were still all dirt road walking, but we knew that would be the case if we took this route over the redline, and honestly.. not dealing with snow right now is A OK with me! I’m obviously still traumatized from Northern California on the PCT. Ha.

We were up and out of the cabin by 7, a bit late for us, but we were sleeping too good to get up. Our clothes mostly dried overnight from our handwashing and hanging to dry.. my socks were still somewhat damp, as I knew they would be.. which is always annoying. Wet socks suck. 

The miles went by fast, and the views were actually pretty nice. The road wound through the mountainside with a river to our left the majority of the time. We hit some construction midday, where they’re building a new bridge.. we crossed on the old one without issue, the construction guys waving us through. Because of the construction, there weren’t many cars, so we didn’t get dusted like yesterday. 

At one of the intersections of dirt roads, we saw a sign for a man that went missing recently. Apparently he was coming out to scope out the campsites for his Boy Scout troop and was never seen again. Sad stuff. After seeing the sign, I couldn’t help but look down the cliff sides for the rest of the day, like I’d magically be the one to spot him after everyone else has been looking way harder for way longer. 

Eventually, Pebbles and I found a spot to camp, which looks like a legitimate campsite. There’s a pull off from the road, a fire ring, and a nice little side trail to the river beside us. While we were setting up our stuff (cowboy camping) a camper pulled in, saw us, and then pulled right back out again. I’m glad we snagged this place before anyone else did! 

Tomorrow, we have to get to South Fork before the post office closes so Pebbles can get his shoes, and then I think instead of going up to the Creed Cutoff on the blue line, we’re going to roadwalk into Del Norte and sleep there. Apparently people have been bailing from the redline to the creed cutoff because of the snow-real slushy and deep postholing, but then having to bail from the creed cutoff too, for the same reason. Soooo.. we’ll skip all that and be safe and dry on the road. 

Ok, that’s it! Goodnight yall!