Start: Gila Alternate mile 60.1
Stop: Gila Alternate mile 78.6
Today’s Miles: 18.5
Total CDT miles: 228.8
Once more ibuprofen (and some Tylenol) kicked in, I slept pretty well, considering. I had to lift up with my feet and legs and physically push my hips to be able to roll over-I couldn’t just turn. That was a scary feeling. I’m a side sleeper, and that didn’t go over so well with my back hurting like it was.
I felt fine when I woke up, but then when I sat up, my back reminded me that it wasn’t feeling so hot. I could barely pack up my stuff, each stretch of my arm or turn sending shooting fire down my spine. Once I did get packed, Pebbles graciously picked up my backpack and put it on me. The pain was still there, but not as intense as it was when I was bending-so, we started hiking. I mean, what else is there to do?
Today was the same song and dance as yesterday: millions of river crossings with massive canyon walls sharply jutting out of the water all around. It was stunning, thankfully, because the terrain was tough at times-with overgrown sharp grasses and bushes when you weren’t walking through the water itself. Being amazed at the scenery definitely distracted from the pain in my back! And the cold water on my feet made them feel wonderful, too.
We ate lunch in the shadow of a huge rock canyon wall, and a couple section hikers passed by while we ate. They’d stop and chat-then keep moving. This is apparently a pretty popular area to do a weekend hike, especially with it being Memorial Day Weekend. Who knew?
It’s HOT, so the water is a relief. It’s not very deep at all, only coming up to mid calf at the most-besides maybe once, where it came all the way up passed my shorts and barely shy of my butt. That’s thanks to beavers in the area steadily making progress on their new homes and blocked river passages. There was twice when we just walked over the beaver dam itself, praying their construction would hold us. We’re quite grateful for their attention to detail!
As the afternoon progressed, the trail weaved away from the river, and got much easier. Right before this though, in one of the last river crossing sections, Pebbles ended up on one side of the river and I was on the other-both of us apparently walking on trails. Whoops! He yelled at me from the other side and we both stopped to check our phones. He ended up bushwhacking across to me-scaring 4 javelinas in the process. Those suckers sure run fast!
We eventually made it to Snow Lake and decided to cowboy camp at the campground right above the lake. It’s obvious that it’s been a dry year, because the lake water level is really low. I joked about jumping off the dock into the water, and Pebbles pointed out that I would be jumping into hard dirt. Welp. It’s a little too chilly for swimming anyway, I guess. Ha.
The wind is a little nuts at the moment, and the campsites are all covered in ground squirrel holes and mazes-you take a step and then crunch through a few inches, smashing their tunnel systems. Sorry buddies. I ended up putting my pack on top of the campsite grill hoping that the squirrels wouldn’t attempt to seek revenge and chew into my pack for my food. Fingers crossed.
My back is still sore, but I’ve taken so much ibuprofen today that it’s currently only really painful if I bend or turn certain ways, so I’m just doing my best to not make those moves. Having a picnic table and the grill does help, as I can stand and go through my stuff instead of bending and reaching. Any little thing to help, I’ll take!
There are a few other people camping here tonight, one older man with a motorbike and camper that’s pretty close to the bathrooms, and then a couple with a dog that we got to pet when they did their evening walk. We were trying to manifest some trail magic, from either party, but no dice. Haha, sad times! Oh well, it’s time for some sleep! I think we’re officially out of the Gila River area and getting real close to the end of the Gila Alternate. Here’s to popping more ibuprofen and hoping for the best!
