I woke up with about 74 miles to get to Cuba, NM. I really want to get into town tomorrow afternoon so I can get a hotel and a good rest. That means I need to do pretty big miles today to set myself up for success.
I woke up before sunrise and hit the trail with my headlamp on. It wasn’t long before I didn’t need it since I was just walking a dirt road for a bit. I passed by some people camped near me and saw some more riding around in side by sides. They were all in camo and had bows so I guess they were going hunting. I believe I read something about elk season happening right now.
Today was all about managing water. Right before I saw the hunters, I saw my first thru hiker of the section. He was finishing up the second half of a southbound hike he started last year. We talked about the water sources we had each used and it was really helpful.
This was my first of the day after one of the cow troughs I was hoping to use was dry. This water was really great but you had to go a half mile down a canyon to access it. While I was down there I decided to have lunch. I heard the sound of rock shifting above me and looked up. I thought it was a cow coming down but when it turned it was a bear! My third bear of New Mexico, making it the state with the most bear sightings I’ve ever had.
I walked through scrubby pine forest most of the day. I was worried this would be how this whole section was but then it all changed. I had been hiking on a huge plateau and when I made it to the edge you could see huge canyons and old volcanoes.
I dropped almost 2000 feet to the canyon floor and found another spring that filled a cow trough. This one wasn’t quite as clear, but it tasted fine after filtering. This would be my last water for the day so I needed to carry quite a bit.
I had to cross a large wash and for the first time in New Mexico, it was actually wet. The monsoon season is just ending and this washing have had water in it pretty recently.
To make the mileage I wanted for the day, I would need to hike into the night. The trail was lined with stupid spiky bushes that got seeds and spines in your shoes and socks. I had to stop often to remove them and I really wasn’t looking forward to dealing with it at night.
Lucky for me, the trail opened up and they weren’t as big of a problem. The heat surprisingly was. The night before it got much much cooler after the sun went down. I guess being 2000 feet lower has a pretty big effect on the temperature.
It took until about 9:30 to get to the 40 mile mark that I wanted. I was juuuuust a little before it when I found this campsite. Instead of hiking on and dealing with a crappy spiky campsite I picked this. Thanks to the iPhone’s night mode you can actually see what the sight looks like!
Tomorrow I need to wake up early to make it into town in time to get everything done. It’s still gonna be a long day, but I’m excited.