Some days go well and others don’t. Today started off so good, but then…
I woke up extra early to try and get as much mileage in as possible. As I hiked up a road, I saw a few trucks on their way elk hunting. One guy asked if I had seen any, but I hadn’t since the day before.
While I was hiking I did see something pretty unusual. A wild horse! I didn’t realize these lived in New Mexico and after looking it up, it doesn’t seem like this one should be here. Could be a horse that got lost from a rancher or rider? Either way, it was cool.
The weather was really nice this morning. Clear skies and cool temperatures. The sun came out and it warmed up, but there was plenty of shade. I passed by a campground and thought about taking a swim in the lake.
I’m the afternoon the weather changed. As I stopped for lunch I noticed the clouds gathering and thunder started to rumble. I ate quickly and hiked to get out of the huge open meadow I was in. I ran into a couple of elk hunters that weren’t having much luck. I told them I saw some male elk about 10 miles back, which surprised them since it was only noon. We talked about the trail a little and I hiked on. That’s when the weather changed.
At first it hailed, then it rained. Then it rained and hailed. I huddled next to a tree under my umbrella and played games on my phone waiting for the storm to pass. When the rain died down I kept hiking, only to be caught in another storm 20 minutes later. After that the sky really seemed to clear up, but not for long…
I followed this storm for a few hours. I only got sprinkled on a couple of times before arriving at another campground. I needed to drop a little weight, if you know what I mean, and used the bathroom. As I was sitting on the toilet, the storm hit hard. It was really perfect timing.
The storm calmed down and I decided to hike on. The clouds in the distance looked a little promising and I figured I wouldn’t get hit with a 4th storm would I?
I saw another thru-hiker right after leaving the campground. He was also finishing up the section he skipped, but he had just started today.
A few miles later I came to a big overlook where I could see the big mountains in Colorado. I assume they’re the same ones I hiked through a few months ago. It was still raining.
I made camp in some trees and found that I had great cell service. First thing I did was check the weather. Rain for much of the night and all morning. It’s gonna be a rough hike, but I’m almost done!
14 miles to the border, 3 more to the road!