Segments 22-24

I took a few extra days off after Salida because not having anywhere lined up to live was stressing me out.  After 2 days in Boulder, I found a nice townhouse I'll be moving into on July 22nd.  I'm going back to a roommate-situation (which will be weird after living by myself for 7+ years), but it seems like we will get along well, and she has a very cool dog!  I'm excited that Tucker will have a friend.

We got a TON of awesome views of this red mountain along the way...I have like 200 pictures of it!

Monika and I finished Segments 22-24 (about 55 miles) in 3.5 days--these were the most scenic views yet, by far!  We also saw the most wildlife--lots of deer, moose, a herd of elk on a ridge, marmots, and of course birds/chipmunks/etc.

2 bull moose grazing by a pond in Segment 23!

We climbed up about 4,000 feet over the course of 4-ish miles.  This was super intense!  I'm still dealing with all kinds of foot problems, so I tried my old hiking boots for this segment...that was a mistake.  They were definitely a size too small and destroyed my feet.  They hurt so bad by the end of the day (we did about 17 miles) that I felt like I was going to throw up.  Monika had to go find us a campsite while I guarded our packs because it hurt too much to move.

The next day was a little better, and so was the day after that.  I really want to finish the trail, so I'm going to--but thru-hiking and this kind of mileage is definitely hard!  

Gorgeous campsites help make it worthwhile!  Although it got below freezing this night--I woke up to ice on my tent.  

I love all the different wildflowers on the trail!

After the amazing views in Segment 24, the high point in Segment 23 was a bit anti-climatic.  But still cool :)

By far, the #1 thing I miss on the trail is CHAIRS!!!  I was super excited to find this awesome log to sit on at our campsite.  Sometimes, after hiking >15 miles...the little things make all the difference!

Segment 24.  I did some bonus miles because I was paying more attention to picture-taking than following the trail.

Can't beat these morning views!

Unfortunately this mileage was a bit much for Roxy and she let us know she was done afterwards.  Monika headed back to Indiana yesterday.  I'm in Durango today, trying to figure out where I will leave my car and how to get back to Silverton to continue my hike.  I've got 74 miles left and while I'm apprehensive about finishing solo, the idea of quitting is out of the question.  I'll suck it up and hopefully not get eaten by any bears.  I'm hoping to catch up to a few other thru-hikers we've met along the way (or make new friends!) so I don't have to camp alone.  We will see!  So far most everyone we've met on the trail has been super friendly, it's been fun meeting new people.

Hopefully the next post will be from Durango....after I've finished the last 4 segments!