I could see my time in Colorado coming to a close. I had received a job offer to return to Los Alamos National Lab. I tried to avoid this possibility, but it was a job I knew I could do which came with benefits and a good salary. After six months of job searching, I finally felt at ease that everything would work out. In the interim, I snuck in a few adventures and crossed paths with some old characters along the way.
30 August 2023
Before I started the field tech job, I wanted to hike one more 14er. I enjoyed having the ability to bag 14ers mid-week when the crowds are much smaller. Mount Huron seemed perfect for a Wednesday ascent, since it’s one of the easier and more popular 14ers.
Being an easier 14er, there’s not too much to report from Huron. That said, I’m always humbled by a 4,000 foot climb into air with 33% less oxygen than they have at sea level. It was a lovely hike, and the surrounding peaks are stunning. Classic Colorado high country.
On the way up I passed a guy filming his hike on a GoPro. On the way down, he passed me in his Jeep and offered a ride for the final mile of road. I accepted the ride, and in chatting with him I learned about a new genre of YouTube videos of uncut walking footage.
Overall, Huron made for a pleasant morning out, and I was glad to check this one off with minimal crowds.
2 September 2023
I was out for dinner when I saw a couple of familiar faces at a table nearby, but it seemed improbable that they would be in Salida. It was Sourpatch and Hotdish from the PCT! They were in town to hike a section of the Colorado Trail/CDT. I arranged to drive them to the trailhead the next morning. It was great to see them and catch up on life post-trail.
I had been seeing CT/CDT thru hikers all summer, poaching them at the grocery store like so many trail angels did for me and Maggie. I gave about half a dozen rides to hikers to pay it forward after receiving so much help from strangers on our thru hike.
20 September 2023
I got a text message from from another PCT friend, Bennett, reminiscing about a magical necklace Maggie gave him on trail. Turned out he was getting ready to come backpack in Colorado, and that he would be passing through Salida. Naturally, I offered a bed and transportation, as he was trying to link up with another hiker on the CDT. I was brimming with excitement to see yet another PCT friend in Salida!
I drove Bennett to Cochetopa Pass the next day. It felt wrong to leave someone in the wilderness, drive off, and hope they’ll be ok… but knowing he had hiked the PCT, I knew Bennett would be fine. We made vague plans to meet at Wolf Creek Pass in about a week.
28-29 September 2023
The field tech job wrapped up just in time to meet Bennett and fellow thru hiker, Walk-It-Off, on the CDT. I got my backpacking gear together for an overnight and drove down to Wolf Creek Pass. I had recently gotten my backpack replaced by Osprey, so I was eager to try it out.
I got on trail at 4:30pm, a little later than I wanted, but I had a few hours of daylight to get a few miles from the road. I brought some fun sized candy bars to toss at thru hikers. I only crossed paths with four or five (more candy for me), but they all seemed happy to get a fun sized piece of trail magic.
Some of the views were nice, the San Juans are truly something else. Otherwise it was rolling climbs into the woods. The spruce trees have been hit hard by beetle kill. While I was able to see some orange creamsicle lenticular clouds and a mystic moonrise between the skeletal remains of the forest, the widespread death does make the landscape feel a bit bleak…
I was hoping to see Bennett and Walk-It-Off that night, but my late start necessitated calling it quits after 3 hours of hiking. I found a tiny stream with a spot to camp just before dark (the trail provides!). I had actually forgotten my trekking poles, which I need to prop up my tent, so I fashioned a good stick for structure.
The full-ish moon was shining bright through the sparse canopy, almost like camping under a street light. I’ve found I really hate camping alone. I can’t escape thoughts of a bear vying for my food. I feel so defenseless, a skinny hairless ape in an environment I don’t belong. My paper thin shelter doesn’t inspire confidence for shielding me from bear claws…
29 September 2023
I got my day going slow in the hopes that Bennett and Walk-It-Off would hike by my camp, but I didn’t see them by 8:30 am. I can only faff around so much while packing up, so I continued hiking up trail.
Just 12 minutes after I set off, I saw a familiar face coming towards me – I found my friends! The morning sun was glorious, and I had brought another treat for everyone, a couple of naturally chilled beers, thoroughly shook up in my pack. We sat in a sun beam and sipped on liquid sunshine at 9 in the morning. Bennett had just hiked over 100 miles through the San Juans, and Walk-It-Off was over 2,000 miles into his SOBO thru hike of the CDT. They were more than happy to sit and share tales from the trail.
It was incredible to feel like hiker trash again for a few hours. I really appreciated getting some beta and impressions on the CDT from Walk-It-Off. At 3,100 miles, the CDT demands a bit more of an aggressive pace than the PCT or AT. There are some unique challenges, such as “the basin” in Wyoming, a long, flat stretch of trail between the Wind River Range and the Colorado Rockies. The prospect of several days of road walking turns me off, but Walk-It-Off told me that the Basin wasn’t too bad.
Back at Wolf Creek Pass, we saw some more CDT thru hikers and chatted with them, feeling like we were part of the clan. Walk-It-Off got a hitch to Pagosa Springs, while Bennett and I drove back to Salida. Bennett had an extra day to kill before leaving Colorado, and I thought the best way to use that time was hiking another 14er. Bennett was a little hesitant after hiking 100+ miles, but ultimately he was up for one more hike in the alpine.
30 September 2023
As autumn crept in, the threat of afternoon thunderstorms was subsiding, so a casual day was on tap. We were out on the trail for Mt. Belford around 8 am, ascending a dozen switchbacks up to Missouri Gulch. We talked at length about careers and goals as the miles passed. Seems we both reached the conclusion that the intersection of job satisfaction and a decent salary is hard to come by…
The aspens and the willows were alight as chlorophyll within senesced in the cool weather.
The sun slowly found its way into the gulch as Bennett and I began climbing Belford’s NW ridge. A parade of ants, or far away hikers I suppose, lead the way up this 2,000 foot ridgeline. There are approximately a gazillion switcbacks here, each one scarcely longer than 10 yards, annoyingly sinuous, but still plenty steep. We maintained a steady pace, huffing the thin air with each step upwards.
We reached the summit at 10:45, and despite the small conga line of people ahead of us, we had the summit to ourselves for about 20 minutes. Everyone else had wandered off to tag Mt. Oxford, but we were content with one peak for the day. Snacks and summit beers were enjoyed. The next few people to join us on the summit had ties to Connecticut, and I was surprised to learn that a fellow hiker had attended Mitchell college, just a few blocks from where I previously lived in New London – small world!
Bennett and I opted to make a little loop and hike down the SW face of Belford. Along the way, we got a great view of Missouri Mountain’s north face. I had skied that face two years prior. Looking at it again, I was taken aback by how steep and gnarly the terrain was. However, it did inspire me to try skiing some of the mellower 14ers… someday.
We sauntered down Missouri Gulch as some clouds rolled in. Something about the flat light made the turning aspens absolutely pop with color! For a long time, I didn’t care for fall foliage, but something clicked inside me recently- I’m a leaf peeper now!
Our 9 mile hike was done by 2 pm. Back in Salida, we got dinner and drinks downtown. I commented on how I always feel strange returning to civilization after a big outing like a 14er. It’s almost like I’ve come back from the moon, an improbable adventure to a place humans should not be. Meanwhile, everyone else has carried on with their normal lives, dimly aware that a few people chose challenge for the day. I think the feeling was especially poignant as I was planning to settle back into normal working life in the near future.
Adventures like this fill me up, they scratch some metaphorical itch. I am beyond lucky to have stayed in such a wonderful place that made these adventures possible. Maggie was wrapping up her job in Montana, and with my job offer, it was the perfect time for us to move back to Santa Fe, together. While this summer ’23 in Salida was challenging in some ways, I will look back on it fondly. Living life at my own pace and finding fun in the alpine was simply wonderful…
Distance Over Time 