Collegiate West: Days 3 & 4

            Sunshine, bird song, blue skies, cool air, beauty all around me, oatmeal, waiting to dry out the tent fly, mosquitoes just thinking about getting started, and some howling coyotes. These are a few words to describe the start of this glorious morning. A few miles of easy hiking brings me to Texas Creek. No rocks, bridge, or logs to cross on – so off with my hiking shoes and on with my sandals, backpack straps undone, and I slowly make my away across. Once again, I am grateful for my trekking poles. The water is cold, and my feet are aching by the time I make it across. Now begins the four mile climb to Cottonwood Pass.

           

           I just passed this invisible boundary. Steadily working my way up towards Cottonwood Pass, I left the perpetual sounds of Texas Creek behind and entered into a forest that is, at this moment, completely silent, save for the sounds of my breathing and footsteps. I pause and savor the magic of this place. Massive spruce and fir trees, a forest floor littered with trees in various stages of decay, the happy flower heads of heartleaf arnica. Within moments, the silence is broken by the squawk of a Clark’s nutcracker, eventually followed by the alarm of a pine squirrel. But for a moment, I was mesmerized by the absolute silence of this ancient forest.

            After a pleasant night at Cottonwood Hot Springs last night, I am back on the trail early under a gray sky that looks like it could go either way – sunshine or rain. The wind is strong, so I don some warmer headwear and find a quick pace. I meet a Dad and two older sons as I work my way up towards a 12,800’ ridge. They’ve been out for a few days and will end their adventure where I started mine this morning. Like me, they are wanting to get their miles in before afternoon thunderstorms bring the threat of lightning. I make it to the ridge and stop to enjoy a morning snack and the sunshine that has won out over the morning gray.

           

I make my way across several stretches of snow, move through a garden of rocks, some the size of buses, and begin another climb to another 12,800’ ridge. Today is turning into one of those days of up and down, up and down. The trail climbs to a high ridge, then drops a couple thousand feet or more into drainage, then back up again.

            I work my way down into the Morgan’s Gulch drainage and notice a marmot on a rock just off the trail. It is just sitting there in the sun, looking happy and well fed, gazing out over so much mountain beauty. What a life! My friend Scott Smith told me once that he’d like to come back to this world as a marmot. Looking at this happy marmat, I can see why.

            Another 12,800’ ridge behind me, and I am working my way towards what will be my last climb of the day. Fortunately, the trail does not appear to drop down as far; from this vantage point, it roughly contours at around 12,600’ before a more gentle approach to the day’s final ridge. As I pass through a lovely stretch of trail lined with blue wildflowers – whipple penstemons, I believe – I notice that a gray cloud up there is beginning to grow into something a bit more ominous looking. Before each ridge today, I was closely watching the sky for any potential for storms. I know how quickly a thunderstorm can build up here, and this exposed alpine landscape, with cover a good long way away, is no place to be when lightning is in the air. Before climbing each ridge, I concluded that the clouds were pretty benign before I headed up and over.

            But this cloud looks different. I decide to kick up the pace and now feel like I am in a race with that cloud, both of us heading for that last ridge. I move through a long stretch of scree, where the potential for a fall goes way up. “OK, take it nice and careful here. You are tired, you want to beat that storm, but a fall right now would definitely be bad news.”  With these words from my inner coach, I make it to the high point and begin down a long series of switchbacks, still well above timberline, down towards Chalk Creek. A clap of thunder – not loud, but thunder just the same – keeps me moving, as the race is not over yet.

            Finally in the trees, I take a sit-down break and then resume, much more slowly, the last mile or so and a place to camp for the night. As I take off my pack for the last time, I calculate that I covered just over 16 miles today. That sleeping bag is sure going to feel good tonight!

           

Hiking the Colorado Trail, inspired by Walt Whitman

Afoot and light-hearted, I take to the open road,
Healthy, free, the world before me,
The long brown path before me, leading wherever I choose.

Henceforth I ask not good-fortune—I myself am good fortune;
Henceforth I whimper no more, postpone no more, need nothing,
Strong and content, I travel the open road.

- Walt Whitman, from “Song of the Open Road,” Earth, My Likeness

These words by Walt Whitman are an inspiration to me as I get ready for my upcoming hike. No, I won't be on the open road, but I'll soon be on the open trail, the long brown path, free among majestic mountains.

(photo from Colorado Trail Foundation Facebook page)

Tentatively heading out in a couple of weeks!

Reports from the Colorado Trail Foundation Facebook page say that there is still quite a bit of snow on the Collegiate West segments of the trail. But, reports also indicate that it is melting rapidly. So, I have tentative plans to begin my trek sometime during the week of July 21 - but will hold off longer if the snows remain deep. These photos are what I am looking to avoid, as slogging through long stretches of deep snow is not what I have in mind for this trek!

What I'll Be Carrying in my Backpack for the Colorado Trail: Ranger Dave's Videos

Here are a couple of short videos on the gear I will be taking with me as I hit the new 80-mile Collegiate West segments of the Colorado Trail in a few weeks.

So I can enjoy the miles without so much weight on my back, I lean towards packing as light as I can. I will have just what I need to be safe, and then use my head so I don't get myself into sketchy situations.

When to Go, When to Go?

I've been looking at my schedule and have narrowed down when I will likely do this backpack to the last two weeks of July. As of now, I plan on doing the trek over around 8 days. This will be quite a bit less miles per day than I did back in 2010 and 2011 - by design, as I want a bit of an easier pace this time around. I was in Salida a week ago, and the looks of the high country which I'll be traversing on this hike still look pretty snowy, so I am figuring that by later July the snows will be much thinner. I must admit, I am beginning to feel some excitement for getting out there. Seeing photos like this one that I took in 2010, looking up into the high Collegiates where I'll be hiking, sure makes me itch to be out there in that high thin air.

Hitting the Trail Once Again for Nature Education

A few weeks ago, I found myself in front of a small group of people from around the country who had flown in for a retreat at the Horseshoe Lodge. I was presenting on my adventures along the Colorado Trail that I did a few years ago. It was a pleasure to relive the many miles of amazing scenery, sharing stories of the trail, and connecting the adventure to the reason behind it – to raise funds for MPEC’s Nature education programs.

 Last year, I got word through the Colorado Trail Foundation – the organization that stewards the trial – that the Colorado Trail was expanded to include 80 additional miles of trail through the spectacular Collegiate Peaks, home to a dozen of the state's 14,000-foot mountains. The new "Collegiate West" forms a western complement to the classic 80-mile stretch of Colorado Trail on the eastern side of the Collegiate Peaks from Twin Lakes, southwest of Leadville, to south of Monarch Pass, southwest of Salida.

It did not take long for me to come up with the idea that I needed to hike this new 80-mile stretch. Along with learning about the new section of trail, last year presented MPEC with some budget challenges associated with some unexpected expenses while dealing with cuts from some funding sources. The fact is that many local non-profits have not felt any significant improvements since the economy took a nosedive several years ago.

Since the original Colorado Trail Fund-Raising effort was a success, it only makes sense that this new section of trail is providing another opportunity for MPEC. So, sometime this summer, I will be backpacking these new 80 miles with the intention of raising money for MPEC’s Nature education programs. We have set a goal of raising $24,000 from the hike, which translates to $300 per mile. Please consider making a pledge to what we are calling Ranger Dave’s Collegiate West Fund-Raising Backpack for Nature Education. You can go to MPEC's website, click on the Help MPEC Grow icon on the lower right of the page, and then choose Ranger Dave’s Backpack as the donation category. Every penny that is raised will directly support MPEC’s programs that help children experience the wonders of Nature. Thanks so much!

Pueblo Chieftain Story on Final Miles of the Hike!

Today's Pueblo Chieftain ran my piece, plus some photos, on the final leg of the hike. Click here to access the article.

One Last Time!

It is Saturday evening, and I've enjoyed a restful day at home, getting ready for my final leg of the trail. I've got 74 miles left to complete the Colorado Trail, which I will be doing this week. Jim Redfern, the terrific contractor who I've worked with for the last five years in renovating the Horseshoe Lodge, has kindly offered to drive me to Durango, a five hour drive, on Monday. Friends Mindy and Patrick Meiering generously offered for me to spend the night at their home in Durango, then a ride to Molas Pass on Tuesday morning where I will start the 73.9 miles of Sections 25-28. I'm so pleased to be at this stage of the hike...it's been a lot of planning, driving, and especially, putting one foot in front of the other. And I am so excited to have the completion for this challenge a few days away. Of course, I still have a good hike ahead of me, but I am rested and ready! I expect to get to the the end of the trail, just outside of Durango, on Friday or Saturday. Pledges and donations continue to come in and I am at over $73 a mile so far. The funds being raised are directly supporting MPEC's education programs, with an emphasis on this year's Earth Studies program. Through ES, every 5th grader from Pueblo City Schools, around 1300 kids, gets 6 full days of Nature-based education spread throughout the school year. Serendipitously, this year's first day of Earth Studies is this Tuesday as well. All week, while I'm covering the final miles of the CT, students from Parkview, Baca, Spann and Carlile Elementary Schools, many of whom will be going to the mountains or taking a hike for the first time in their lives, will be in Pueblo Mountain Park kicking off the the 10th year of MPEC's award winning ES program. That is all the motivation I need to complete the hike!

Happy Trails...an essay in the Pueblo Chieftain!

This year, I've taken more time out on the trail to write and journal...this was somewhat by design, as last year I missed some things in my push for miles. And, waiting out afternoon stormy skies created space for writing as well. I am pleased that the Pueblo Chieftain published an essay I wrote during this summer's first stretch on the trail. You can read it by clicking here!