I woke up early in a room full of hikers and had to keep quiet until everyone else woke up. There were still a few chores to do but we went for breakfast first and then TBD headed back to the post office to mail back her faulty sleeping pad. Everyone packed up but no one was in a hurry to leave. Packrunner and Free Will headed out first and then Batona noticed that Afghan had left beers in the hiker box so after downing one he headed out but we took our time. Big Spoon and Slay had just hiked into town so we went out for lunch with them and continued to take even longer when a hiker named Iceman arrived. It was almost 4pm by the time we hiked out of town in you guessed it, a road walk. It was nice though. It was a very gradual up to Santa Fe National Park . And then another gradual up to where we stopped for the night at 8538ft.
It’s pretty windy and cold right now but it would have been even colder if we had continued up higher tonight.
In the morning the up continued. We entered San Pedro Parks Wilderness and stopped for breakfast at a picnic table. Then we headed up a beautiful trail. There were big trees, green grass and even some moss. It was perfect! Until we reached the snow and the mud but still it was a really nice change from the desert. We even had several stream crossings today! By the afternoon our feet were soaked so we took a long break for our shoes to dry. Then we headed down, down, down.
When we stopped for dinner we met the Log Man who is hiking all the long trails carrying a big log. We signed his log. It ended up being over 11 miles of down and it was dark by the time we reached the road. At the road we still had 1.5 miles to go to get to the ranger station. We are staying here tonight and they have water, pop and snacks on the porch for us. Another hiker told us there will be coffee in the morning!
There was coffee in the morning! And a table of fruit and snacks and hand sanitizer to top up our little bottles. It was perfect! The ranger nicknamed Ski was awesome and was telling us about the ancient trails in the area and all of the ruins they have found. We have a 30 mile road walk today to walk around a fire and he explained where the fire was and what to expect on the road walk. We delayed as long as we possibly could updating our blogs and chatting with the ranger and other hikers but when we couldn’t delay anymore we started the road walk. The road walk wasn’t that bad and had some nice views! We arrived 20 miles down the road at Riana Campground where we were given a free campsite and shown where the showers are. I guess some road walks turn out great! We are sitting at a picnic table eating almost all the rest of our food and watching the sun go down. Life is good!
We were woken up during he night by someone walking their dog way too close o our tent. I guess that’s one disadvantage of being in a campground. After a quick breakfast we were back to the roadwalk. It was only 8.7 miles to Ghost Ranch! And we would be there before lunch! At one point we decided we were carrying too much water so we stopped and dumped our extra bottles. Ghost Ranch is where the artist Georgia Okeeffe lived and is now used as an education and retreat centre. We walked up and immediately saw Big Spoon and Slay along with several other hikers we hadn’t met yet. They were staying the night but I couldn’t get over the prices and lack of communication about the food. We sat and chatted a bit with hikers while formulating a new plan. We will take the free bus forward to Chama, resupply, eat a good meal, find a place to stay for the night and then get a ride to Cumbres Pass and hike south back to Ghost Ranch. When the Log Man heard our plan he decided to tag along. The bus stop was at the end of the ranches driveway so it was easy! When we arrived in Chama we headed straight to Foster’s Bar and Hotel and ordered a greasy meal. It was perfect! A gentleman who had been on the bus was staying at the hotel and he offered to let us use his room if we wanted to have showers but we were trying to get our chores done first. Our next stop was to the local outfitter and that’s where we got the jackpot! The store was a sea can filled with goodies! It had the fuel we needed today but it also had the snow stuff we would need when we get back here next week along with some really nice sweaters that it turns out are made by the owners. The owners are hikers and they also let hikers stay at their house. JJ dropped us off at the laundromat and suggested we hang at the house while we wait for the laundry. At the house (filled with other hikers we hadn’t met yet) we didn’t want to leave except for the trip to the grocery store that Tumble On offered. There is a girl here who hiked the AT the same year as me! We had a good night exchanging trail stories and finding out what to expect when we get to Cumbres Pass tomorrow. It looks like miles of post hiking through snow and also a section of blowdowns. I wonder how long it will take us but I’m excited to be seeing all of the hikers who have been just ahead of us that we haven’t seen in awhile. We were offered a room inside but decided o set up our ent in the backyard and leave the beds for other hikers.
Day 30. 9.5miles
Day 31. 24.9 miles
Day 32. 20 miles
Day 33. 8.7 miles
569.3 miles so far
Trouble
Its a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door. You step into the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to'
JRR Tolkien The Lord of the Rings
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