Day 6 – 18 Miles (107 miles from Mexico)

What a day! I passed the 100 mile mark and I got to walk on actual trail! I love the fact that the first 100 miles of the CDT are cross-country/old roads, it lends a certain bad-assitude to the trail, but when that first section of trail tread comes, wow! It’s such a treat! The flow of a well made trail is pretty awesome, banked turns, markers on trees, shade from trees…oh, and there are trees now!

Trail!!!

When I woke up this morning I made a concerted effort not to pack up as quickly as I could to start hiking… lets savor this hike.

When I got on the trail, it was a long 10ish mile cross country walk, and with the trail heading east, it was a bit challenging to see the CDT posts. But as with the previous sections I would keep walking while scanning the horizon for the elusive markers, the CDT makes a killer game of “I Spy.” I could just head straight for the spot I knew the trail entered the mountains, but with so many fences, by sticking to the posts I wouldn’t have to keep taking off my pack and sliding on the dirt to get under the barbed wire. At least the
official route usually has gates to pass through.

Can you spy the trail marker?

The day was still which made the walking hot. I used my sun umbrella for the first time, and enjoyed the shade.

I got to a windmill/cow tank around lunch time and took a 2 hour break and read more of the ebook I downloaded from the library at home. (I LOVE the Deschutes library…free ebooks, audiobooks, and music!) I met a couple of hikers (Een? I’ll have to check the names…wasn’t quite sure I caught them correctly), a father and son from Breckenridge out for a section hike. They were cruising and enjoying the hike quite a bit.

After lunch I bumbled along the route and the CDT entered a beautiful set of mountains…where I saw my first trees! Beautiful! And when the old road bed I was hiking along crested a saddle I got a glimpse to the north. I took another break and soaked in the view. Then the sweet stuff: trail!!!! I cruised down the path and decided to call it a night early in a beautiful little forest…no hiding from the wind behind a bush for me tonight!