I passed 1,000 miles today! Only 2,000 more to go!

The forecast was due to be sunny and hot, bring it on baby!

Oh, there was a decent amount of climbing today and I sort of regretted that hot weather enthusiasm, but seriously, 90 degrees is much better than lightening storms. I sucked it up and kept hiking.

The morning was mild as I wrapped around Mt. Princeton, and I even got to meet MIG (Made in Japan), another CDT thru-hiker for the first time. Then as I was approaching Cottonwood Road I met up with Farmer and HD Momma, 2 of our Warrior Hike CDT hikers this year. Great peeps, and like the rest of us, they are trying to figure out the smartest way to go on hiking this trail as there is still considerable snow around these mountains

HD Momma & Farmer

I had heard from a day-hiker that there was considerable snow up on the shoulder of Mt. Yale, but sometimes day-hiker snow is different than thru-hiker snow…so I wasn’t sure what I was in store for.

The climb up was long and steep and I fantasized about coke, ice, and coke and ice. I met a few other hikers near the top who said it was about a mile of snow on the north side of the pass, but I was happy to see this snow was quite a bit milder than the previous snow I’ve encountered. Yes, there was maybe a 1/2 mile of solid snow, but all the footsteps made for a pretty easy postholing adventure. The snow was only about knee-deep at most, and I was able to make good time through the slush.

The trail down to Silver Creek Trailhead where my parents were meeting me was steep, and I was glad my knees held up to the challenge. Sometimes the downhill is harder on the body than the uphill. But I finally turned the corner to see them walking to meet me, lovely! I love this supported hiking…I know it will end in a few days, but I’m going to live it up while I have the opportunity!

To the RV!