Day 3: Finding my feet

4/25

Day 3: mile 36.2-59.9 (22.7 miles)

Today had a little bit of road walking and a whole lot of cross country. It's a funny way of hiking, I have to stare at my feet because of the rocky footing and the risk of stepping on rattlesnakes but I always have to glance up and all around hoping I haven't lost the marker I'm heading towards. Just because you are on a road or nice dirt path does not mean it's going where you should be going. But so far it's loads of fun. 

Made it to Cache 2 by 9 am, I was pretty low on water and happy to see new faces. 3 older retired gentleman all out hiking. They were having a pretty rough time feet wide and were planning on catching a ride back to Lordsburg to rest up. The couple with the dog I had seen the day before showed up as well. I was so happy to see that the dog looked much better today. 

It's hard to hitch when there's no traffic, find the hiker...

Then it was across Highway 9 and back to cross country through the wide desert. A fun section including a fair bit of dirt road and then back to cross country. Sometimes there's a pretty well defined footpath between signs but it likes to disappear and head of into the wrong direction so you can't depend on it. 

Around mile 50 was a little oasis at a water/tire tank. I had to take a quick break! So far stopping every 4-6 miles for a nice shoes off break has been working great. 

Oh look pretty green bushes that I have to walk through (so many times!)

Yeah these suckers have teeth, there's a reason like my legs look like they lost a battle

More cross country, and I even climbed a little pass. No great places for a break so I had to head farther than I wanted. I refused to have two days in a row with breaks in full sunlight. I muttered a bit to myself about the heat then found a perfect tree and relaxed. Stretching and yoga and a failed nap. Oh well it was still great. 

Confused sign

This area is so beautiful, I had no idea what New Mexico would be like but I've been pleasantly surprised. So far it's awesome. 

21 miles found me at the water cache before 5. I still felt great and thought maybe 2 more miles would be fun. Thatch showed up and we caught up on trail gossip and then I headed out. Beautiful but insanely windy. I finally gave up finding shelter and just ate dinner next to a spiky bush debating my plans for the next few days. Thatch reappeared and suggested sleeping in the arroyo to hide from the wind so here we are. 

Camping in an arroyo? Sure why not. 

Looking down into camp 

Cross your fingers that those rain clouds don't open up until I'm hiking tomorrow, word is thunder storms are expected. 

Day 2: where's Waldo

4/24
Day 2: mile 15.1-37.2 (22.1 miles)

It rained a few times overnight, heavy drumming rain that had me nervous with my haphazard tent pitch. But way to go Solplex you did a good and kept me dry despite my lack of skill setting you up. Although I did prop up my sun umbrella over my feet to stop the bottom of the wet tent from hitting my bag and it worked perfectly. 

6:45 and Thatch, Hanitizer and myself set out on our own. 10ish miles of cross country follow the ever disappearing and nonexistent posts to Highway 81 and the only water for the day.  

The biggest trick of the morning besides finding the posts was the arroyos there were so many of them! That and the very painful plants that seemed determined to attack my legs at every turn. 

Thatch trying to find a way down one of arroyos. (Look for the bright orange pants, these are some big dips to be climbing around all morning). 

I managed to find myself way to high on the mountainside and after cutting down the posts were suddenly magically large and easy to see with the shorter vegetation and it was smooth sailing for a bit. Until I of course lost the posts and found that I had made it to the road but most definitely not the cache. After some angry muttering and map staring I did figure it out. 

Hanitizer was at the cache but no one  else. We got water and while we were waiting Theresa and another trail angel pulled up to refill the cache and we got updates on hiker Bill and his second rescue by border patrol. Then Thatch pulled in and Hanitizer headed out. I left not too long after entering another cross country section, thankfully full of bright blue and white CDT signs. 

This part was fun, just within line of sight you cross country from post to post. Then the trail magically became an old dirt road for the rest of the day (something that was not marked on the map at all). 

It was pretty easy going with a nice breeze and I felt good but I decided to camp around 6. Early but no matter how I break the miles up I still make it to Lordsburg (first town stop!!) Monday so who cares? Plus 22 miles may not be much later in the hike but right now on fresh soft city feet, knees and ligaments rushing is just plain silly for me. 

It's windy but hopefully free of rain. It was a happy surprise when Thatch showed up and decided to stay. After dinner and sorting maps and my food for tomorrow it's definitely bedtime. This was a 20 mile dry stretch but by hiking part way through today it's only 8 miles to water. But after dry camping I'm always thrilled to get to water sources.

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And it's real!!! Day 1

4/23/15

Day 1: crazy cook- mile 15.1

I'm glad I had a roommate because I certainly didn't wake up to my alarm this morning, I think I was still pretty exhausted from the travel and general lack of sleep. There was the expected last minute scrambling and then a quick bite of the free continental breakfast and it was time to load up for the ride to the border. 

My carload, from the left Caveman, Thatch, Threshold and myself

9 of us total were starting (at the last minute Thatch grabbed the extra seat, he was supposed to leave the 24th). 

It was a long bumpy ride but so worth it. The shuttle service the CDTC offers is amazing. They drive you down this crazy 4WD road which takes almost 3 hours and have water caches set up for the first 80 or so miles which is a real lifesaver.

Theresa Martinez, the lady behind the whole CDTC was our driver and ridiculously informative during the ride. Giving us a history and geography lesson while pointing out the trail as we passed. It sounds like there are going to be around 150-200 people trying to thruhike the CDT northbound (no idea how many are section v thrus) this year which is a huge jump in numbers compared to the 30 or so who were trying just 5-10 years ago. 

We got to the border, the official Crazy Cook start and after the requisite photos were taken we were off. 

From L: threshold, thatch, me, day man, la la, the Maine Guy, Hanitizer (formerly Caveman), periwinkle (?), and sunjay

Bye bye Mexico, no where near as dramatic as the Southern California border

The first 2.2 miles were easy dirt single track through the desert. 

First CDT sign!!

Lots of mesquite, creosote, and cactus plus a few cows who looked totally oblivious when the border patrol helicopter buzzed us. 

After that is was miles of old dirt road. I figured out that my feet seem to start complaining around the 4-5 mile mark so I made sure to take shoes off snack breaks. Luckily there was some good cover most of the day and a nice breeze. The few hotter spots were made more bearable with my sun umbrella and rests in the shade. 

By 5 Thatch, Hanitizer and I had made the 14 miles to the first cache. We battled bees and enjoyed catching up with everyone as they all pulled up over the next hour. All 9 of us made it no problem. 

I was feeling good and with some of the  dry stretches coming up thought I'd try to make this one a little shorter and push on. Thatch and Hanitizer had the same plan so off we went. 

This next bit is Wilderness area and the pretty blue and white signs are replaced with wood posts. The trail became a real game of Where's Waldo, Yucca looks a whole lot like trail posts in the distance. Plus it was real cross country with so many sharp plants!

The first of the posts in the Ocatillo forest 

Can you see the post, yeah it takes a minute

We only made it about a mile before calling it quits. The wind was whipping, terrain was hard and I was tired. There were some ominous clouds but Thatch and I were cowboy camped in the wind. And then of course it started pouring. Thatch got his tent up quick, me not so much. Wind whipped my stakes out and luckily the guys helped me out. Setting up a tent for the second time ever in wind, pouring rain, and the dark; Yeah not recommended. Regardless bedtime in a mostly dry tent was very welcome. 

Tomorrow is the day!

There was a guy in a ZPacks kilt in the hostel living room. Clearly another hiker. He's Hatch and has hiked the PCT and AT. We walked to greyhound together and eventually Caveman and Michael from Maine showed up. It was fun to catch up and talk gear and everyone is so excited. 

Then it was a long bus ride where my new best friend was a very chatty 3 year old who thinks pooping in the woods is gross. Good times

Once in Lordsburg the heat turned up and I went through gear and food for the millionth time. Sharing a room with Threshold and meeting lots of other hikers. 

Shuttle leaves at 0615 so it's going to be an early start to squeeze in that free continental breakfast. Looks like 8 of us are heading out tomorrow with clouds and temps in the high seventies and a chance of thunderstorms on Sunday. 

. A map of the first 85 miles and the locations of the water caches, a bit vague huh :)

Tucson bound!

The last week has been a flurry of activity. Finalizing resupply stops and boxes, making gear decisions and just generally wrapping up all my loose ends. 

No room? No problem. Outdoor staging it is

Buddy the dog helping with my first resupply package 

Last walk to the post office, I think I'm going to be missing all this green in New Mexico

I thought I was doing pretty good, only a minimum of cranky mean stressed me and I've been trying to be very philosophical about everything. I've hiked one long trail before and whatever happens will be some kind of adventure.

Needless to say I probably shouldn't have only ended up getting 1.5 hours of sleep the day I leave home but at least I'm not hiking yet, plus the slightly OCD gear geek in me really wanted all my boxes and instructions to look pretty and a gear list to actually exist for this mess (it's officially up and on the CDT gear tab if interested).
Either way I had lovely support for my send off. Ruth and Jonny you guys rock. Traffic was thankfully missed and I spent almost as much time waiting for my plane as it took to actually fly from the bay area to Tucson.

The plane ride was uneventful. My neighbor was 100% engaged in his phone frantically texting and emailing while we still had service. Being naturally nosy I was of course curious. I lost interest but a hospital room caught my eye. It's strange how much of life you can see unfold over a strangers shoulder staring at an iPhone. I recognized everything, the ventilator, the IV pumps, even the scd's on her legs. She looked like she was even younger than me. And I watched her dad slowly zoom in on photo after photo of this young girls face. Meanwhile the folks behind me were talking about the importance of work life balance and how much more trouble their bodies become as they have aged. I am so glad I'm not working this season, and while I have no idea if I'll make it to Canada I'm so glad I'm trying.
Okay enough sappiness. On almost no sleep I stumbled out of the airport and into the blazing sun. A few wrong turns (why do I go to the second floor to find a pedestrian walkway outside?) I was finally off. 

8 miles through Tucson in 84 degree weather. Welcome to pavement and the joys of road walking. I was doing fine until almost 6 miles in. I've been babying my foot and haven't really trained at all over the last few months and figured this afternoon would be a bit of a test. And wow was I dragging. I took a 5 minute break but the side of the highway wasn't the most pleasant and I dragged myself the last 2 miles to the hostel I was staying at.

Peeling of my sweaty socks I collapsed on the couch. Dinner sounded good but I couldn't imagine walking the 1.2 miles to the grocery store. So I stumbled around not really doing anything until I finally opened up my resupply (for the first section of my hike) and inhaled some food. I was feeling better and was downing lots of water. The flying and hot walk had definitely left me on the dehydrated side.

With my food supply rapidly diminishing and a sure bet that the local Safeway would have tasty choices like cheese and avocado I finally left the hostel after 7pm. I then managed to get lost while stubbornly refusing to turn around after finding myself repeatedly at dead ends due to train tracks and highway overpasses. 4 some odd miles later I finally found myself back at the hostel with far more food than I'll need for this section. This is why I like mailing myself food, grocery resupplies are such a stressful challenge for me.

Sitting in the nighttime breeze with my feet propped up I can say that in hindsight I probably could have made a few better choices. So lessons for the day, my physical shape isn't so hot. Breaks are your friend, avoiding them makes the walking even worse. I'm also way out of touch with eating and drinking in heat like this. Drink more and up the number of snacks. I'm exhausted and I think it's probably a cool hostel filled with interesting folks but bedtime sounds so much better.
Tomorrow is a walk to Greyhound and then onto Lordsburg, New Mexico and Thursday is the big day!

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Countdown 10 days...

In ten days I will be standing in New Mexico at the Crazy Cook Monument looking North. Oh man ten days is really soon, even sooner when you realize that by ten days I actually mean eight. See I start the trail on the 23rd but this border is not the easiest to get to. So on the 21st I fly into Tucson, the next day I Greyhound to Lordsburg, NM and finally catch a shuttle to the border on Thursday. 

I am so ready, and so very not ready at all. But hey I've done this once before right? This trail is longer, more isolated, way less marked and has Grizzlies but embrace the brutality right?

I should have a gear list and know what I'm taking but of course am still debating a million little options. Really I'm just procrastinating so I can avoid actually packing up my resupply boxes and seeing how many more grocery trips are still in my future. Yes the two plus hours I spent staring at shirts and 20% off coupons yesterday could have been more wisely spent but its a new day and I have way to much to do to stress about yesterday. 

On the gear front at least I finally have a pack (and it only took two days to make! ULA you rock) I used a ULA Circuit on the PCT for my pack and due to a whole lot of back chafe and rodent eaten straps I've changed it up and will be trying the ULA Ohm 2.0 this time around. I admit I am like a kid in a candy store and love that ULA will let you pick custom neon fabrics (only 4 choices but all so pretty) so yes that dusty neon dirtball on the trail will be me. Due to my still somewhat gimpy foot I haven't put too many miles on it but so far I'm loving it. Still waiting on some other big items, come on zpacks where is that tracking number 5 weeks is a long time to wait...

Because pointing at nothing is more fun than standing still. 

springtime keeps distracting me from planning

Resupplying for a trip like this could be a book in itself but I'll keep it brief because mostly its just staring at food you can't eat yet and in a few months won't want at all plus the added hassle of logistics and boxes thrown in. No I don't carry five months of food at once, the trail gets close enough to a town that through side trails, shuttles and hitchhiking food is available at least once a week. 

Towns are similarly spread out on the CDT compared to the PCT but the hitches are longer and most stretches seem to be about 5 days between food. As much fun as resupplying for 5 days of food from a picked over convenience store is (picture 7-11 or any other gas station market) I'm hoping to have some boxes ready and waiting for me when I get into town providing some much needed and hard to find things like the ever amazing dehydrated veggies I didn't take enough advantage of on my PCT hike. I'm going to focus on healthy dinners (not necessarily eaten at dinner but you get the idea), hard to find snacks (does Chevron have seaweed?), and packed breakfasts. I'm trying the protein shake idea a few times a week because a bulky breakfast is usually unappetizing and I still grimace at the thought of oatmeal but protein powder, chocolate, coffee, and whole fat milk powder sound pretty darn tasty. Although talk to me in a month or two, I may have changed my tune. Either way snacks and lunch will be more spur of the moment but boxes will hopefully keep me healthier and happier. 

I'm super excited about harmony house dehydrated food, I probably should have opened the box before yesterday though. Probably not even close to enough...

the current state of my resupply, haphazardly organized into categories and shoved onto a shelf while I hope they magically pack themselves into well balanced flat rate boxes complete with the right number of days of food and postage

I have no idea how many boxes I will actually manage but at the bare minimum I'm aiming for is 7. There are a few stops on this trail that will hold boxes but don't sell food so to break up 8+ day stretches its totally worth it. Also thrown into these boxes will be things like sunscreen, toothpaste and nicely sorted maps I also have yet to organize.

I have amazing support from my lovely mother who will be the grand postmistress ferrying things to our local post office every week or so and my wonderful friends who have already promised bail out food and homemade treats. Things I am already dreaming of.  

I will also have extra/replacement gear like snow stuff and warmer/lighter clothing I may beg my mom to add to boxes to save my butt along the way. 

Ok enough procrastinating, its nose to the grindstone time. 

20 days!!

I start hiking in 20 days, I can't believe how fast time is flying. On April 23rd I will be standing in New Mexico at the Crazy Cook monument starting this ridiculous adventure. The thing is I actually leave even sooner that that, its going to take a couple of days just to get down to the border which means I have less than 3 weeks to get this show on the road. Now I had grand plans for prep work. First, I was going to be super productive on my weekends off while I was still working. Well that certainly didn't happen. And now I've been off work almost 2 weeks and other than a fantastic visit with friends all I feel like I've done is garden and fret over details.

The list of all I have to do keeps getting longer. I haven't been hiking because of some funky foot injury over a month ago, so as my muscles turn to jelly and my foot aches the fear grows. I still have gear decisions to make although my big 3: tent, pack and sleeping bag are hopefully finalized. I haven't made an itinerary or bought plane tickets, I don't know how many resupply boxes I'm going to make yet, let alone what will be in them and I have a nice shiny package of unopened maps staring at me next to an empty GPS. So here's to no more procrastinating and a very slow start to New Mexico. A huge part of thru hikes is getting over the craziness of your own mind, and I know I want this. Things will fall into place and I've been quizzing plenty of great resources (Shroomer and Why Not you guys are amazing) so its time to kick it into high gear and put it all together!

I love this peanut but no matter how small she tries to be I'm pretty sure she won't fit into my backpack...

these shiny neatly packed maps are mocking me, where to even start!

at least I get pretty spring time to inspire me and make it even harder to sit indoors and plan

even Reno has gorgeous springtime (along with some wonderful people!)

I'm already missing all the vegetables

Alright good luck to me and all the lovely people who have been listening to my crazy manic debating, love you all!!