5/17 Today was Prana’s and my 7 year anniversary. 9 years together total. Hard to fathom, really, that it has already been that long. We started the day by going to get pie- all sold out, 5 minutes after they opened. Oh well- we’d try, try again. Next was laundry. Crusoe drove us back to …
5/16 Glorious. We slept in a bit, as far as we do, and then roused for the morning. A few camp spots over was nicer enough it was worth moving, so I did trash detail, cleaning up as much as I could, and then we moved in. Strung a line to air fluff the quilt, …
5/15 Pie Town Day! We leapt out of bed, ready for it. 21 miles until Crusoe would meet us at the Top Of The World convenience store, which was 3 miles prior to Pie Town; we’d figure out when to do the other 3 highway miles during the next two days. We sailed on easy …
Continue reading Day 28: 3 Miles Beyond the Top of The World
5/14 The trail was relatively gentle today, elevation change relatively minimal. We hiked mostly through small and spread out forest, though we did have a long stretch in the afternoon through an open field, where shapes that could only be called volcanic layered the view. I was lost in my wonderful book, Fire Season, and …
5/13 We slept without an alarm, not rousing until the sun was beaming down on us. We lounged in sleeping bags for an hour, talking, then made dirty chai lattes with extra coffee and talked more. At some point Crusoe set out breakfast, granola and flax milk and fruit, and we all rotated through turns …
5/12 The morning dawned strangely humid, and as gaps in the trees offered views out to the parallel ridge lines, they revealed banks of clouds filling the valleys, as though they’d been piped full of whipped cream frosting. Most of the day I listened to Fire Season, an enchanting, lyrical, deservedly-award winning book by Phil …
5/11 No carcass-eating visitors in the night- phew. The hill in front of us would lead to the long ridge we’d follow the crest of, for miles, to the confluence of the Gila alternate and our main route. At the same pain-staking pace, we picked our way up between volcanic rubble and tussock. We were …
5/10 Our perfect camp was front row to the sunrise, after which we resumed our route. It’s indescribable, the difference easy visibility and no wind makes. Like stepping into a parallel universe. While we still had plenty of water, always carrying at least an extra liter each from every source, as the miles stretched and …
5/9 While my leg held up admirably well in the crazy footing yesterday, last night it took its due. I woke up at 1:30 and tossed and turned and tried not to wimper until the alarm went off 4 hours later. I’m not a morning person, really, even in the best of times. The climb …
5/8 We were on trail by 6:30, a record for us this trip- and a lovely time of morning to be out it was. The pastel light softened and blurred the greens and golds of the land, and wispy clouds streaked the sky. At the Adobe Ranch entrance we were instructed to not stray any …
muddy shoe memoirs 