Miles: 2.5
Camp: Lake City, CO off of CDT mile 813.75
Elevation at camp: 8850 feet
It was a casual morning, just Squirrel and I with 2.5 miles between us and the highway. We got there at 7:30 and caught up with Handstand and Charge who had chosen to camp next to the road. They had been in touch with the hostel, and Freebird was going to borrow the owner’s truck to come and get us at 10.
We sat around eating the remains of our food bags as we waited, reflecting on all we had been through as a group in these mountains. It was an intense section, exhilarating and intensely rewarding. There has never been a time in my life when I have felt so accomplished. We really are only a few, and I can’t even imagine what people ahead of us went through, the ones who blazed the trail we later followed. It took so much time, energy, fortitude, quick decision making and commitment. It took grit, perseverance, focus, teamwork and passion…all of which added up for an intensely exhausting experience. It took everything, and now that it is over I feel stronger and more capable than ever. I am filled with gratitude for the experience and the people who helped make it possible. Not just the people on trail, but the MANY of you who are on the sidelines cheering me on, supporting me and helping me with the details that are sometimes difficult to manage from the trail. I have never felt more blessed.
Thank you all! Let’s see what else this trail has in store for me now that the “hardest” part is over!
Dinner: a big huge homemade arugula salad with avocado, tomato, goat cheese, pumpkin seeds and ham.
I almost forgot that the man at the hostel hooked us up with a rafting trip too! We got to raft through Lake City on class 2-3 rapids. It was my first rafting experience and it was SO.MUCH.FUN! We got to raft on the very snow melt we have been traversing…kinda cool! I am extra pooped though and pretty sure my arms are gonna ache tomorrow! Off to dreamland in a bed all to myself…it has been a while.
willhikeforcheeseburgers 
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