After having hiked through severe blowdown for three hours the previous evening, I was not enjoying being on my hands and knees at 5:30am,* crawling through dirt, trying to pass under a large tree. Something on my pack keeps getting caught, holding me back. I keep going lower, until I’m almost on my belly. I lose it.

FRACK it! FRACK IT!! I’ve had enough of this stuff!!” (Actual words substituted to protect the more sensitive reader).

When I say severe blowdown, imagine someone ripping out a forest of trees by the roots and throwing them like Pick Up Sticks on the ground. Trees stacked three or more high, one on top of another. Your job is to either go over, around, or under.

The prior evening, we had both found the blowdown an interesting and fun challenge. Something like a jungle gym adventure. But after moving only 1.8 miles in three hours, I was done with it. Yet the only direction is forward. So after apologizing to the very patient John, we continued through another mile of this stuff.

And on the other side of the blowdown, we entered The Wind River Mountain Range, which includes a CDT alternate route known as the Cirque of the Towers. We had heard it was challenging and beautiful. After experiencing it, we wonder why we had never heard of this stunning mountain range before. We hiked through valleys surrounded by granite spires, with lakes and creeks running through the middle. We climbed four passes in two days, with 3,000 to 4,000 feet of elevation gain a day, spending a good deal of time above tree line. I experienced a touch of vertigo for the first time due to the heights.

When we made it to Pinedale for a nearo and zero rest day, we were exhausted. But also proud of ourselves (physically and mentally) and grateful for having each other, good health, and this amazing opportunity to thruhike the CDT. We’re healing through the powers of good coffee, town food, a bed, and a bathtub.

Tomorrow we head to Yellowstone! 185 miles of hiking with only one brief stop to pick up a resupply box.

To quote Bubbles, “I’m hardcore now!!!”

*A new thing we started that morning, drinking coffee and eating breakfast after we’ve hiked away from camp. No coffee=very grumpy Beth.

Writing an update about our walk through the Great Divide Basin, our third trip through the Basin. We did it in 2018 on the TransAmerica route, in 2019 on the GDMBR, and now this year. There were a few sections that we're common to all three, but it was primarily walking on two-track roads on BLM land.

We put in our biggest mileage on the trip so far, 102 miles in four days, 27.5 miles being our longest day. Primarily this was due to good walking roads (generally few big climbs and smooth surfaces), and us being stronger. We were able to finish 13 to 14 miles by noon, and finish the day around 4:00. A couple of days were pretty uncomfortable, too hot with little breeze, but overall the weather was good, especially the mornings.

Saw lots of other hikers. I've often told people that 'nobody is out there in the basin,' but we saw more hikers this year than we ever saw cyclists on our 2018 and 2019 trips.

We are now in Lander, WY, a favorite town on our 2018 trip, resting and resupplying. Due to fires in Idaho that have closed over 120 miles of the CDT along the ID, WY border, we are having to plan a new route when we leave Yellowstone. This will shorten our route, but after walking over 1200 miles so far we are happy to walk fewer miles.

While vacationing in Estes, the weather forecast predicted rain for days, including thunderstorms. Not wanting to walk the ridges in snow, rain, and lightening, we started out on the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route, only to be diverted to forest road 100 due to forest fire. We actually had to slow down in order to not arrive in Steamboat before the Fourth.

Along the way, we saw a beautiful white horse in a distant valley. Surprised when she ran to greet us. Even more surprised when she walked along beside us for miles. And what an auspicious omen, as this was my first day of retirement, free from routine and the expectations of employment.

“White horses are seen as a good omen—they represent purity, peace, and good fortune. Dreams of white horses can indicate happy connections with others, a healthy relationship with sex and ambitions, spiritual awareness, and being at peace and going with the flow of life.”

Tomorrow we continue our hike on the red line to Encampment, Wyoming. We’ll reach the Great Basin in about a week, a flat and dry section, very different than the mountains of Colorado.