CT Part 4- The One With the Moose

Pup-Date

We stayed at Inn the Clouds hostel in Leadville and it was fantastic. I woke up at 5am and let the dogs out first. I noticed Kai seemed to be moving a little slower than normal. Once at the trailhead I kept my eye on him as we were getting everything together. His paws seemed a little sore and his enthusiasm was way lower than normal. I chatted with my husband and we agreed, it was time for a break. So Kai went home with David for a few days of rest and feasting while me and Lijah carried on.

A Fair Trade

I lost Kai and David, but was joined by my friend Blair for the next few days. She has such great upbeat energy, and I was starting to feel warn down, so I was excited to have her along. 

We came out hot, crushing miles quickly. We saw so many mushrooms on segment 9, and Blair had recently gotten into foraging so it was fun to keep spotting them. Unsurprisingly, my favorite are the red ones with white spots, but I also loves seeing ones that had been nibbled on by a small creature.

There were some ups and downs, leading to a decent view. But then came the downhill into hell, or what i imagine it would be like. Miles long at the same steep grade with no reprieve. I had never wished for an uphill before that decent, but I would have done anything to start climbing.

Puds

When it finally ended we took a quick snack break before heading into segment 10. It started with a brutal thousand foot climb through the forest. At the top, it simply started going back down, with nothing to show for it. After going down about as much as we had climbed, we ran into another steep challenging thousand foot climb, again without a payoff view. Im told on the AT these are called PUDS- pointless ups and downs. It was miserable and I have promptly removed the AT from my list.

As we were nearing camp Blair’s pace had started to slow. She had at least one blister forming and walking was becoming painful. We set up camp at our earliest option, hoping that she could get her feet taken care of before another long day. 

A Tough Call

The next morning started with a lot more forest walking, but thankfully at more reasonable grades. Blair started out strong again, blisters popped and taped up, but after around 10 miles her pace faltered.

We made our way down to the twin lakes, sadly missing the turnoff for the general store, I had been craving a soda. We stopped for lunch and started discussing options. She didn’t think she’d be able to complete the miles she’d planned to join me for in the time allotted. 

Luckily my dad is on call for the dogs and would be able to pick her up where she needed. She could have left right from twin lakes the next morning, or pushed on for one more Segment-up hope pass. I was really glad when she decided to go for one more, because I knew starting the collegiates would give her the views she had earned with all those miles on the first two days. 

Trail closed?

While walking around the lakes i was baffled by how hot and dry the trail was… Just 30 feet from a lake. Elijah was getting hot so I snuck down to the water, joined a family on their beach day, and took a dip. 

Finally rounding the far side of the lake I came to the junction. The big choice of the CT. East or West through the Collegiates. I paused at the sign for a bit. I wanted to go west for the views, but the climbs made me nervous.

As I stood there a little fox ran by, on the trail, holding a surprising number of rodents in it’s mouth. It past the junction, heading west, before looking back at me like it was wondering what I was waiting for. So I followed it West.

Shortly after, we were looking for water and camping. Passing a small stream I continued forward, hoping to find a site nearby, but instead I ran into a blockade. The trail was closed due to fire damage. I squinted at the picture, confused. I had been assured that the West had fully reopened.

Unable to really grasp it after a 20+ mile day I did the only thing i could think of, turned around and let it be future me’s problem.

Hope Pass

After messaging a few friends who know more about the trail systems than I do, and looking at the sign more closely the next morning I was glad to discover it was just a small reroute. 

One worry averted. The other was the monster climb up Hope Pass that loomed just up the trail. Every one I had ever heard talk about the CT mentioned the infamous pass and what a challenge it was. Around 3,000 feet of elevation in less than 4 miles. 

We took a quick break at the base to shed layers, eat a snack, and mentally prepare for what came next. 

Then I put my head down and started climbing. I got into a rhythm, albeit a slow one, but it allowed me to keep moving. And before I knew it I was *near* the top feeling great. The last quarter mile proceeded to completely kick my butt, forcing me to stop for air more times than I’d like to admit, but hey we made it. 

And oh man was it beautiful.

Truly Alone

At the bottom of the pass my dad was waiting to pick Blair up and take her to her car. When we made it to the parking lot Lijah was stoked to see our van and hopped in, excited to have made it through another leg. 

I tried to break the news softly that we actually had 25 more miles and another night, but he seemed uninterested in the idea. So I left him with my dad for a day and took off, for the first time, truly alone. 

I was sad to be without both pups, but I knew it was best for them. And they didn’t care about my crazy goal of hiking the whole trail, they only cared about being happy in the moment. So I wasn’t about to force them to keep hiking if they didn’t seem happy about it. 

Lake Ann

After a while I caught up with a fellow hiker who I had met on day 3. We hiked together for a while, with the same campsite in mind. But when we got there, it had already been claimed. So we decided to climb another .3 up to Lake Ann.

She was a beaut. Georgous alpine lake surrounded by peaks.

We set up camp in the field, which I noticed was a little exposed, but he was more experienced than I was so I didn’t worry about it. The evening was perfect. It was exactly what I had been hoping for on this trip. Eating dinner in cool mountain air, with inspiring views to fill my cup.

Then the storm came. Right after getting into my tent the thunder started, followed quickly by hail and wind that threatened to take my tent right off the mountain with me still inside. I watched helplessly as my tent walls thrashed back and forth violently, cursing myself for not stopping for a spot in the trees. 

Eventually the winds calmed and I was fine, but it was easily my scariest moment on trail so far.

The Day of the Moose 

The next morning I made my way over Lake Ann Pass, which involved both a loose rock scramble and a snow crossing. Neither of which I felt very comfortable with, and I was actually glad not to have the dogs with me. 

On the way down I finally spotted my first moose of the trail! A big female down in a valley below, and as I watched I found her baby hiding in the bushes. I took a bunch of blurry pictures and oohed and ahhed my excitement. 

A few miles later I almost ran right into two more! Both adult females munching on some bushes only about a hundred feet off the trail. I showed my excitement a little more quickly and quietly this time as they both had their eyes locked on me as I passed by.

Another few miles down the road and a couple warned me that a moose had just run across the trail into the bushes on the other side. Not believing my luck I squinted into the bushes patiently. After a few minutes I saw a big head with two big antlers turn and look my way. My fifth moose of the day! 

Excited to tell my dad about the wildlife sightings I climbed my way up cottonwood pass to be reunited with him and Lijah and head into Buena Vista for a much needed zero day.