Day 2- Colorado Trail

I woke up for what was my first morning on the trail and celebrated by making a hot cup of coffee to go with my cold soaked oatmeal that I prepped the night before. The oatmeal was barely edible, and I could only eat a few bites of it before I decided to give up. Since I knew I wouldn’t eat any of my oatmeals for the rest of my trip, I realized I was low on breakfasts and lunches (Read Day 1) which meant I was severely low on food, and I would be about 700 calories short each day. I was soon to be living off of bars, dried mango, and peanut ramen.

I sat next to the river and boiled my water for my Aeropress, which was one of my favorite luxury items since I am admittedly a bit of a coffee snob. I hugged my hands around my cup of coffee and closed my eyes. I listened to the water rushing, birds chirping, and the wind gently sweeping through the leaves of the trees. I couldn’t believe how peaceful I felt. I was in another world where life was so simple and beautiful and there were no expectations other than my own. I spent a bit too long at camp to soak it all in even though I really needed to get moving to beat the heat through the burn zone of Segment 2. 

Once I left camp, I was immediately hungry and fatigued and tried to eat a bar that I had packed, but I also figured out that I really hated eating bars while hiking. I ate a couple of bites at a time and had to force myself to finish it. I just had one more full day before I would get to Bailey, I thought. I hoped I would be fine until then. 

As I was hiking up the climb of Segment 2, I was in awe of how beautiful it was. The burn scar allowed me to see the skyline of mountains around me. Nothing could wipe the smile off my face, not even my hunger, and not even the heat. The clouds were providing occasional shade and there was a slight breeze. The temperature was still in the 90s but I was grateful for even the slightest relief. It was like the sky was forgiving me for starting later in the morning. 

I took more breaks than anticipated and even stopped to doctor up some early-forming blisters. While I was sitting there with my dirty feet out and popping my blisters, another hiker walked by. He was walking north as a segment hiker. He asked if I was thru-hiking and how the trail was treating me so far. I explained I was having the time of my life, but that my food was already becoming an issue. He immediately sat down next to me, pulled out his food bag, and started to give me some of his food, including tuna, knorrs sides, cheese, and energy gels. This was my first sense of the camaraderie that came with the trail, and the food was enough to last me through the day. He saw my feet and told me I looked like I had soft feet and that I needed to roughen them up. I then knew that blisters were inevitable, but eventually, I’d have real hiker feet. We sat and enjoyed each other’s company before we both went our separate ways. 

As I was hiking, I looked up at the sky to read the clouds. There was a storm that was going to roll in, and I still had about an hour before I could make it to the volunteer fire station to fill up on my water. I stopped to see which direction the clouds were going, hoping I could dodge it, but it was coming right at me. Fast. Here came my punishment for leaving camp late. Gusts of wind were coming my way, and the temperature was dropping. I knew I wouldn’t be able to hide from the storm anywhere due to the lack of live trees and I would just have to hike through it.

When the storm began, I put my head down and hiked while hail and rain pelted me in the face and legs. I pulled my rain hood down past my eyes to protect my face, but then I could only see two feet in front of me. I wasn’t able to track my progress since I couldn’t see very far and I desperately needed a morale boost. I was freezing and my fingers were numb, which meant I needed to keep moving to stay warm. I tightly gripped my trekking poles to keep the blood flowing to my hands. I noticed my rain jacket was failing and water was seeping through the seams. I was completely soaked. 

I soon saw the turn for the fire station and let out a loud sigh of relief that was more like a thankful groan. This was exactly the morale boost I needed. If I was going to be soaked, I might as well be hydrated. I sat at the bench by the spigot, mixed up some electrolytes, and forced down a bar that became soggy in the rain as I was eating it and an energy gel that I had been given earlier to get some easy calories. 

The rest of the day was predicted to be cloudy and I knew I probably wouldn’t have time to dry out before night came. Not only was I soaked and cold, but I was also starving. I had burned way more calories than I had taken in for the last two days, and my body could feel it. My stomach was growling and achy, my head hurt, and I was running low on energy. I weighed my options. I could either keep going in the amount of discomfort that I was in, or I could try to hitch into Bailey a day early from the volunteer fire station. Before I knew it, I was by the road with my thumb out. This was my first time hitching and it surprisingly felt more awkward than scary. I was like a sad wet puppy. I felt pitiful and was honestly hoping someone would feel bad for me and give me a ride. I was ready to be warm and get an actual meal. 

An older couple in a red truck pulled over and took me into Bailey. They were trail maintainers and were excited to ask me questions about my hike. When they dropped me off at the Two Bridges Lodge I tried paying them for their help but the woman said “I don’t want that, I just want a hug and for you to have fun.” She stepped out of the truck to hug me, and we said our goodbyes. I was excited to have met trail angels for the first time and was overjoyed by the kindness of the community surrounding the Colorado Trail. 

I showered and did laundry as soon as I got to the hostel room. I put on some loaner clothes that the hostel provided- a green quarter-zip sweater and some camo pajama pants. I walked next door to the iconic South Park hot dog stand and finally got some calories in me. Part of me was disappointed that I was already in a town on my second day, but I knew it was going to set me up for success to get to Breckenridge. I desperately needed the calories, and staying in Bailey would give me a chance to eat as much as I possibly could. 

Later in the day, other hikers began to show up in the hostel. They were tired and beat up from their last few segments. They were further along the trail from me and came from Kenosha Pass, mile 74. They all seemed very low-spirited and were trying to find some relief. I figured I would leave them alone to resolve their issues and hopefully talk to them tomorrow.

I spent the night journaling and planning my next day, which would end up being a full zero. A full zero is a massive treat. It means you can take the whole day off, hike zero trail miles, do town chores like dishes and laundry, and eat at restaurants. A full zero means you get to rest, truly take care of yourself, and indulge in town amenities. Bailey Days was that weekend, which is a festival that the town of Bailey has once a year. I decided I was going to make the best of the time I had and treat every day as a celebration.

I felt so proud of myself that day. I was proud that I listened to my body and understood that I was in a situation where I needed to take care of myself. I was proud that I wasn’t hard on myself, and that I was flexible. I went to sleep that night feeling accomplished, despite there being a slight dent in my plans. I texted my fiance right before falling asleep and said “I am so happy to be here”, and I truly was.