Fri June 2 : Disembarked from MaryKays and headed into the mnts. to Buena Vista following roads. I stayed at a campground along the Taylor river because of designated camping. As I hike I use two bamboo sticks to help propel me, it gives my arms something to do by keeping the circulation going so my hands don’t puff up. Also, it helps going down steep areas by preventing as much weight on my knees, I can lower myself using my arms. When I am in flat areas I like to exercise my arms by raising and lowering them in various patterns to stretch and strengthen them. I have learned the importance of making sure noone is driving by, as I have had someone pull over because it looked like I was flagging him down…lesson learned.
Sat June 3 : Woke early and had a big day. Went up past the reservoir and camped near the top of Cottonwood pass. Mosquitos started to annoy me so I put up my tent to prevent myself from going crazy. I washed up in a stream to relieve some of the mosquito stress, but then they swarmed me again!
Sun June 4 : Am at the Continental Divide! This is a big moment, I am so excited that I am almost tearing up. It is gorgeous up here, am looking down at where I have come from and where I am headed. The water to my West flows into the Pacific, the water to the East flows into the Atlantic. It is all downhill from here, right? Walked on the hardened snow that had been piled up along the side of the road. Today I have been meditating about the passion of Christ and what He may have felt since today is celebrating the Pentecost. As I was resting I watched an ant pull a fly across the road, incredible persistence and strength.
Monn June 5 : Camped on the outskirts of Buena Vista. As I came into a town a dog came to the road barking at me. A lady was at her doorway calling, “bear”, her dog, back. We started talking and she invited me in to look at her consignment shop, which is her entire house. I sat on the floor next to a shelf of books and skimmed thru several while I sipped coffee she brought me. My income is very limited and I try not to spend cash, as I had only $8.36, but I decided that she needed it more than I did and bought two books and gave her all of my cash. She rejoiced when I handed it to her and explained to me how she had needed $7 in order to do something at the bank and had to put a hold onto it until today. She didn’t know how she would get the extra cash but she knew she would. She not only has faith but lives her faith. We shared stories and then I proceeded into town to do my typical town duties, groceries, library, post office and talking to the newspaper. It is hot! It is warmer than normal and the snow is melting much faster than normal. The other day the snow went from 11 inches to 4 inches, Colorado is going to have a hard dry summer.
Tue June 6 : I will be using the Colorado Trail (CT) till Leadville. Well, I have walked some extra miles out of my way. I am confused because on my map the CT follows a road, but there is a CT sign posted on both sides of a tree. It looks like I should’ve gone North at the intersection and I am headed west. I received directions from some ladies who had a book on the local trails with them and it looks like I am following the old trail. I am fine as long as I look for the Sheep Gulch trail and follow that up the mountain. When I get to the top I should be able to see some lakes I am supposed to aim for. I stopped at a small stream to wash up in. It was a spring that was the perfect width and depth for me to lie and have it rush over me, except instead of a hot tub it’s a cold tub. As the wind blew the trees, clouds of pollen dispersed into the air. On my way up the sheep gulch trail storm clouds came in from the south. I kept my eye on them and watched as they drew closer. I mentally strategized my actions according to what the weather would do. My goal was to get over the pass and be on the other side before it reached me. I had just made it over the top when it started raining, I put on extra layers and went down at a fast clip. There were a half a dozen areas where the trail was covered with snow. The first time I tried to go across and postholed up to my knees. The other times I tried to go around them, or when I would go across I’d stay totally focused on each step to the open trail beyond. I made it all the way down to the lakes and camped.
Wed. June 7 : I am sitting by the lakes eating lunch and watching another storm approach from the south. It rained two different times today. I went around Mt.Elbert, it is the first time I have heard of the mountain and it is the highest mnt in CO. Walked thru a forest of aspens that reminded me of a poster my family always had hanging on the wall in our hallway leading upstairs to our bedroom. It was a picture of a road splitting in a grove of aspens with the Robert Frost poem, “Two roads Diverged”.
“Two roads diverged in the woods, I took the one less traveled and that, that has made all the difference.”
Have been seeing a lot of deer, often they will stop and watch me as I am watching them before they bound off into the hidden woods. I walked thru another rain, but the sun came out and got dry before I set up camp. Am about 6 miles from town, I plan to go in and speak to the Lions club tomorrow. Following the CT has kept me alert and constantly checking my map. I lost my sunglasses again! When it started raining for the 3rd time I had taken off my pack to rearrange my gear and accidentally left them behind. I remembered once the sun came out. Had two lovely surprises, I walked by Interlochen, an old resort area that is being restored as well as the town of Vicksburg. Vicksburg is an old mining town that is a living museum. It is in the middle of the woods and is still inhabited with occupants in the original homes.
Thur June 8 : Walking into town I stopped at a gas station for some coffee and met Bill and Dell, a father and son who came to Colorado to work odd jobs for the summer so that they can hike 14er’s, fish and enjoy life! How awesome to see families spending time together. Spoke to both of the papers in town, spoke to the Lions club, went to the library and continued thru town in the rain. I meandered around looking in store windows and was drawn to a homemade fudge sign. I bought some fudge and then stopped for a sandwich and was treated to dinner. This left me in much better spirits as my tent was still wet and not too waterproof .
Fri June 9 : I found a nice place to camp outside of town last night, there were a lot of good trees to choose from to hang my food from. Sometimes it can be hard to find the “perfect” bear bagging tree. The next town I am going to is Frisco, I would like to make it to mass on Saturday night to see if I can speak to Fr about sharing my mission with the parishioners after Sundays masses. I am enjoying hiking on roads more than I expected, I get to meet more people and it helps build awareness for the library. I met Brooke, a lady setting up her covered wagon to sell jerky along the road. I gave her fudge in exchange for jerky. I have noticed alot of the same type of cars along the road today, two had pulled over so I stopped and asked about it. There is an MG tour, it is a scavenger hunt and a time trial race. I talked with Jan for about an hour as her husband helped fix the other participants broken down car. Camped in the mnts outside of Copper Mnt Resort.
Sat June 10 : On my way into Frisco a tow truck pulled over to see if I needed anything. He owns a shop in town and specializes in heavy duty sewing. In town there was a 1/2 marathon just ending, music was playing and runners walking around rehydrating. Before I could stop to look around a man came up to me, he was from the Rotary in Fruita that I had spoken to, he was even wearing his "Mike the Headless Chicken" shirt. After we shared some stories another couple came up to me, curious about my ADT patch. They are driving across the country taking backroads and are familiar with the trail. As I get into Colorado I am finding more people who have heard about the trail than previous states..hmmm..perhaps that is because there are more people around here. It is awesome to "connect" with people. While in town I was trying to find the heavy duty sewing shop and walked into the wrong shop by mistake. I met Jody, she invited me to stay with her and her husband for the weekend. She drove me by the Catholic parish where I spoke to the priest about being able to share my mission with the parishioners tomorrow. Jody made a great supper of salmon, red beans and rice served with wine. I definitely cannot say I am roughing it! Found out that Jody does voicework, she is on the majority of the phones because they do not like to have too many different voices. We checked my phone and she is the voice of my phone! Pretty cool, now whenever I hear a recorded phone voice I can smile and think of her.
Sun June 11 : After mass I spoke to the parishioners and collected donations for the library. I met a couple who I had previously met while I was in Moab as well as meeting a guy who had gone to the same gradeschool and had some of the same teachers! As I hiked from Frisco to Keystone crossed paths with Jody and David, they handed me their condo keys and told me to make myself at home again and that they would be back later. Took a soak in the hot tub and reveled in this amazing journey I am on.
Mon June 12 : Came back into Frisco to talk to the local paper and traveled to Silverthorne and back to Frisco by using their free connecting buses. Jody walked with me aways up towards Loveland pass. I feel so privleged to be invited into peoples lives and treated with such care, God has entrusted us with so much. Everyone is important and has a purpose, it is easy to say but imperative to live! Hiked over loveland pass and camped on the other side. Even in very steep areas I am able to find a spot big enough to sleep in that is relatively flat, even if I am 1/2 way under a tree and lying next to the trunk to prevent from rolling.
Tue June 13 : Walked at a very relaxed pace on the Baker-Loveland trail and then on a service road to Silver Plume. I stopped in a general store to buy an ice cream bar and some postcards, when I went to pay the man told me I needed to have at least $5 worth. I told him to add another ice cream bar and I would leave it in the freezer until I finished the one I had. I sat outside eating and a touseled looking vagabond walked by and into the store. He came out with just a drink and we started talking. He looked hungry so I offered to buy him some food. He said the store just closed, I got up and called into the store to remind them I still had a purchase in the freezer and then was able to give the ice cream to the man. It is neat how circumstances work out. I continued hiking into Georgetown and stopped in at the library staying till it closed. John, the librarian, invited me to go home with his family. He has two awesome girls who were entertaining and fun to talk to, as well as a neat friend, Nina, visiting from London. John is extremely talented, having built his home by hand. We all slept outside on the grass sown deck, it is nice to listen to them chatter and tell stories.
Wed June 14 : Began the morning by eating a breakfast of choc. chip cookies, a bowl of life(very fitting) and coffee. John took me back to the library so I was able to continue hiking to Idaho Springs. I was invited to stay another night with his family, so he will pick me up in the next town. Stopped at an outdoor gear store to see whether they sold tent flys by themselves. Didn’t have what I needed but let me use the phone to get more info. It is so encouraging to meet people who have a passion for helping others and loving life. When I got to Idaho Springs John picked me up and took me back to his house. His girls welcomed us at the door dressed as waitresses and showed us to the deck where they waited on us. A delicious Greek dinner had been prepared that we all shared, what great company. We later danced, the girls taught me a Greek dance, I taught them the waltz and Nina taught us the salsa. We roasted s’mores and slept under the stars. John brought out his telescope and we got to see Jupiter and its moons.
Thur June 15 : A little crazy this morning, Nina is packing to leave to go back to London. Spoke to the Lions club and hiked towards Evergreen where I will speak to another club in the morning. The squirrels here are black. Watched 5 elk meander by a stream. I met a guy walking on the road, he was sunburnt and thirsty. I gave him some water. It feels good to be able to help others after all the help people have offered me. It sprinkled tonight, I covered up with an extra large trash bag and stayed relatively dry, have a small hole in the bottom so my feet got wet.
Fri June 16 : Arrived at the Rotary meeting and was given a minute to present. Saw an indigo bunting today, they are a striking blue colored bird. While walking to Kittredge it started raining, two dogs befriended me walking a couple miles with me. I enjoyed their company but felt stressed because anytime a car would come they’d walk in the middle of the country road, luckily noone became upset. It would be nice to have the companionship of a dog, but it is a larger responsibility than I can take on. At the edge of town I tucked into a restaurant just a couple minutes before it poured. It is comfy to catch up on my journal, charge my phone and drink coffee while watching the deluge of water pour down the windows like a waterfall.
Sat June 17 : Woke at 5 AM and hiked about 5 miles to get to the bus stop. I caught a bus into Denver to meet the family I will be helping as a nanny on their summer vacation.
Sun June 25 : After having a great time with the family I help I flew back to Denver and was picked up by a friend of a friend, Jane. I went with Jane to her Bible study group and then back to her home.
Mon June 26 : Went to morning church service and then walked around town. Something is wrong with either my camera or the photocard because I am unable to transfer the pictures to a CD. Am enjoying Janes company, it is so easy to get along with people. Jane also has a dear interest in Africa and in helping others, she spent 6 months volunteering in Uganda.
Tue June 27 : Went to mass and then spoke to the rotary.
Wed June 28 : Went with Jane to share my mission with her morning prayer group. I met another friend of Janes, Angela. She is my age and we spent 5 hours talking.
Thur June 29 : Angela picked me up and we went to Boulder. I bought a new fly for my tent and then we went down the street to take a tour of the Celestial Seasonings factory. During the tour we walked into a room filled with spearmint and peppermint, my eyes watered and my sinuses have never felt so open! Later went to Rocky Mountain NP and drove along the ridgeline road. Saw some mountain goats and bighorn sheep.
Fri June 30 : In the morning Angela and her mother dropped me off at the bus stop where I had left off from almost two weeks ago. It feels good to be walking but it is hot and I am going slow.
