Tales of the Trail: Exhausted and Elated

 

What a week.

A few months ago we were talking about hopping on a plane around this time and heading to Canada. I still get emails updating me on the cost of that tracked flight. We ended up ditching those plans (we hardly ever stick to plans) because we could spend less money and be able to to take the dog if we drove to Colorado. We sat down with adventure guides and good friends who have spent several seasons working in the mountains to get an idea of what we wanted our vacation to look like. (Check out that interview here.)

Over the next several weeks I told people I was going to Colorado, however I didn’t know many other details because I’d left all the planning to Jackson.

We started our vacation headed in the opposite direction; worth it, because we drove to Springfield, MO, our previous home to participate in the St. Jude Walk/Run to End Childhood Cancer. After the run, we headed West. We spent one night somewhere in Kansas camped behind the car before arriving in Colorado Sunday evening. Sunday night we camped at the Angel of Shavano Campground where we found out the campsite was closing for the season on the following day. Good thing we were only staying one night.

We dined on our Good To-Go meals, wine and beer while discussing our “quick and easy” ascent of Mt. Shavano in the morning. It would be our first 14er and we planned for an early start. Quick and easy was a fantasy. We started our trek just before 6 a.m. and by the time the sun was rising we had just barely begun to understand what we had gotten ourselves into.

We walked up. And up. And just when I thought I saw the summit, we rounded another bend and kept going up. As we broke above tree line the wind started to howl and snow pelted our faces. We crouched beneath what might be our last pice of shelter while waiting for the spike in weather to pass. Kona looked up at us accusingly.

When blue sky returned we kept whiking. Up, up, up. I’m pretty clumsy all on my own so add a steep incline and some loose rock and I creep along like a sloth while Jackson and Kona scamper ahead and periodically stop to wait on me. The wind blasted us and we decided it was time to leave the packs behind while we clambered up the final stretch to the top. Upon arrival I snapped a few photos of Jackson and he did the same of me before the phone decided it was too cold and turned off of it’s own accord.

We trudged down; windburned, dehydrated and hungry. By the time we were back in the trees my legs screamed similar to the way they had in the second half of my marathon. I rammed my trekking poles into the ground; in part hoping they’d take some of the impact off my aching knees and in part out of frustration at the mountain. Kona would walk ahead, then stop in front of us hoping to slow us down. We stopped to talk to a fellow hiker and Kona nearly fell asleep in the dirt.

I was angry when we reached Lipe Meadow and stopped to rest; sour because we had underestimated the mountain and bitter about my aching muscles. However, coffee and bland oatmeal by a trickling stream returned me quickly to good spirits.

We slept off our fatigue in Twin Lakes, a tiny little village winding down from it’s busy season. I was astounded to find my legs ready for a run the next day, though “run” should be used loosely here because we walked up all the steep inclines. Golden aspens and the sparkling Twin Lakes rewarded our dedication to training as we put in miles on the Continental Divide Trail.

At Twin Lakes our Windspirit Cabin was cozy, comfortable, warm, right next door to a general store and it offered an incredible view. We opted to stay another night in paradise to rest up for our venture to see Maroon Bells and trek Four Pass Loop.

The Maroon Bells are the most photographed peaks in Colorado. Because of this, and due to a relatively small parking lot, the park requires you to take a bus unless you arrive before 8 a.m. or after 5p.m. We didn’t know this. Luckily (and by this I mean what a truly wonderful blessing) we happened to have a friend in Aspen who found out we were in the area via social media (it’s good for something!) and showed us the ropes on parking free and then using the bus system to navigate our way to the start of our route. Just before noon on Wednesday we started what would be the longest overnight trek of mine and Kona’s lives (and a wee little baby distance for Jackson).

Over the next 27 miles we would climb through four mountain passes. Kona collapsed in every stream and at every grand view, oblivious as to why we wouldn’t take breaks to roll in the grass but would stop to stare at the mountains for minutes on end. We spent one night in the cold, snuggled together with puppy dog breath greeting us each time we awoke. As we ate dinner before going to sleep and when we scarfed down breakfast in the chilly morning, Kona sat at attention, keeping guard and hesitant to eat her own meal while there was so much to protect us from.

On our second day we walked on, logging miles more quickly after lunch at Snowmass Lake. I made the suggestion that we could finish that day. As much as I love hiking, I do not love camping. It’s worth it, when you need to, but if we could finish our trail and get to a shower then I could pump my sore legs a little faster.

We finished our trek at 4:45 p.m. just in time to catch the final bus back to Aspen and our car. We made it back to cell reception and as I hobbled on sore legs towards the line to catch our next bus I checked my email for a message I’d been waiting on for over a week. I saw “Boston Registration” in the subject line and caught my breath. I opened the email to find out that my qualifying time had missed entry to the 2019 Boston Marathon by 6 seconds. I might have cried a little, and Jackson hugged me tight while I fought off the sadness deepened by exhaustion.

We booked another night at our beloved Windspirit Cabins to sleep off the accumulation of nearly 50 trail miles over the previous four days and drove the mountain pass back from Apsen to Twin Lakes. We slept dang good.

The next morning, we soaked our sore muscles in the hot springs at Mt. Princeton.

We rested ourselves in Salida, the town that was home to our pals Morgan and Kyle through several seasons of river and mountain guiding. We window shopped, ate good food, and enjoyed the coolness of morning and warmth of the afternoon on the patio of the Simple Lodge and Hostel.

I hope I’ve made all of this sound as wonderful as it has been, but I know I haven’t been able to describe how difficult it has been as well.

We climbed our first 14,000ft + mountain shortly after getting to Colorado with little time to acclimate to the altitude. We trail ran on sore, tired legs. We hiked 27.2 miles with  over 8,000 feet of total elevation gain. I suffered a badly sore knee and we had to constantly apply wax to Kona’s paws to help with the damage the trail was causing. Jackson filtered icy water in the wee hours of the morning so that we could rehydrate and eat a good meal.

The trail is not always easy, but I think it is most certainly always worth it. We are exhausted and elated from our trip; simultaneously tired and refreshed.

We said farewell to the mountains this morning, but we’re already making plans to go back.