When hard gets even harder…

Day 9: Flagstaff to Protected-from-the-wind-spot with “Ratagast” (Jason): 33 miles

It was such a lovely, calm, brisk morning with beautiful trails and a few dirt roads. I didn’t see any cars or humans getting out of Flagstaff, which is kind of incredible. There was a tiny feeder trail from the door of my hotel room so it was pretty cool to slip out and be right on a single track trail!

I had gotten a massage in Flagstaff to try to loosen up my scapula and shoulder muscles that are causing my locked up neck range-of-motion pain, and the therapist was a bit blown away by how tight it was. They use every tool in their arsenal to loosen up those muscles, including some KT tape which definitely feels supportive. I remembered some of my cycling friends telling me about a woman who rode across America and lost her ability to hold her head up due to severe neck muscle fatigue on the bike and she secured her braid to her bra to hold her head up for her. I braided my hair this morning, and tucked the two braids into my bra straps, hoping this might help pull my head back and keep my head above my shoulders, but I think I actually need to fasten them to my bra somehow to make this strategy more impactful.

My lungs continue to worsen a tiny bit each day as my breathing is pretty shallow and my voice quality compromised. No doubt the heater in the hotel room exacerbated the issue, but at least I’m not having full on attacks, so the lungs are still hanging on and at bay. I have a pulmonologist appointment back in Austin after the hike to get some testing done to try to understand the root cause and better treat my respiratory system for long-term health.

In an effort to carry more of my weight on my hips and relieve some of the weight from my shoulders, which is kind of impossible to do fully with a pack this heavy, my hips are now feeling the weight and compression of my hip belt. I expect to experience more soreness in my hip bones. My pack is at its heaviest for this five day stretch to the Grand Canyon because I am carrying my iPad and charger as well as five days of food instead of four like all the other stretches. I carefully mapped out my water sources for this next stretch to try to not needlessly carry and hoard water because I cannot afford extra pounds for this stretch.

There are, however, a 35-mile and 29-mile water carrying stretches in the northern part of this section. I am glad I ordered a new water filter and got some additional water bags to be able to carry clean water and not have the filtering process take eons. This also means a bit more weight because I am carrying all components of my Sawyer filter with me. I also had to make a very tough decision this morning to leave behind one of my carefully made sandwiches. My pack is basically out of room and feels like it is beyond capacity and while I had made two sandwiches to carry out, I made the call to only bring one with me. RIP delicious vegan Whole Foods sandwich with cucumber, heirloom tomato and Bibb lettuce. :( I HATE food waste so much. I have to hope the housekeepers at the hotel are going to consume the food left behind and not throw it away.

As I began the 15 mile climb out of Flag, I noticed the snow on Humphries Mountain had melted a lot in the last few days, which means hopefully the water sources are getting a little bit of snow melt to replenish them. (And hopefully the mud has dried up by now!)

Forecast for today tomorrow and the next day looks to be incredibly windy (24 MPH winds most of the day with gusts > 40 MPH). This could take a toll on my lungs as it means dry and dusty air, but the good news is it looks to be a tail/crosswind so at least it is not looking like it will be a direct headwind. But 25 mph winds consistently for three days will certainly be something to contend with. I guess I choose wind over mud and snow. (Not like I have a choice).

Feet and legs feel so good from having the rest time. A blister I didn’t even know was there underneath one of my little toes had time to dry out while I was working in my hotel room. I painted on a new layer of new skin on my toes in an effort to combat more potential blisters.

I am starting out today in pants because the UV sunlight is pretty extreme and sunburn is a real possibility. My legs are pretty dry and ashy and while I bought packets of coconut oil at Whole Foods, I quickly ran out and my legs are in need of way more moisturizing to repair the dry and burnt skin. It has been itchy at times.

I didn’t realize I would be climbing up to > 9,000 feet today. My lungs felt it above 7,600’. I was needing more breaks and feeling much more fatigued. Wind was blowing but I was in the trees, so not really an issue, but I could hear it. I just felt out of breath and slow. Lungs hurt and burned. The out of breath feeling was annoying and constant at such high altitude.

Right after my water stop and much needed break 15 miles into the day at Alfa Fia Tank, I began slowly plodding along. I was stopped and taking a picture in a meadow when another AZT hiker came from behind me! This never happens and I welcomed the surprise company! I met 33 y/o “Ratagast” and we hiked the rest of the day together. He said I was the only hiker he’s met who could keep up w him (and vice versa) and claimed I was the fastest hiker out here (and also carried the heaviest gear). He commented repeatedly, “If you went ultralight with your gear you would be flying! But clearly the weight isn’t holding you back.” I have considered getting lighter with my gear, but I like/need warmth and comfort to sleep so I can get appropriate recovery. Many of these dudes “run hot” and are fine with a lightweight 40-deg sleeping bag, while I’m barely warm enough in my 10-deg bag. I’m also not interested in an ultralight, frameless pack, because they are very limited in how much weight they can carry. I like to have the option to carry more water without worrying about compromising the integrity of my pack. Also, the comfort of having a mesh back panal for ventilation keeps me from getting insane back sweat, the load lifters distribute the weight more evenly and bring the pack closer to my body for a more balanced carry, and Osprey as a company provides a lifetime warranty and has replaced my bag maybe 4 times over the years. I’m also not entirely willing to change my tent system. I like having a rain fly because it reduces condensation and my tent is so easy to set up anywhere (and is freestanding). Of course a lighter pack would be nicer in my body, but I’m genuinely not sure how to accomplish that (and I’m not sure I want to invest hundreds or thousands of dollars to upgrade and lighten my gear). So, I’m on the “heavier” side when it comes to pack weight out here (especially for hikers who throw down big mileage days and carry as much water as I do).

Ratagast and I chatted and walked together for many miles. I was out of breath, but eventually we began descending and with the elevation loss, I gained some lung capacity back. We both had thought we would be ending our day at mile marker 618.2 ( a TH and water cache) for a 25-26 mile day. But we got to that spot pretty early in the day and it was unbearably windy, so we just kept hiking. And hiking some more. And eventually, the beautiful pine forest disappeared with camp spots galore and we were on a rough dirt road with lumpy ground and shrubbery.

We eventually found a spot with semi-flat and smooth spots protected from the howling wind to call home. The bottoms of my feet and heels were hurting and felt a bit like hot spots. But it was nice to finish 33-34 miles in less than 12 hours!

The conversation and company of another hiker made the day fly by. The terrain wasn’t bad and after the big 15 mile climb, the rest of the day was mellow and non-technical. The wind was insane in exposed areas but we were sheltered in trees most of the day. Super grateful to have found a camp spot out of the wind.

This was the third night I camped with someone and third time I had a camp fail! (The first time I thought I lost my filter, 2nd time I thought I lost my “important things” bag).  There was so much talking and distraction at camp I forgot I placed my ramen to cook in boiling water inside my sleeping bag (which I always do). I was milling about doing miscellaneous camp chores and when I came back to my tent to organize my things, I mindlessly shoved my sleeping bag over and the ramen spilled in my sleeping bag! Major fail!

I had a small quick-dry chamois rag and attempted to soak up the puddle in the middle of my new sleeping bag  but it made a marginal difference. I was then able to dump the rest of the puddle outside of my tent. I kept wiping it “dry” and figured I could sleep with the bag inside out. Arizona is so dry that by the time I was going to sleep it had dried completely — phew! I usually stick my pot in my sleeping bag to insulate the pot and expedite the cooking process without having to have my stove on and also helps warm up my sleeping bag. I have always worried about this type of accident, but it had never happened before because I usually stay vigilant! Ooops!

I struggled to eat all my ramen  and it was a chore, but I eventually got it all down over the course of what seemed like two hours. My first dinner back on trail after filling up in town seems to be more challenging to finish.

Day 10 camping spot with Ratagast to Moqui Stage Station: 33.4 miles

I did not sleep last night! I was so bummed because for the first time and what seemed like forever I was completely comfortable temperature-wise and also completely comfortable with the ground. My body wasn’t aching. My toes weren’t aching. My neck was even fine. All the conditions were right to have a wonderful night’s sleep. I even had a super long hiking day, so that should have made me more tired. But instead, something kept me up all night.

I had been reading comments on FarOut as I was going to sleep looking for camp spots for the next day and the camp spot 25 miles ahead was filled with comments about a very bold and aggressive rat who even tried to crawl up a woman’s leg to get into her tent with her as she was getting into her tent!Another comment told of how this rat chewed off someone’s pole straps and carried them away! All night I kept hearing what sounded like a creature nearby and I would make a little hissing sounds, clap my hands, and turn on my headlamp and make a lot of noise to try to scare it away. I kept checking in my vestibule and never saw anything.

Nothing worked, so I kind of just assumed maybe it was in my head. Maybe it was the wind blowing my rain fly vestibule and it was just making rustling sounds as it rushed my pack, so I tried to just like cover my ears with my sleeping bag so I could get some sleep and try to get it out of my head and not think about it. But it just kept waking me up all night and I really never slept.

Right as I began hiking, I noticed instantly that this rodent creature who had been chilling by my tent, chewed off my pole straps and carried them away, rendering my poles mostly useless! This happens sometimes and I’ve heard of rodents that chew up people‘s pole straps or cork pole handles because of the salt and I guess my straps had salt from my hands. Out here in the desert, any animal is looking for salt.

I use my pole straps religiously because there’s leverage and you don’t have to grip the handles. They just aren’t as useful sans straps unless you need them for stability in a technical area, but as far as just taking a little pressure off of my feet and propelling me along with good form and posture, the straps are critical!

Luckily, I only have 73 miles left to the Grand Canyon of what seems to be fairly flat and easy terrain. I think I will be okay. However, I definitely would want my poles in full functioning for the Grand Canyon!

I’m so grateful I am meeting up with a friend from Denver who is going to  run rim to rim to rim in the Grand Canyon (we are coordinating hotel, dates, and starting together). I called him this morning when I had a blip of service and he was able to buy some replacement poles at REI Denver and plans to bring them out for me to the Grand Canyon!

Because I was up so early and had no sleep, I left Camp as Ratagast was packing up. I assumed I would catch him at the water stop in 4.5 miles as I will need to fill up with quite a bit of water there for a long 28-35 mile carry.

If there were still gallons left at a water cache I could end my day at the cache for a 33-ish mile day. Judging by our pace and the ease of the trail yesterday, I think that should be no problem. However, not having poles in what appears to be much more exposed terrain might pose some e challenges with the wind later in the morning/rest of the day. The wind patterns usually pick up around 10:00 am and die down with sunset.

The terrain that morning was a dirt road with wide open fields with desert “grasses” and little short cedar shrubs. We also hiked around many wind turbines, which is not exactly what you want to see when hiking because that means we’re in a wind tunnel where there is consistent and predictable wind.

I missed the pine trees of the day before and I hoped that in the coming days we would be able to get some reprieve from the wind with a forest!

Yesterday I forgot to put my phone on airplane mode, which drained my battery entirely as it was searching for service. I charged it last night and I should be good to go, however, this is a longer stretch than the previous stretches and we are expecting to have much colder nights, so the batteries don’t tend to do so well in the cold temps.

But today was warm. By 6:00 AM it was already feeling warm. Yikes!

Ratagast arrived at the spring while I was filling up with water and we chatted. I washed my feet and my ramen rag, although neither seemed to make a difference at all.

Ratagast and I walked together for the next 9 miles chatting. It was so nice to have company and conversation. The section was pretty mundane and barren, with a double track dirt road.

Ratagast hikes faster than I do, but I don’t have any issues keeping up. His pack is ultralight and he only grabbed 2.5 L of water, while I grabbed 4.5L. I would rather have a heavy pack than fall behind on hydration. But the heavy pack came with consequences. Trying to keep up with Ratagast and carrying way more weight than him stressed my feet out both yesterday and today. I was already staring the day with some residual hot spots from the day before and realized I may need to slow down a bit and eat a bunch of my food and drink a bunch of my water to save my feet.

We took a mid morning break under the first and last tree-ish tree we would see for a very long time. After that break we began climbing and the wind picked up. Significantly. Just as the forecast had predicted. We dealt with 22-24 MPH crosswind and extreme gusts for the rest of the day. It was so loud and it was way too difficult to talk. Ratagast maintained his clip but I eased up and walked my own pace. We eventually drifted apart and it was just me and the wind and the wide open prairie.

Throughout the day I saw more hikers than I have seen this entire time combined. But I still walked alone and was never so close to anyone that we were walking together (or even seeing each other).

The expansive, exposed, windy monotony of the day gave me room to feel some feelings. I had a sad afternoon. It seemed as though the copious amounts of salt and water I had been consuming and obsessing about to keep me alive out here just all of a sudden expelled in the form of tears. Streams of tears for hours. I just let some hard stuff go and I grieved and I processed and I reckoned.

A lot of this had to do with a deep reckoning that I am doing this life alone. With just me. That I’m not anyone’s “person” or number one top priority. And while I don’t feel lonely on trail, much of this had to do with visualizing events and big moments in my future and realizing at the core, I’m alone for what’s to come. Being on trail continues to feel like a safe harbor from loneliness, but maybe that is because I’m so disconnected from other humans, it’s impossible to feel lonely?

I was visualizing “double SCAR” (the 150 mile FKT in the Smoky Mountains I want to attempt for my 40th birthday year a few weeks after the AZT). Visualization and planning mentally is critical for huge efforts. This would be my furthest run and the elevation gain and technical trails of the AT are not comparable to anything in the west. I was visualizing the rhododendron blooms and imagining the hot humidity of the east coast in June. I imagined myself power hiking out of Fontana Gap and again up and out of Davenport Gap 75 miles later. I imagined the beautiful rugged ridge running in between and wondered to myself where I would be during the night. I visualized blowing past Climgman’s Dome (the tallest peak on the east coast) because it would be an off-trail detour not needed. And then, when I visualized myself running down the nice groomed switchbacks back down to Fontana Dam, and turning my watch off, I began crying. I couldn’t finish the visualization.

I knew if I made it back to Fontana Dam 150 miles later, I would be changed. I would have dug so deep to be the toughest version of me ever. And when it’s all over, all I could imagine was an enormous energetic exhale with tears.

But my tears today on trail were about the realization that I would have no one at the finish line to hold me as I cried. I felt sad to be recognizing a milestone birthday which I have been dreading (due to my biological clock and hopes and dreams of still having a family one day) marked with my biggest effort of all time and no one to witness it. But sadder yet, no one’s arms to collapse into and no one to be nearby and on call, watching to ensure my safety out there in case I need to be extracted during the effort.

Finish line energy is a big act of letting go and no longer needing to be tough and strong for a bit. It is a moment when you can truly let go and let someone else think for you and tend to you. Working hard and then having the feeling of support, in a witness, in a hug, in someone helping you take care of your immediate needs and taking over the mental load of keeping you alive is something I crave in general, but especially at the end of a big undertaking.

Visualizing double SCAR and the finish line felt like a metaphor for my entire life. How can I finish something like that and release and cry alone? I can’t! I would have to keep going and think about food, water, first aid, transportation to a shower and bed, logistics galore…and I wouldn’t get to surrender my livelihood and suspend my brain for a brief moment of relief and celebration and lean on another to help me. So I walked and had some serious tears about how I am just living this life alone. There are many micro finish lines in the day-to-day, but it doesn’t feel as obvious as something like Double SCAR, so maybe I set out to do things like this to reveal to myself my reality so I can accept it and not feel stuck in the “hoping” or “waiting.” This expansive afternoon of greats allowed me to grieve my dream of having my person and a family. Grief is so important to feel and move through and there are no short cuts.

And with this feeling of “it’s just me at the end of the day” I have to keep going and going and going. With only me. And my hiking mimicked this energy. And the more I felt the pain inside my heart, the more I hiked. I became a machine. The harder it got, the more I pushed and the more I hiked which made it harder and my hike was turning into an almost addictive cycle of pain gluttony.

My FEET HURT. So much. I finally stopped to address them with moleskin and tape under a tiny shade tree, but they still burned so badly afterwards and I’m pretty sure the moleskin immediately slid off and was now rubbing and likely causing new blisters

and issues.

I can’t overstate how sunny, exposed, and windy today was. The wind kept beating me down and the more uncomfortable and hard the conditions got, the more I just leaned into my poles and hamstrings. The conditions weren’t as bad as the snow and mud as wind didn’t require copious amounts of focus, it was just a constant beating. So without having to focus so much, I was given the gift of time and space to feel into my sadness and just be with it. Eventually, I called my mom and expressed some of my stuff to her and at the end I finally told her, “I can’t afford to lose anymore salt or water out here! These tears have to stop! I don’t have reserve!” But they kept coming until I ran out of tears.

I finished my 33.3 mile day with tons of daylight left and will to keep walking but my feet were NOT HAVING IT! I probably pushed them too hard.

I have WAAAAY too much food and I can’t wait to drop some stuff off when I get to the Grand Canyon. My pack is heavy with all this food for a 5-day carry and my iPad (and some gear I just don’t need).

Set up tent. Feet throbbed like crazy. I brought everything inside the tent tonight to ward off rodents. It was a colder night.

Feeling these feelings fully felt harder for me than any of the physical challenges of way-finding in the snow, trudging through endless mud, dealing with aching feet, enduring ridiculous heat, or being beat down relentlessly by the wind. These sad and existential feelings were the hardest thing I had to deal with out here and there was nothing anyone, including myself could do to alleviate it. I just had to feel what I felt for as long as I needed to feel it.

Overall, I am grateful to have had the space to feel my feelings fully, process them, release them, and move through them literally and figuratively.

Day 11 Moqui Stage Station to Tusayan: 30.4 miles

I woke up early and took my time as I knew I didn’t really have anywhere to be and I should probably slow down quite a bit. I wanted to calmly and thoroughly address my feet while in the warmth of my sleeping bag before putting my shoes on this morning. I took about an hour from the time I got up until I hit the trail and with some new moleskin applied and a new pair of socks my feet felt OK this morning. It’s hard to tell if they are just numb from the cold or if the pain has subsided some, probably a combination of both.

I was able to get my morning smoothie down with ease along with some salt tabs and I enjoyed the absolutely gorgeous pine trees and easy trail with the sunrise this morning. It was very cold and hovering right above freezing when I woke up at 4:30 AM. My hands were sooo cold and tonight the low is 26°.

I didn’t want to get too close to the Grand Canyon because nothing opens in Tusayan until 11 AM and then I would be stuck in the Grand Canyon Village and I might have better food options in Tusayan than in the village. But I was also anxious to take a shower and be warm.

My feet were SO dirty. It’s hard to do blister maintenance when the feet are covered in dirt that doesn’t easily wipe away. My pack felt more comfortable today because I did take more time trying to pack it more thoughtfully and evenly and distribute my weight and a more balanced way. Sometimes I just stuff things in and it is lopsided so the way I packed it this morning felt more even and compact. I definitely still have way too much food, including some heavy food items.

I think I am the first one to have gotten started from camping area this morning, but I’m aware there is a whole group of people behind me which is kind of comforting (this hike has been SO desolate).

There were water stops, both 6 miles and 12 miles into the day, but because I was carrying 1.5 L I planned on it lasting me to the 12-mile mark since it was so cold and I drink a liter this morning before I left camp in the form of my smoothie. That water stop at mile 12 should last me all the way to Tusayan, which is about 29 miles.

Emotionally, I felt calm, steady, and ready to take on the day. I didn’t feel especially high or powerful or strong, but I didn’t feel slow, dragging, or sad. I didn’t feel numb either (which can sometimes happen with emotional hangovers). I felt present and good.

It was interesting how I was able to unplug mentally from work while hiking now. The first few days, even the first week, I was still thinking about work quite a bit while I was hiking. But at this point I realized I was able to unplug fully, even though I will occasionally meditate on a student or their path and have some new ideas for them.

I like that I have been able to wear pants for three days as it protects my legs from the sun and helps keep some dirt at bay. It is so shocking how much dirt still gets on my legs and feet between a layer of pants and socks. It was also nice to have three different pockets in my pants to put gloves, wrappers, or just other random supplies in. It made for easy access to stuff that I’m not able to do when I wear my shorts. However, these pants have seen many trails and are getting pretty worn thin and are also at this point just way too big and falling down. I have to use my hip straps on the backpack as a belt to keep them up.

I think getting a solid seven hours of uninterrupted sleep last night made a huge difference for me and how I’m starting my day. Some of the emotional turmoil of yesterday may have also been due to sleep deprivation as the critter chewing on my pole straps all night kept me awake, alert, and on edge. The night prior, I didn’t really get any sleep because my legs and feet were so achy and tender it was hard to find a good position.

My neck seems to be slowly improving, and while I still have limited range of motion and it is uncomfortable, the pain is more dull and less acute and sharp, which is a good sign. I have been trying to be a lot more cognizant of my posture on trail, although it is pretty challenging with such a heavy pack.

Today my pack felt so reasonable weight-wise, which makes me feel a lot more confident moving forward as I don’t need to carry as much when I leave the Grand Canyon and I only have one more big water carry left before the Grand Canyon.

I have not done water reconnaissance north of the Grand Canyon yet, however, I do think there is still some snow melt creeks and ponds and pools around the north rim area and there might even still be snow up there, but I am not sure. I am grateful my neck pain is subsiding, but it is certainly something I need to address when I get back to Austin as the knots are definitely still there and the backpacking doesn’t help.

I had a very difficult time breathing last night, which also made me feel a bit anxious as I was trying to fall asleep. I think the coughing and dryness of my airways was negatively impacted by the severe wind all day, and most likely inhaling quite a bit of dust with that wind. I tried to bury myself in my sleeping bag to warm up the air. Every breath of cold air last night felt uncomfortable and I had a burning sensation in my lungs. I started to worry about the Canyon and finishing, because last night was the worst. Luckily, this morning my lungs don’t burn as badly and my breathing is slightly improved but still not great.

Today is still supposed to be a very windy day, and unlike the prior days, the wind was aggressive from the get go (usually the AZ wind pattern is strong from around 10 AM until sunset). I really hope that the pine trees of the morning continue later in the day so they shield some of the wind and protect my lungs a little bit.

Dark ominous clouds covered the sun and made the morning cooler and I hiked in my puffy jacket and many layers throughout the day.

A few hours into my morning I started feeling nauseous and a bit lightheaded. My chest felt like someone was pressing down on it constantly with all their weight.

I stopped to go to the bathroom and started my period. Noooo! I took some Aleve, but the headache, intense fatigue, and nausea to the brink of vomit continued. Luckily, I did not have major cramps… but the hip belt never feels good on the uterus when you’re having a period.

Absolutely nothing sounded appetizing at all. I was moving slowly, one in front of the other. I didn’t take any breaks until I was 20 miles into my day. I laid down on my Z Rest and took a one hour break.

After my break the weather turned and so did my symptoms. I started to realize Tusayan was in striking distance and with the 25 MPH winds, quickly dropping temps, and dark clouds above, I knew I needed to be in a bathtub and out of the wind.

I was beyond fatigued and there were some miles where I was sleep walking… like actually. I would close my eyes for 20-30 seconds to relax and doze off a little and then blink them open and then close them again. I could feel with my feet where the trail was and somehow managed to stay on trail, upright, and walking at a good pace. The miles after lunch were characterized by constant helicopter sounds.

Eventually the weather became unbearable and I took a tiny trail detour on a dirt road into Tusayan to save 2 miles and get to a hotel before things became unsafe. I was freezing. It began snowing on me. I went from 10k to 5k quickly. Moving as fast as I could. Snow turned to rain and then back to snow again. I was walking straight into a headwind and because my neck hurt so much I couldn’t look down to avoid it so my face just took the whipping as I charged down the dirt road.

At one point I was offered a ride and I declined. I was only 2 miles from town and didn’t want to have to come back to that spot the next day or skip a tiny section. I knew I would make it, so I pressed on.

This day was filled with growing apathy. I just couldn’t be bothered to address any ailments. I could hardly eat, my nausea and headache caused me to feel a bit disassociated and all I can say was I was overcome with complete apathy. For everything.

Finally, about 1.5 miles left to go, the sun came out and the wind calmed and the snow stopped. My adrenaline chilled out since the weather was no longer dangerous and I could no longer hike with all my might to get to town. Adrenaline is an amazing drug. I wanted to sit down on the side of the trail and give my feet a little break, but I worried if I stopped I wouldn’t be able to start again. I needed to get to town and get food, a shower, and be in a warm hotel room.

I finally made it to Tusayan! Town chores commenced before I could relax: food, call parents, laundry, shower. When I went to turn over the laundry I realized I was so blasted when I went that I accidentally put my quarters in the dryer machine instead of the washer. Ugh. Instead of getting more quarters, I used my dryer quarters to wash and felt stubborn and annoyed about the mistake that I hung my wet clothes in my room and hoped for them to air dry (which they mostly did).

I was so grateful to not be in a tent that night as the temperature was insanely frigid outside and the wind scary.

Day 12: Tusayan to Grand Canyon Village Near-o: 6.2 miles

I slept in and showered and ran the shower about once an hour just to make the room humid. I slept in my sleeping bag so I didn’t have to turn the heater on to help my lungs a little. I stayed in bed until after 9:00 AM (which is like hiker noon). I asked for late check out and relaxed in my room in the warmth until 1:00 PM. I called the Maswik hotel in the GC village (where I would by syncing up with Zach and his friend from Denver for their R3 run) and somehow managed to get a free night added to the reservation (worth like $399/night) so I could arrive a day early! Yay for my Sprout charm!

I walked the paved path from Tusayan to the GC villiage and met a hiker from France named Little Mermaid. We chatted and walked together and then parted ways once we got to Mather Campground at the  Grand Canyon. OMG I WAS SO EXCITED TO BE AT THE GRAND CANYON!!! I had a bunch of work to do, but reaching the climax of this trail was truly emotional. It felt as if all the miles, sore feet, weather conditions, and heartaches was leading up to this very moment. I was in awe and in shock. I couldn’t believe I had walked all the way here.

The trail wasn’t over, but crossing the canyon plus 75 miles to the border felt like the grand finale to this whole thing and I started to feel some sense of pride and excitement. The challenges from before seemed to dissipate like distant memories and I knew that with a little rest and warmth, I would be ready for the last 100 miles.