{"id":2456,"date":"2017-07-24T20:37:12","date_gmt":"2017-07-24T20:37:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/?p=2456"},"modified":"2017-07-31T03:35:50","modified_gmt":"2017-07-31T03:35:50","slug":"the-colorado-trail-day-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/2017\/07\/24\/the-colorado-trail-day-4\/","title":{"rendered":"The Colorado Trail: Day 4"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Our 6:00 wake up call came early to Caden and I as both of us had trouble getting to sleep. \u00a0But we knew that an early start meant cooler temps for hiking, that the mosquitoes were sleeping in and, if we finished our hike today, there was a big juicy burger to be had!! \u00a0When I got out of the tent Joe pointed to our food bag. \u00a0It had moved about 3 or 4 feet with some drag marks leading back to where we had put it the night before. \u00a0Clearly some creature had tried to make off with it. \u00a0I can imagine the thing working so hard to nick it then finally giving up saying, &#8220;you&#8217;ve got to be kidding, what kind of idiots carry THAT much weight in food through the woods.&#8221; \u00a0That would be us!<br \/>\n<a title=\"Starbursts\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/136797225@N05\/35459134863\/in\/album-72157686857938286\/\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/farm5.staticflickr.com\/4322\/35459134863_3d244064cd.jpg\" alt=\"Starbursts\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" \/><\/a><script async src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\nAnyway, we got up and around in record time this morning. \u00a0I think we are just starting to find a rhythym. \u00a0Everyone stashed a few starbursts in their pockets and we were on the trail a little after 7:30. \u00a0We were pretty sure we&#8217;d make it the 6.5 miles to the car and the end of section 10 today.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>Yesterday I had misinterpreted the map and told the boys that there were no more major uphills&#8230;it would all be downhill to the end. \u00a0I was wrong. \u00a0Joe corrected me last night when he looked at the maps but Dacen, while having his pity party about not climbing a 14er, didn&#8217;t hear the correction and was surprised at the long uphill we had first thing this morning. \u00a0However, it was a beautiful climb and Joe presented us with our next homework assignment: our bucket lists.<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;d like to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Build\/fix-up a camper as a completely off-grid rig. \u00a0With the skills from that I&#8217;d like to build a little off-grid cabin somewhere.<\/li>\n<li>Travel the country in our rig promoting a ministry where churches offer RVers free overnight parking. \u00a0When you ask someone where an RVer can park for free overnight I want the common answer to be &#8216;the local church&#8217; rather than &#8216;Walmart&#8217;.<\/li>\n<li>Live in a Spanish speaking country for an extended period (maybe 6 months or so) to serve the local community and to become more proficient in Spanish through immersion. \u00a0I&#8217;d also like to eat avocados everyday!<\/li>\n<li>Ride my bike from coast to coast on the Trans America Trail while Steph follows along in our off-grid\u00a0SAG wagon. \u00a0And\/or do a 7 day self supported bike tour of Colorado which includes bagging a 14er (on foot).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>It was great to hear everyone&#8217;s bucket list items. \u00a0Several of the items the boys mentioned had to do with travel, adventures and outdoors which warmed my heart.<\/p>\n<p>We continued along the trail at a very quick pace as our bodies were beginning to adjust to the rhythm of daily hiking with a load. \u00a0Our muscles were starting to get the hang of it. \u00a0Or, maybe it was that burger calling to us! \u00a0However, since we were finishing a day early that meant we had extra homework today. \u00a0Our final assignment from Joe was to think about one thing you learned on the trail and one action you will take when you get home because of that lesson and\/or to take the first step towards one or more of your goals. \u00a0As usual you get to read about mine here.<\/p>\n<p>To impress the teacher I actually came up with two lessons instead of one. \u00a0First, I learned (again) how much I enjoy being outdoors and working up a sweat. \u00a0So, I would go on a bike ride tomorrow (and each day the rest of the week) which I&#8217;d do outdoors and would work up a sweat and inch me toward my 1 and 5 year goals as well as one of my bucket list items! \u00a0Second, I learned we took too much stuff on this trip and we could cover 7-10 miles a day instead of my original 4-5 mile estimate. \u00a0With this I was going to be sure to document the trip in detail so that I could reference it when planning the next trip (this <a href=\"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/tag\/colorado-trail\/?order=asc\">blog <\/a>is my documentation)<\/p>\n<p>Before we knew it we were at the high point on today&#8217;s trail and we began our final descent to the car. \u00a0We passed the Mt Massive trail turnoff, crossed creeks and passed through meadows moving at a quick pace despite the increasing temperatures. \u00a0Caden was in the lead and we were all deep in discussion about something when all of a sudden we were stopped by a giant fallen tree blocking the trail. \u00a0It was clear that other hikers had crawled underneath the behemoth so we did the same. \u00a0But on the other side the trail started feeling not so well traveled. \u00a0Despite Robert Frost&#8217;s recommendation we decided taking the road less traveled seemed sketchy and we&#8217;d best retrace our steps and look for the other, more traveled one. \u00a0About 20 yards back was a switchback in the trail along with several rocks and logs to block the path that we had taken. \u00a0That&#8217;s right, all 4 of us stepped over the blockade and completely missed the very obvious switchback!! \u00a0We laughed about our mistake but also noted how easy it was to miss the trail in perfect weather and trail conditions. \u00a0How much easier it would be to lose ones way in less ideal conditions!<\/p>\n<p>We bombed down the steep hill and arrived at the Mount Massive trailhead, the end of section 10, about 11:00! \u00a0It felt so good to know that we had hiked some 27 miles over the past 4 days living with just what we carried on our backs! \u00a0We had covered only about 5% of the entire Colorado Trail&#8230;but that was more than any of us had done before. \u00a0We got another hiker to snap a picture of us at the trailhead sign and then changed into clean shirts for the ride to Leadville. \u00a0Can you hear it? \u00a0Those burgers are calling our names!<\/p>\n<p>Our shuttle driver had recommended the Tennessee Pass cafe and so we set our sites on that. \u00a0We found it right on the main drag of Leadville and scored ourselves a table out on the patio. \u00a0We ordered big and messy burgers&#8230;and we ate every last bit of them!!!<br \/>\n<a title=\"Hungry hikers\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/136797225@N05\/35430031794\/in\/album-72157686857938286\/\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/farm5.staticflickr.com\/4298\/35430031794_94d7b307e4.jpg\" alt=\"Hungry hikers\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" \/><\/a><script async src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The drive home went pretty quick until we hit Boulder. \u00a0But even that wasn&#8217;t too bad and we got home mid afternoon and began the long process of unpacking, drying out tents, laundry and cleaning our gear. \u00a0The trip was an absolute success. \u00a0We all stayed safe, we stayed healthy, we ate well, we slept well, we hiked hard, we played hard and we were able to enjoy one another&#8217;s company in God&#8217;s amazing creation. \u00a0It was awesome!!<\/p>\n<p>Have a look at our final pictures of the trip <a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/s\/aHsm5pffS3\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"flickr_72157686857938286_569\"><div class=\"slickr-flickr-slideshow landscape medium \"><div class=\"active\"><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4322\/35459134863_3d244064cd.jpg\" title=\"Starbursts\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Starbursts<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4328\/36128533061_c097cea8cc.jpg\" title=\"Dino poo\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Dino poo<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4323\/35459134423_6efc0c7d04.jpg\" title=\"Eeewwwww\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Eeewwwww<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4312\/36263064965_3ddb7b7293.jpg\" title=\"On the trail\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>On the trail<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4305\/36128531771_741bdd7f11.jpg\" title=\"Resting\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Resting<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4310\/35459133043_7b658f28a6.jpg\" title=\"Hiking\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Hiking<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4305\/36263064765_2994cb06d3.jpg\" title=\"Stream\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Stream<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4291\/36128532601_0fbfcb3532.jpg\" title=\"By a stream\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>By a stream<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4319\/35459133893_27099d06d8.jpg\" title=\"Among the tall pines\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Among the tall pines<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4311\/36128532021_111bfc2a09.jpg\" title=\"Catching up on texts\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Catching up on texts<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4309\/35459133423_4eee98f69b.jpg\" title=\"Finished!\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Finished!<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4298\/35430031794_94d7b307e4.jpg\" title=\"Hungry hikers\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Hungry hikers<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4328\/36128533291_0c854046f7.jpg\" title=\"BIG burger\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>BIG burger<\/p><\/div><\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\">jQuery(\"#flickr_72157686857938286_569\").data(\"options\",{\"delay\":7000,\"autoplay\":true,\"transition\":500,\"link\":\"next\",\"target\":\"_self\",\"width\":\"\",\"height\":\"\"});<\/script><div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Our 6:00 wake up call came early to Caden and I as both of us had trouble getting to sleep. \u00a0But we knew that an early start meant cooler temps for hiking, that the mosquitoes were sleeping in and, if we finished our hike today, there was a big juicy burger to be had!! \u00a0When [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes"},"categories":[7],"tags":[77,102],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2456"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2456"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2456\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2460,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2456\/revisions\/2460"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2456"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2456"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2456"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}