19.7 miles today
71.5 miles total
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So I DID NOT get eaten by a bear last night! ? I actually didn’t hear a single sound all night long. Everytime I woke up throughout the night it was completely silent. I didn’t even hear insects. I guess it was so cold, even the bugs had to snuggle up on their bug houses to stay warm ?
This morning was definitely the coldest so far. I get up at 5am so I can be packed and ready to start hiking by 6am. I just love hiking at sunrise, but this morning it was CHILL-Y ❄️
Chatted with and passed a few other thru-hikers today. But we all seem to be going at different places so I haven’t actually hiked with anyone else yet.
The first half of the hike was through a forest sprinkled with aspens (pretty much my favorite tree), but then in the second half of the day, the trail opened up to some pretty spectacular views. You could see everything! Mountains, valleys, towns, storms. At one point I could see 3 rain storms, but none were over me ? It was breathtaking!
Even with the epic views, at about the 17th mile mark, my body was telling me it was done. So I had to give myself a pep talk for the final 3 miles ?. Not to mention my stomach hurt and it looked like at any moment it was about to rain ?
I finally got to my stopping point around 3:30. There was a “restroom” (I use that term loosely, but it beats squatting over a hole), so I was able to take care of my stomach ? Then I found a nice campsite and set up my tent.
The nearly 20 mile day did me in. I had to take a nap before I started all my evening chores (clean, dinner, stretch, etc). I was seriously abo ut to pass out ? I think I’m going to make it an early night. Got to get done sleep so I can summit Georgia Pass tomorrow!
