Stats
Start: Forest Road – Mile 83
End: Red Bank Well – Mile 113
Elevation Max: 5.428
Elevation Min: 3,400
Elevation Change: 2,995 up & 4,787 down
Average Heart Rate: 116
Walking Time: 9 hrs 27 minutes
The Walk
I’m laying in the middle of the Arizona desert. My body hurts. I’m exhausted. I hiked 30 miles today. What the heck was I thinking? Between finding water and then finding a decent campsite, we hiked from dawn till dusk.
This morning I rolled over and saw 5:00 on my watch. It was time to start moving. I had a decent sleep. The exhaustion must be forcing my body and mind to accept sleeping in a tent. I slept for 4-5 hours in total. I stole a backpacking tip from salsa and slid my extra clothes under my air mattress as a pillow. My pillow situation went from 1 star to 4 star.
As I got out of my sleeping bag I noticed just how chilly it was. The outside of my bag was damp. And there were shiny crystals all over my tent. It frosted last night. Brrr.
I wasn’t going to warm up sitting in damp gear. The best options was to start walking. Plus we had 15 miles to water and I drink less water when it’s cold. So I threw on an extra layer, packed up camp, grabbed an apple from the trail magic and hit the trail.
My body felt relaxed and strong. I was relieved nothing hurt from the day before. I hiked 5 miles in my puffy before the sun rose and warmed me up.
At 11:30 we had 15 miles done and got to a large, muddy lake. I used other hiker’s footprints to avoid the marshy areas where I’d sink in. The water had plenty of hiker lettuce, but it filtered clean and tasted okay. After lunch and 3 liters of water in my pack I was ready to keep moving.
In the late afternoon we made it to interstate 10. The trail turns into a tunnel that goes below the interstate. Rumors warned that a large rattlesnake lived at the end of the tunnel. The tunnel was dark and sandy. Salsa and I were keeping an eye out for snakes as we walked through the long tunnel and out the other side. I even used my phone flashlight to help. We found the biggest rattlesnake in Arizona on the other side and we shared a laugh.
The desert had turned greener after highway 10, but I was too tired to notice. My legs stiffened up at mile 27.5 miles. Thank god we hit our water source, a nice creek at 28 miles. I was ready to find a camping spot. But the only things in site were desert bushes, rocks, and cactus. No flat spots to sleep. We kept walking and walking. And walking some more. I thought there would be a spot at mile 29 by a fence, but we got there and nothing. I was exhausted but there was nothing we could do. Except walk.
Finally at 30 miles we saw a flat spot without large rocks. It was good enough. The sun was setting so I turned on my headlamp for night chores. I used the rest of my energy to kick big rocks off the my spot and immediately set up camp. I knew as soon as I stopped moving I’d be too sore to move around. After setting up my sleeping system I grabbed Raman noodles and beef jerky and hobbled over to Salsa’s spot for dinner.
Raman tasted great. Hunger is the best flavor. It was chilly and the warm meal was nice. I had a spicy rice and bean rehydrated meal that was not nice to my stomach last night. So the soup was a nice change. There is no way I replaced all the calories I burned today. But oh well.
Tomorrow we are headed to Colossal Cave. It has a cafe. And I will eat as much as I can. I’m going to bed excited. We only plan to hike 20 miles tomorrow, so it should be a day to recharge. It will be a welcome relief after days of 26 and 30 miles. My body will appreciate the rest.
My body is fatigued and sore all over. But I feel stronger than I ever have. Mentally and physically, the outdoors is fuel for my soul.
I hope this will be my first full nights sleep in trail. I think I’m tired enough to sleep anywhere.
