Stats

Start: Williams Cabin Site – Mile 1,292.7
End: Butt Mountain Trail – Mile 1,321.6
Elevation Max: 7,970
Elevation Min: 4,249
Elevation Change: 6,656 up & 3,070 down
Walking Time: 8 hrs 44 minutes
Date: 7/6/2022

The Walk

I woke up to people milling around camp. 5 trail workers shared the campsite. They were packing gear up and heading out for the day. They they spend 8 days on trail doing conservatory work then have 6 days off. I thanked them for their work and started walking north.

Last night we knocked out 5 miles and 2,000 feet of the climb out of Belden, which I was thankful for. Only 3,000 feet to go. I started climbing and felt good.

At the festival Boom and Sure Does warned me of a hawk a mile up the trail. It built a nest next to the trail and dive bombs unlucky hikers. No headphones this morning. I was prepared to hold my trekking poles above my head and run as soon as I heard a screech.

I looked around and listened as I walked through the section. I never heard the hawk. A few miles later I caught up with Gushers and Blue. They didn’t get attacked either.

I spent the rest of the day walking through a mix of burns and wildflowers. A lot of people skipped the burnt section of trail. But I wanted to experience it. Obviously it wasn’t as nice as hiking in a forest, and the cracking of dead trees was ominous. But it was still enjoyable. I’ve learned to take the good with the bad.

We got into camp around 9 and I ate a quick dinner and found a flat spot to cowboy camp. It was getting dark and the mosquitos weren’t out.

Tomorrow will be a short day into Chester. We’re going to take it easy for the next week so we will walk into Burney for Gushers birthday on the 11th. After that it’ll be 30+ mile days!

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