Day 18: North towards Malpais

Mileage: 31.2 miles (319.9-351.1)

I got an early start after saying goodbye to Problem Bear and Natty. I had to carry a good amount of water because the first available wouldn't be for another 16 miles. Again, I'd be on dirt roads most of the day, which was definitely starting to get old!

It was a pretty clear day and the sun was strong. I had packed out a mini pecan pie from town and couldn't resist eating the whole thing on my first rest break. It was wonderful, just loaded with pecans, though the crust was a tad dry and lacked the real buttery goodness (I bake, okay?). I reached the water source, Thomas Mountain Ranch, by 1pm and was greeted by Anzie and John Thomas, who had to be the cutest couple I've met on the CDT. 

They've been married since Anzie was fourteen (she lied about her age) and now it's been well over 60 years. After seeing so many 'No Trespassing' signs it was wonderful to see a couple of ranchers who were so welcoming to hikers and willing to share their water and good humor. 

Anzie gave me a tour of their sheet metal house which resembled one of those big hangars for combines and other farm equipment you see back in Nebraska. The house was complete with a late 19th century stove, more kitchen aides than I've ever seen, and a giant American flag Anzie bought right after 9/11. She apparently beat four others to the flag at a thrift shop right after the plane hit the first tower. Fox News blared in the background about same sex marriage and I knew I should probably keep my views to myself.

After snapping a photo I headed out back on the trail, sad I couldn't stay longer. I was doing an amalgam of the alternate and official CDT route because I did want to see Malpais (an area with significant volcanic activity in the past), but I didn't want to do the 50 mile paved road walk to get there. 

So, I did about 27 miles on back roads (the Cebolla Wilderness Alternate) and then went cross-country three miles northwest to hit the Chain of Craters Trail (official CDT) which would take me into Malpais. I may have crossed a few miles of private land but otherwise I would have had nearly six more miles on road. I sang Woody Guthrie "This Land is Your Land" the whole way, emphasizing the 'my' part.

I stirred up quite a few Pronghorn Antelope, which are really fascinating creatures. They can run up to 70 miles per hour and can see objects (eg predators) more than six miles away. I never got close enough for a photo but I know it was them because they were quite small and had big bushy white fur on their bottoms.

I made it to Chain of Craters just as the sun was setting. I was too tired to setup my tent so I just decided to cowboy camp (definition: camp under the stars). It's the first time I've done it on the CDT so let's hope it doesn't rain!