Mileage: 10.1 miles (1103-1113.1)
I didn't get started until about 4:15 after a long day of computer work, doing taxes for my business and updating my iPhone (which was actually way more painful than taxes...) Literally I think I'm way worse off after upgrading - I no longer have my jailbreak, which allowed me turn my phone into a hotspot, the new operating system takes 4gb of space, which is 1/4 of my phone and double what my previous iOS took, and I no longer have any music on my phone because there wasn't room after having to manually add back all my photos and apps. Plus, I lost nearly a weeks worth of blog notes! Agh.
Anyways, the one positive is now I have a timer on my camera and hopefully certain apps will work better - but who knows! Alex and Margi brought me back up to Tennessee Pass after I got all my stuff packed and boxes mailed. They rode their mountain bikes with me and the dogs for the first few miles, until we lost Ziggy chasing an Elk. It was fun having Margi along to help identify flowers, as I'd wondered about many which I didn't have the wherewithal to look them all up.
It was nice to walk along their bikes, as Margi otherwise wouldn't have been able to join since she had pretty serious knee surgery not long ago. It was a gentle downhill grade the whole way and it was a very pleasant way to begin the next section. We bid farewell before the trail dipped into the next valley - I was sad to say goodbye, but me and Alex planned to do a section together in about a week so it wasn't bye for too long.
I still got that sinking feeling I always get when I leave friends or a good town for the trail - even now when I'm prepared for it there's nothing I can do except acknowledge the feeling and know that with a good night sleep I'll feel better in the morning. Sometimes I wonder if I could just shield myself from having to say goodbye, but the only way I can think of besides moving where my friends are is by avoiding seeing them in the first place - I realize that would be a horrible way to live, but the highs are so high and lows are so low when you are alone that it's a thought that has crossed my mind.
I ran into a couple Colorado Trail hikers headed south and they all pegged me as 'headed for Canada.' - probably the beard or the smell that doesn't go away no matter how many showers I take.
I descended gently for about seven miles until I came to a valley where I began my ascent up to Searle Pass. The wildflowers were gorgeous dotting the hillside - the most prominent was the purple Rocky Mountain Beardtongue, whose shoots stood completely erect and displayed it's five tongued flowers beautifully. After three miles of gradual uphill I decided to make camp in a flat spot around 10,400 ft. I tried catching up on my blogging, but have a lot to do after I lost my notes. It feels good to write, but I'm going to bed early tonight so I can get an early start tomorrow for Breckenridge.
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