
Slippin’ & Slidin’ on the Trail
The last part of a steep climb was about a 45° angle with loose rocks and stones, and that is where I went slippin’ & slidin’ on the trail.

The last part of a steep climb was about a 45° angle with loose rocks and stones, and that is where I went slippin’ & slidin’ on the trail.

Hung around the Salida Hostel, read, and did some maintenance on my battered feet. The insoles for my shoes finally made their way from Monarch Mountain Lodge.

The family took me right to the Salida Hostel where I’m staying for a couple of days. What an amazing gift to meet this family and receive their help.

I woke up late, so I didn’t get going until 8 AM. The goal for today will be half-way to Durango by the end of the day’s hike.

In the morning everyone got going early. Hot Springs is the target for today. This is a resort town with the main attraction being the warm spring waters.
Gang Rejoins: The rest of the day was a decent to my campsite. Much to my surprise, Gena was there, More hikers came in including the Russian and his partner.

A 2,700 foot climb lasted for miles and took me all morning. There was a brief decent and back up again for 1,500 feet. This all made for a hard day’s climb.

I passed the point in the trail where you go either to the Collegiate West trail and some pretty big elevation climbs or the Collegiate East trail.

I have a lot of food in my pack and more waiting at the Twin Lakes general store. The thought was to camp one more night, but I decided to go for Twin Lakes.
The altitude must be getting to me, because I was feeling sort of out of it. Plus, I’m having a shoe problem. This has all the markers of an off day