Miles, Miles and More Miles

Wyoming State Line 

 After an amazing 20 mile day on Tuesday, 32 miles on Wednesday and then a whopping 35 mile day today, Scarecrow has successfully made it to the Wyoming border, to a town called Encampment.  He has reconnected his steps from the flip flop earlier in the trail, and now can jump up the 222 miles he has already hiked in Wyoming.  A wonderful trail angel named John Farr is picking him up at the trail head as I type this, will host him overnight, and send him up to Rawlins tomorrow, where he will try and secure a ride up to South Pass, Wyoming.
He has estimated that he has only 296 miles left of Wyoming before entering into Montana - the last state on this journey.  The weather is now in his favor, as when he was here earlier, this part of the trail was covered in snow - now? There is nothing.  We are so happy to hear that, Scarecrow.  Keep on trekking, stay safe, and have fun.
Want to see the pinball game - I  mean tracking of Scarecrow's journey updated? Click HERE.

Until next time,
The Thruhiker's Wife

Trail Magic for Everyone

via The Real Hiking Viking, a.k.a. Jabba

I have to begin with thanking Jabba for this picture.  As you hike and receive trail magic along the way, your postings are like trail magic for Scarecrow's family.  So now for an update on this not-so-easy-to-follow part of the trail.

Scarecrow and friends have taken some more trail magic from Theresa Martinez from the CDTC and traveled back down to Cumbres Pass, where they stepped off the trail because of excessive snow.  They got back on the trail Sunday, and will hike northbound again to Pagosa Springs and beyond, which will "reconnect" their steps along the trail and fill in the section they had to skip.  Of course I asked, what were the snow conditions going to be like, only 2 weeks later? He explained, when they attempted it prior, there was fresh, deep snow 18+ feet deep.

via The Real Hiking Viking

Now, some has melted and it is packed down, so they will hike on top of the snow now.  The hikers are still sporting snow shoes, spikes and their ice axes, but at least they will complete it now.  As you can see in the picture on the right, Jabba is standing next to the depths of snow they will now be walking ON instead of IN. They are headed into the San Juan Mountains and thanks again to Jabba, here is a picture of what they will conquer.

via The Real Hiking Viking

We got to speak to Ted over the weekend for Father's Day and was able to share with him the trail magic sent his way by some of his loved ones.  Tracey, my real life twin gave Scarecrow a donation that helped to totally hooked him up with the unexpected traveling up to Wyoming for the flip flop.

It came at the perfect time and is much appreciated.
You continually give me so much love, support, guidance and friendship for which I am truly blessed. We have conversations all the time about the "nontraditional life" my family leads ~ I want you to always know that I value your opinion, welcome your advice, appreciate your support and am grateful for your love.  THANK YOU for the trail magic.

Some of you reading this blog entry may not know the next two trail angels, Mike and Tommy.  They have been cutting Ted's hair for years, and now take care of Jagger as well.  I am posting a link with their information before I continue - click HERE for an awesome haircut They ask every time we go in about Ted and his hike.  Well, this weekend, they presented me with a generous donation towards Scarecrow's journey.

Mike & Tommy from the Barbershop

Thankfully, Ted was in a town with a phone signal and was able to talk to and thank both of them for their continued support.  This too, came at a perfect time for resupply before going into the mountains. Although Ted and I planned for this trip based only on our own means, we are so appreciative and grateful for EVERY LITTLE PIECE OF LOVE AND SUPPORT that has come our way.  This trail magic manifests itself in the form of notes, calls, posts, pictures, donations of food, snacks and money to Scarecrow, time and assistance with life here while Ted is away... We both truly appreciate every single one of our trail angels during this amazing journey.  You are all a piece of Teddy's success.

Not many pictures were sent this time (as you can see I had to "borrow" from Jabba) but Scarecrow sent this one.  It was taken when they finished up the piece of trail in Wyoming before heading back down to Colorado.
And just an interesting piece of this story to share ~ the whole flip flop was a huge blessing in disguise, as the hikers agreed that if they were hiking in that piece of Wyoming as initially scheduled, there would have been NO WATER SUPPLY for them.  So, once again, we have seen and felt that everything happens for a reason and is unfolding EXACTLY how it is supposed to.  Hang in there, Scarecrow.  It has been 2 months already that you have been gone - you have met amazing hikers who are sharing this amazing journey with you and most importantly, you are safe and happy.  Happy Trails... we will see you in about 3 weeks.

Until next time,

The Thruhiker's Wife

Snakes, Steam Engines, and SNOW!

Shake, Rattle and get the heck away from here!

As Scarecrow and his Warrior Hiker friends left Chama, New Mexico they knew they were headed into some pretty wicked weather.  They knew it would be cold and snowy, but they did not anticipate what was to come for them ahead.  They were able to find a nice campsite under some Aspen trees before continuing on into what eventually became impassible terrain.

Scarecrow was very excited about seeing the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad - click here to read about it.

I couldn't wait to ask Teddy if he got to ride this tourist train - it was something he was looking forward to.  After speaking with him, he said it did not work out at the time they were in Chama, but their new plan of hiking may allow him to revisit the opportunity at a later time.   I do know that as Scarecrow heads further North, towards the San Juan Mountains, he and the Warrior Hikers are creating a plan to tackle the upcoming harsh weather.  This must be a picture of one of their meetings... Hey guys, it doesn't look too snowy yet.

 

Jabba, NO2, Paul, Greyhound, & Scarecrow

Scarecrow was very excited to enter into Colorado.  Not only is that about 770 miles of the trail hiked, but he is moving closer to some of the areas he was most looking forward to, such as Grays Peak, located in the Southern Rocky Mountains, which is the highest summit on the CDT, reaching over 14,000 feet.  The trail running through Colorado is well marked in most areas, according to Wikipedia,  and spans some 650 miles.  However, there are some stretches of the Divide that have no distinct marked or named trail, but Scarecrow is using Jonathan Ley maps to help him navigate.

Finally in Colorado!

As the hikers hiked on from Cumbres Pass, the conditions were terrible.  Two of this hiker friends exited the trail 10 miles North of the pass, but Scarecrow and NO2 hiked onward.  They walked through a forest field, post holing in 12+ feet of snow, moving as slow as 1 mile per hour.  It was extremely frustrating and exhausting to say the least.

The next few pictures will show just how deep they were in with these ridiculous conditions.  The selfie to the right looks as if there is almost no snow on the ground and no snow near the base of the trees.  Well, Scarecrow explained, that is bark and needles that have fallen from the trees, resting on the top of the snow covering.  I couldn't get the full idea until I saw the picture of what he was actually walking through.

It still did not look too bad, because the picture really looks as if Teddy was just crouching, until you see his walking stick in his hand.  It began to set in that the snow was actually upwards of 15+ feet, and they were trying to step through this mess, never truly touching the ground, but however deep their legs would sink in. Teddy explained, his leg would step down deep into the snow, with snow shoes and all, he would step forward, try and pull his other leg out of the depths, and move forward.  Exhaustion and frustration set in for both of these guys so they decided to turn around and went back to Cumbres Pass.

Once they returned to Cumbres Pass, the received a ride from a trail angel named Paul, back to Chama where they would stay overnight.  I am sure Scarecrow slept like a rock that night.  The next morning, the hikers went to breakfast with their trail angel Paul and then attended his Rotary Club meeting with him. A huge shout out goes to the Chama Rotary Club, as they treated the hikers to a great lunch.  Scarecrow asked for me to recognize how generous and helpful Paul was while the hikers were in Chama - a true trail angel you are, providing transportation and assistance where needed.  THANK YOU. 

Scarecrow explained that when they were traveling along at the lower elevations, they would see a grassy field, like in the picture, but once they went along the trail up into the mountains, the depths of the snow were unbelievable.  The trees in the next picture are about 40-50 feet high, but it does not look that way from here.

If you notice, in the exact middle of the picture there is a "stick" jutting out of the middle of the snowy field.  Do you know what that stick really is??  Scarecrow explained it is a 4x4 post that is 5 feet high showing hikers where the trail is.  Maybe that will give you an idea how crazy it was for them hiking through that, and why they decided to turn around.  Although their plans of hiking North were about to be redirected, the hikers are still in good spirits.  Scarecrow's new hiking plans will be in the next post.  Loving your "sunset selfie", Scarecrow :)

Until next time,

The Thruhiker's Wife

Chillin' in Chama...

Scarecrow reached his next town stop of Chama, New Mexico over the weekend.  This is where he would receive the box of winter gear we sent, along with a nice surprise from our friend and trail angel, Laura Melfi.  She decided awhile ago that she would call the local post office in Chama, and find out about local restaurants in the area where she could buy a gift card to so that when Scarecrow arrived, he would be set up with a nice meal. How awesome is that?! A man named Jim, from the Chama post office was quite helpful in assisting Laura with her mission.

Jim connected Laura with a man named Chase from a restaurant called High Country Restaurant and Saloon.  He, too, was very helpful, because together, they helped Laura purchase a gift card for the restaurant,  and made sure it was delivered over to the post office for pickup by Scarecrow when he arrived into town.  What great hospitality by these men, who were so pleasant and helpful to someone they have never met.  All in the spirit of helping out a thruhiker!

  Scarecrow was so excited to receive this surprise gift, and in true hiker spirit, shared this gift with two other thruhikers.  He, along with two hiker friends, NO2 and Doc Rocket, enjoyed steaks, fahitas and beers for a great Saturday night dinner.  Thank you Laura - your generosity and kindness are so appreciated.  The hikers left full and happy :)

Scarecrow's winter gear box left him less than happy however... the ice ax that I so carefully packed with his winter gear was NOT in the box when it arrived in Chama.  So, now we have to go on a treasure hunt to find it and hopefully get it to him before the real snow arrives.

The last pics Teddy sent me were of him near a light dusting of snow.

Well, it looks as if that was just a quick passing, as he appears to be right back in that dry, desert terrain. As you can see, he is still sporting that nice red glow from a sunburn and is still trekking along.  He did say there was word of harsh snowy weather up in the mountains where they are headed, so they will research their options and depending on safety, if they have to, they will take an approved alternate route to keep moving along.  In the mean time, he has sent a few pictures of the beautiful terrain he is encountering along the way.

 He has about two days left until he exits New Mexico and finally enters Colorado, where he will trek through the Colorado Rocky Mountains and many other beautiful places along the way. Want to see where Scarecrow is now? Click HERE to see the map.  Pretty cool, heh?

His last picture sent was of a beautiful New Mexico sunset.  I am not sure if this was in chronological order, but what a beautiful ending to this post.

Happy Trails, Scarecrow.  Thank you for sharing this amazing experience and this beauty you are encountering.  Stay safe and warm. Olive Juice.

In search of Scarecrow's ice ax with fingers crossed,

The Thruhiker's Wife