Day 15- 8/30/18, 18 mi, 4421 up, 4686 down
Avalanche Meadow mi 189 to Illinois Creek mi 207
Hope Pass and Lake Ann Pass
It was quite the day. We knew the collegiate west would ramp up the scenery and elevation, and so it has! Beautiful all day long. It was as also great weather for which I am very thankful! We started by climbing Hope Pass, 12,548 then all the way down to 10,096, then back up to 12,588 on Lake Ann Pass. We didn’t get here until around 5pm this evening. A bit late, but we decided to go over. It was chilly on the pass. And WHAT A CLIMB! It would be scary in snow I think.
Most thankful for …. hiking partner and that her knee, while it is painful, it is holding up! Also some amazing friends that left us goodies along the trail! That was fun!
I saw God today….. the views were amazing on the passes as well as hiking up the valley!
What I ate for supper…broccoli and cheese soup with noodles. It was pretty much dark as I ate so I didn’t linger!
Mantra for the day…. “I just try to enjoy the trail and the elevation just happens.” -Jiffy
What I learned today… working on enjoying every moment. The easy ones, the hard ones, the anxious ones when we can’t find a spot to camp, haven’t eaten and are starving and it’s getting dark! Take a deep breath. I am fine. I have a headlamp, I have a hiking partner, I have food. It’s all gonna be good. Enjoy the darkness! The sounds of the creek, and the light breeze it’s all gonna end soon, and I will wish I was back at it!
Most favorite part of the day… probably getting to the top of Hope Pass. It was beautiful and the climb was tough, but I was ready for it!
Least favorite part of the day… probably climbing Lake Ann Pass. It seemed so much taller than it was! So steep and the trail was a bit slanty and loose rock in places. I really focused on placing every footstep. It was also getting toward evening so I was nervous about getting off of it. But the views were absolutely amazing.
Most useful gear of the day… water. It was warm today- Casey says 101 at home, so I drank a lot! Even at 10,000 feet it was warm in the sun.
Food of the day… anything today! But the beer that Anita left for us was pretty amazing at the top of Lake Ann Pass!
Listened to…Harry Potter as we climbed this afternoon. That was fun!
Truth Time…When we got off Lake Ann Pass and started hiking down we only hoped to have to hike about 2.5 miles, as it was really getting close to dark. We ended up hiking nearly 4. It was almost dark when we finally found a place to pitch tents. For some reason the little valley we were in didn’t thrill me all that much. I think I was just anxious about the lateness and getting everything done, but it was also very isolated. This was the first camp spot where we really weren’t within any kind of shooting distance to a road or ‘escape route’ since we started. It was a long way from anywhere and felt like it. It felt wild, and remote, and dark, and isolated and we hadn’t see hardly anyone all day. I can tell the trail community is thinning out and getting spread out too. I kept my thoughts positive, and just prayed for peace. I knew tonight was a test for me, that was for sure! I was proud of how far we had come today!