Last night was really the last time we would spend in a hotel on this trip. No more lodging! Time to get serious about hiking. We left the hotel with bellies feeling full and eager to get back to the trail.
Hitch hiking went really well. We stood on the side of town for about 15 minutes before Cory Johnson of Ogden picked us up. He is an ultra runner, and loved hearing about our trip, and we enjoyed hearing about his 100 mile races. We finally got out of him that he finishes often times in 8th-10th place, which he humbly says is not that good. I beg to differ. Anyone who can finish a 100 mile race has my respect, let alone finish 10 of them a year.
He let us off at Buckskin Wash, he was headed to the grand canyon for a 50 mile training run. The wash started out really sandy. It was pretty though. We passed the scrawniest cow I have ever seen. It didn’t surprise me, as there was no water and very little food in this canyon. Again, cows don’t belong here.
Once we passed the trailhead, we began seeing hordes of people. This is an extremely popular hike, so much it requires a fee and permit. Its no wonder though. Its a beautiful canyon with walls that rise several hundred feet on both side. It was beautiful. Wire Pass was even tighter, some areas were 2 feet across.
Then we were on to the wave. The wave is another legendary place. Its a sandstone rock area with wavy colors of red, white, and brown. Really cool. They only give 20 permits a day to see the wave. We decided to Hayduke it, and go permit-less. This could mean a large fine, but we were so close and it was after 5 pm, thought we would be ok. Even had a person scold us, telling us we needed a permit and that rangers were around. We never admitted to not having a permit, but not sure why this individual cared so much. We saw it though, took pictures, and hiked on through.
The Notch was a fun scramble too. The view from the top was beautiful.
We were a bit concerned about water all day. This is a 45 mile waterless stretch for us. We were even considering night hiking on the trail section tomorrow. But when we arrived at the trailhead for the Arizona Trail we were greeted by a couple from Tucson who offered beer, water, and snacks. We gladly took them up on it and filled our bottles, ate carrots, cookies, and I drank a Moose Drool beer. So very nice. It was a great surprise, and the kindness of strangers never does cease to amaze me.
Instead of night hiking, we are camping at the trailhead. It feels great to have some water and no worries. The sky is so clear and beautiful tonight.
No comments:
Post a Comment