In addition to this trail journal, I also filmed my Basin and Range Trail thru hike. I’ve produced a detailed documentary series (11+ hours runtime) documenting this thru hike adventure, the product over over 1,000 hours of video editing. I highly recommending watching the Basin and Range Trail vlog series for an in-depth look at thru-hiking the Great Basin and central Nevada.
Slept into almost 9am this morning. It’s been great getting rest, but I’m getting antsy. First thing I did was check the tracking number for the shipment of SD cards I’m expecting today. When I went to bed, it was in Memphis Tennessee. Now, it’s in Las Vegas. That was as of 7 am. Prospects look good, I think I will get out of town today.
Very cold morning, wind was whipping 35 + miles an hour last night. Walked up to the Mizpah to get a couple of haunted muffins for breakfast. Last night, Jennifer at the front desk was telling me about some of the ghost encounters she had there, as the hotel is supposed to be very haunted. Apparently she saw two of the muffins move, literally switch place. Haunted muffins!
Went into the Western store to talk to Paul, the owner. I wanted to let him know that I’m expecting my package today and Didn’t want to come in last minute and say, hey I need a ride. He told me last minute was actually best, so I told him I’d come back in when I received the package.
My package arrived around 1pm. Next I ran up to the Western store. I’ll let Paul know that I’m ready for a ride anytime. He got on the horn and called up a woman named Patty, who was there within minutes. While waiting for her to arrive, I ran back to the hostel to finish packing up my stuff. I called Mickey at the jumping jack motel in Carvers to let her know my new ETA. Then I called Dad to update him on my ETA, and let him know I was expecting a package shipped to the house. As soon as that arrives, a new GoPro audio adapter Mount(which broke on the last section), throw it into my bounce box and send it to Austin.
Ran back up to the Western store, and on my way Tony saw me walking by and came out of the building he was working on to say goodbye. I thanked him for everything, the conversations and the Jewelers Loupe. Great guy. Goodbye friend.
I met Patty And we chatted about rocks and such for a few minutes before we jumped in the car and took off. After a quick stop at Burger King for lunch, we hit the road.
Patty was 50 something, and a bit of a Chatterbox. No problem, I like the conversation. We chatted about rocks, hunting, wild animals and such. The 80 Mile Drive went by pretty quick. I guess that’s because she was going 75 miles per hour, and Matt was going about 45 or 50 the whole way when I got my ride in from lunar crater. Of course, he had a homemade wooden camper thing bolted to the top of his Suburban, and he was likely worried it would get ripped off the roof. From the looks of it, I can understand why he drove so slowly.
Once we got to the spot on the road where my next section begins, she pulled over and turned the car off. We got outside and she began to show me some of the rocks she had collected, sitting in her back seat. And then, we started looking at the rocks alongside the road. Here, we both found a couple of pieces of petrified wood, and I found a piece of Wonder Stone. Pretty cool!
I asked Patty how much I owe her for the ride. She said nothing, but I insisted to at least pay for her gas. We said our goodbyes and just like that I was on my own again. It’s amazing the feeling you get when your ride drives away and it’s time to walk again. Like flipping a light switch, life changes from easy mode too hard mode.
My task now is to hike off-trail across Big Sand Springs Valley over to the Hot Creek Range. I only took a few steps from Highway 6 before I saw a road running parallel to the highway. It was a black top Road, with Sagebrush growing in between it’s cracks. It’s funny, I thought of Highway 50, loneliest Highway in America. Surely this one is a bit lonelier.
The terrain here was, you guessed it, Sagebrush covered basin. Just feet from the road, the interesting rocks fade away. Everything looks the same. The ground is mostly soft sand, with occasionally slightly harder packed ground. Morey Peak can be seen in the distance, the obvious high point. That’s where I’m going.
The first hour and a half was rather boring. This should be expected as one leaves the highway. Then I approached a small set of Hills. I could walk around them or over them. I chose to walk over them, not over the highest point but one of the lower saddles. This was good enough to get a bit of an elevated view without needlessly expending too much effort. Of course there were cows in the area, and a few bulls.
Coming down out of the Hills, I was looking ahead at the terrain. It looks very flat for a while, with no hills or rocks or anywhere to hide from the wind. While it wasn’t too windy, I really didn’t want to have the wind battering my tent all night. I could have stayed here in the Hills, but they didn’t provide much protection either. So I headed out into the open desert to get a few more miles in before sunset.
Eventually I found a small clearing in the Sagebrush, slightly higher than the surrounding Terrain. I decided that I would cowboy camp tonight. Less issues with wind, quicker to set up and I can see the Stars. I haven’t seen much in the way of bugs, and still no snakes or scorpions. I could tell it was going to be a cool night, which means they will not be out tonight. So a good night to lay on the ground!
I sent up camp in the shadows of Morey peak, with an awesome orange glow on the horizon.
It was a calm night, and cold. Bright stars. It was 38 degrees when I woke up.
Continued hiking cross country towards Morey Peak. Deep sand, pain in the ass but could be worse. I’m hiking closer to the base of the Hot Creek Range now, paralleling it, looking for my way up.
Found water along the road in 6 large plastic tubs. No spring or piped water, must have been dropped off by water truck. So this location is not reliable. Crossed the road and continued hiking cross-country.
I was shooting for a pipeline on the map, but it ended up being a dirt road. I followed this all the way to project faultless. Faultless was the site of an underground nuclear test in the 60s. A shaft was drilled 3300ft down and a nuclear device with a yield of 1 megaton was detonated here. Apparently the site is safe to visit.
When I approached project faultless I only saw three white markers, like an obelisk, with signs on them that said not to dig or excavator because the soil was petroleum soaked or something. I scanned the Horizon and about 100 yards away I saw the tube I was looking for.
A nuclear device with a yield of 1 megaton was detonated 3200ft underground here at Project Faultless
Project faultless doesn’t really have much do offer. However, it is a unique piece of American history, in that it is one of only two sites in the United States where a nuclear bomb was detonated underground. The other being project Shoal. Project adiago was about 2 miles away, they would have dropped another bomb there but there was too much seismic damage here from Faultless. I skipped that Adiago since it was out of the way.
The shaft that the nuke was dropped down into was originally flush with the surface, but after the explosion the ground in the area sank 9 feet. I thought this would be a good lunch spot, leaning against the exposed shaft in the shade.
After leaving the test site, I followed a road. This turned up a canyon, and quickly the road dissipated. Back to Bushwhacking. There was a small Creek that flowed alongside the road. This makes for thick vegetation. The road was intermittently decent. Eventually I crossed the stream and followed another road out of the wash. I believe there was a road running all the way up this Hillside above the wash this whole time. This would have been a better option. It was wide open and offered good views, and was not a bushwhack.
Next I entered Morey Canyon. There was a small Green Meadow here with a couple pools of water, but of course, lots of cow shit. Such a bad smell for a beautiful area. Uphill from here there was remnants of an old mining camp. Mostly just a stone Foundation.
Farther up the canyon I could see a few abandoned buildings, but they looked a bit newer and better condition. Sure enough, these were a bit more modern, one even had wallpaper and drywall inside. But, the roof was caved in and walls were buckling. That was the first house.
Across the road were three more abandoned structures. The first one had a door that was closed, and an exhaust pipe from a wood-burning stove protruding out of the wall. I opened this one and saw a chair facing me in the middle of the room, with two beds alongside the wall. A creepy vibe, but I quickly realized that this was a little cabin that was open to anyone who could reach it. Not unlike some of the cabins I saw on the CDT. Still, I wouldn’t stay in this one, it was pretty dirty. There was a dead mouse inside the wood-burning stove. Writing on the wall, and I recognized a couple names… Otteson. They own the turquoise mines in Tonopah. I utilized the chair and the shade to take a little break. This was nice, a bit of Comfort if you could call it that.
Next the road climbs out of Morey Canyon. The road here was surprisingly good. I saw another cabin or two on the way up. Good views as I gained elevation. Eventually the canyon reaches a high point, and then the road follows North Canyon. I found a spring here alongside the road that was not on the map. It was guarded by Thorn bushes, but I found way around. I stopped here and filtered some water. I discovered I have a leak in my platypus bag, where it folds on the bottom. I attempted to fix it by patching it with a piece of dyneema, which only slowed the leak. Still, this patch was good enough to last the rest of the hike.
Next the road becomes steep. And top of that, the crazy ants were back and wouldn’t leave me alone. So I kept moving, and tried not to stand in one place for more than a few seconds.
North Canyon views
When I reached the point where the road ends on the map, I was surprised to see it continue all the way up to a saddle. Great views on the way up of North Canyon and beyond.
Even better views from the top of the pass. Here, the road splits. I took the one that heads over towards 6 Mile Canyon. These roads were not on the map! I was really happy to have a road to follow, and even happier with the extremely beautiful views. Rolling Green Hills, rock spires and outcrops.
Eventually my road splits off, towards Morey Peak to the left and 6 Mile Canyon to the right. Even though I’m going left, I couldn’t resist going right, just to have a look. The road quickly turns into a trail, but again, not on the map. Most likely, horse trail. The Trail passes by a Rocky outcrop, a Jagged knife Edge covered with orange lichen. So of course I checked that out, climbing out on it and such. Then I went up over the little pass over Devils Cave ridge. Excellent views of 6 Mile Canyon. I would be happy to hike here, if I hadn’t already decided to bag Morey.
I made my way back down to the Road that heads towards Morey Peak. This too quickly turned into a hiking trail. I’m not sure how long this Trail will exist, but in the meantime I’m happy to have one. I took a break overlooking a canyon, ate dinner, and was happy to see the trail continue along the hillside to the next saddle.
Made it to the next saddle and was then blown away by more excellent views of Nevada wilderness. The Fandango Wilderness and the monitor range in the distance, the Sun creating a hazy effect. Absolutely gorgeous. And the Trail persists!
I’m looking for a campsite now, but being picky. I want a great view, I just don’t see a good clearing for my tent or to Cowboy camp. So I kept going.
The great views continued and I was moving rather slow. That’s okay, this has probably been my favorite part of this entire route so far. Even better than the views from the grant range. Ok, hard to compare, and why bother? Some great miles to be hiked here.
I went up many small Hills and each time I was disappointed to not find a campsite. So I continued on. The sun was setting soon, so I kept walking. I crested another saddle, this one had a flat spot that I could have camped on. But it was a bit plain looking. I so once again I kept going. On the other side of this saddle the Sun was no longer shining here. It was approaching 8pm when I finally I found a spot that I liked. A Little clearing in the Shadows of Morey Peak, highlighted by the last fading rays of sunlight. There was also an overlook of Big Sand Springs Valley, where I came from earlier this morning. A couple trees around, and did not feel too exposed. Good campsite.
I’ve had a lot of these moments on this route, where I thought I was going to get stuck with a crappy campsite but ended up with a really nice one. Unlike the CDT, where just about every night seemed like a subpar campsite.
Morey looks intimidating from here, and I’m unsure about my route down in to 6 Mile Canyon. It’s probably going to be another cold night, so I have my tent set up and a little extra clothes on.
Slept pretty good last night. Got up at 6:15, when the sun hit my tent. Great views of Morey peak. Not as cold as I was expecting./
Left camp and continued to follow the Trail towards Morey Peak. The trail is much more faint now, and fading quickly. There were really no big climbs, only small ones to little saddles and ridges. Each one provided an excellent view. Beautiful blue skies, no wind. Perfect day to Summit a peak.
The rest of the route was fairly easy. No real exposure, not too technical. A couple of spots with some loose rock and a few short sections of scrambling. A couple of bristlecone pine trees could be found on the saddle just below the summit. These impress me, their massive size and incredible age.
After a couple of false Summits, the final Summit block of Morey Peak was in view. Like many of the cliff faces around here, it was covered in lichen. Orange and Neon green. This contrast always makes for a great photo.
A short scramble with minimal exposure brought me to the summit of Morey Peak, the high point of the Hot Creek Range at 10,246ft. Woohoo! Absolutely incredible view. I reckon a 125 to 150 mile View, based on the fact that I could see what I think was wheeler peak in Great Basin National Park. I had measured that at 100 air miles away from the ridge I walked along the grant range, and now I am a few ranges even further away. There were three usgs Summit markers but no Summit register. No summit register on the high point of an entire mountain range? Ok, Nevada. I guess with 310+ mountain ranges, not every range high point gets a register.
I spent about 30 minutes on the summit. With the effort it takes to get here, a break is well deserved. Again, absolutely incredible views. Surrounded by mountains as far as the eye could see. I could clearly make out the route I walked all the way from the Quinn Canyon range. I love the way the light Reflects off the dried Lake bed of lunar Lake. Morey Peak was one of my favorite summits along the Basin and Range Trail.
Now it was time to get down off Morey Peak and continue on my route. I think most people who climb this peak come in from Morey Canyon and then North Canyon like I did, then backtrack the way they came. In retrospect, that’s what I should have done too. Instead, I chose to go down a random Canyon. So I descended the summit, which was rather steep and loose, and headed for said Canyon, having picked the one that looked the least steep from my map.
When I reached the top of the saddle where I would drop down into the canyon, I could tell it wasn’t going to be easy. It looked steep, but better than Willow Canyon, more wide open and less vegetation. Still, it was slow going. I was mostly following a dried Creek bed.
It was slow and tedious but I was making decent progress. That is, until I reached a point where I had to jump from one small Creek bed over a little hump into another small Creek bed. This is where it got really steep and even slower. There was more vegetation and awkwardly stacked boulders creating small but cumbersome obstacles.
Then I looked at my map and realize this was the point I needed to begin to Contour around the mountain side. Unfortunately, it was extremely thick vegetation. There were no game trails. Sometimes it would take a few minutes to go 10ft. When you look at it, it does not look humanly possible to Traverse it. Sometimes I was crawling on my hands and knees, but most times I simply had to break branches to clear a path in the direction I need to go. Another nightmare bushwhack, exactly what I was fearing.
Fortunately I only needed to go about a quarter mile. Still, this was extremely exhausting. I walked away with a couple of cuts on my legs and hands, the ones on my hands from breaking branches. A good set of gloves would have been really nice. Finally the trees thinned out and I made my way to the saddle I was aiming for. Climbed to the top of a High point and took a while deserved break. Ate lunch and fueled up for the next section. Great views looking back up at the Morey ridgeline. Truly outstanding views, actually!
My original plan was to walk down the valley, but after this latest bush whack, I wanted nothing to do with it. Instead, I followed a Ridgeline above the Canyon. This had a decent game trail running across the top. At one point progress slowed because of a steep descent. I had to Contour around the hillside to meet up with another Ridgeline.
I followed the Ridgeline all the way down in to 6 Mile Canyon. Before reaching the bottom, I could see a four-wheel drive Road running up the canyon that I Originally wanted to walk. You never really know if a 4×4 road on the map here in Nevada will actually exist on the ground. The road was only visible on the lower reaches of the canyon, plus it was a bit steep to get down to. Thus, I stayed on the Ridgeline the whole way.
Down in 6 Mile Canyon, I found water almost immediately. There is a creek running downhill, and the road running through the canyon crosses it several times. However, there really weren’t any good collection points. It was shallow and it’s banks were covered with thick and thorny vegetation. I kept walking uphill towards 6 Mile Summit, hoping for a better spot to collect water from.
There was a section with some beautiful blue wildflowers just completely covering the ground. Before the summit, I found the source of the spring. Probably best to collect from here since there was a lot of cow activity Downstream. Just like everywhere. Even here it was a bit difficult to collect water, but I made it work. It felt great to wash off a bit in the Stream after that horrendous Bushwhack!
Walked up over Six Mile Summit and dropped into a new Valley. Not incredibly impressive, certainly a better view from above… This is the spot that impressed me last night, right before I began the walk along the Ridgeline to Morey. I had spent almost an entire day hiking a big semi-loop, just to bag Morey Peak, and have only made about a mile of forward progress along my route. Still, it was worth it. There were many green Meadows along the way as I made my way downhill. Also, many horses. Saw 7 or 8, including a pony, in the upper reaches. There were seeps and springs forming a couple of small creeks. Farther down, I saw another five or six horses. I even saw large clumps of horse hair on the ground.
Then I left the main road and headed up hill into an unnamed Canyon. This too was pretty green. The middle section of the climb was extremely Lush. A spring formed a small Creek, with lots of trees. Beautiful stands of Aspen. Again, the ants were quite a problem. I could not stand still without getting bombarded. So I made my way up hill quickly. When I emerged from the thick Lush area, above the spring, I saw another five or six horses. I scared them up over the pass that I was headed for.
The pass itself didn’t have much of a view. The view looking down into the canyon I was headed into was nice, but not blow you away nice. I followed a game trail downhill, probably built by horses. This Upper Canyon was Pleasant, a different vibe then some of the other mountains I had been too. Not too Jagged, kind of a Rolling Green look.
I followed a drainage down to the upper reaches of this Canyon. Here, a horse was getting a drink from a spring. A creek flowed through the canyon. Lots of water here, and all around this afternoon actually. The upper reaches of this Canyon was really nice, very green.
Now there was a 4×4 Road to follow. I enjoyed the walk downhill, as The sun was getting lower in the sky and the temperatures were pretty mild. A relaxing walk.
Followed another dirt road out of Big cow Canyon, over to Little cow Canyon. I found a flowing Creek here. It was 7pm, so I stopped to fill up water and eat dinner. Filtered 6L. Chugged one with dinner and took 5 with me. I’ll chug another with breakfast, and that gives me 4 liters to make it out of little cow Canyon and across little Fish Creek Valley tomorrow.
I only walked another half mile before setting up camp. I found an interesting colored Sandy hill to setup on. It was now about 8:15, sun was going down. Feet were a bit tired today. Also, feeling like I’m a little short on food for this section.
Woke up around 6:30. Followed the road downhill until it disappeared. Then it was off Trail, following a creek bed. This Dry Creek bed hit a junction with another drainage, which did have water. Then I followed that Creek downhill.
I’m in Little cow Canyon now. Map shows a box Canyon for a short ways. I could see the entrance, some rocks and Cliffs, a small cave. It was really nice. There were a couple of pour offs, but in the 10 to 20 ft range and climbable. Not crazy thick with vegetation. Pretty enjoyable walk, actually.
After passing the narrow part, Little Cow Canyon opens up again. There were decent game trails to follow most of the way. None of this was very difficult. What a relief!
The lower reaches of Little Cow Canyon where less impressive. When I finally exited the canyon and entered Little Fish Lake valley, it became obvious it was just one Branch of a large Network of alluvial fans. The road I had followed out of the canyon disappeared, and I was left on my own to hike cross country. I know there is a private ranch in the valley that I must walk around. Unfortunately, it runs North and South through the valley for quite a ways.
I walked across the ups and downs of the alluvial fans, staying near the trees as much as possible. Found a great place to take a break overlooking the whole valley. Couldn’t really see anything going on down there. Once again, I felt like the only one live, last one on Earth.
Eventually I approach the ranch. I was on a pretty solid road, and I was hoping it would pass right through the ranch. Like an access point to public land. Fortunately, I hit a fence line. The road appeared to be only usable by the ranch, even though it was on public land. So now I had to decision to make… Hike north or south. Either way I have to walk around the ranch. It would have been a shorter hike to hike North, but it would have been out of the way. So I opted to hike South, the direction I need to go, and hope for a road that passes through the ranch, like one for public access to the hot Creek range and Fandangos.
The hike along the ranch sucked. Fence line as far as the eye could see. And to make matters worse, it was the finest possible type of sand. Not even sand, each foot step created the finest dust cloud imaginable. I later learned a better term for this type of soil poof dirt. Before long my shoes were full this fine powder. Every time I thought the fence line was going to end, it’s simply turned in a different direction. I followed the fence line for about an hour and a half.
I went up over a hill and saw that the fence line continued to the horizon, as far as I could see. Unfortunately, the road that I want to take into the monitor range was directly west of me right now. There’s no way I’m going to hike miles out of my way just to go around this stupid Ranch. The ranch itself, and all of the cow activity, was further north. With nothing in sight, and only about half mile to cross the open ranch land, I decided to hop the fence and go for it.
The first little ways, I was walking behind a bit of a hill, pretty much hidden and out of sight. The final 2/3 or so we’re a little bit more out in the open. However, there was a road that runs right towards the main road running perpendicular to it through the valley. The Sagebrush was tall, maybe about chest height. I walked very quickly and kind of hunched over a bit, hoping to stay hidden from site as much as possible. Realistically, I was pretty far south of anyone that could see me.
When I reached the main road running through the valley, there was no fence line like there was separating the public land side on the hot Creek range. I crossed the road and continued West along another road that leads into the monitor range along Clover Creek. Pass through a gate, should be on public land now.
Follow the road up ways, towards a spring I had marked on the map. There was a mother cow and calf on the road. The mother ran away, and the calf stayed. I continued my course, walking the road. All of the sudden, the calf started to charge me from about 100 yards away. It ran at me and only stopped 10ft away, as I was yelling at it and waving my arms. It was kind of weird, I’ve never had a cow charge me like that, especially not a calf. What’s gotten into that one?
Walked up to the spring, which was dry. Actually, there was more than just a spring here, there was an old cabin. It was more like a trailer. However, it had signs of recent use… The window was open, only guarded by a screen. The deck had been replaced at some point, and had newer screws in it. I could see through the window, and there were shelves that were stocked with a few items, a modern lighter sitting on the table, etc. I yelled, anyone home? No response. It looks like the type of cabin that’s open for anyone to use since it’s on public land. I tried to open the door, but it was blocked from the inside, I think something was sitting on the ground right behind the door. The door was basically falling apart as I tried to open it, so I’ll let it be. There was an old wooden outhouse stocked with toilet paper. Clearly people have been using this, like this year. There were also some recent tire tracks leading up to the place. Either way, not much for me here, especially if I cant get inside.
After leaving the cabin, I begin to feel a bit off. I was feeling really hot and really thirsty. I only had 1L water left, and not sure of my next water source. I was beginning to get a bit of a headache as well.
The lower reaches of Clover Creek canyon were a bit boring, not unlike many of the other ranges. The lower elevations of these mountain ranges are usually not super interesting. I passed one spring on my map that I had marked dry, and I found it dry. However, there was insanely thick Willow and Thorn bushes along the creek.
The next spring was a couple of miles away. Before I can reach it, I found a flowing Creek along the side of the road. I kept following it up stream until I found a good spot to take a break and filter from. I was really happy to have found water here, I wasn’t feeling my best. I took my shirt off and begin to splash water in my face arms and cool off. This alone felt amazing. Then I filtered a couple liters, chugged two. I left this spot with only one liter, once again rolling the dice that there would be more water Upstream. I never considered myself a gambling man until these last couple weeks.
Sure enough, there was plenty of water Upstream. There was a couple of times where it looked like the road was going to fade away, but it was only a short section with tall vegetation, and then the road continued on in good shape. Eventually the canyon opened up a bit and the High Country of the Monitor Range was now visible. The views were getting better and I was starting to get excited about what lies ahead.
The road eventually stops at a point where it crosses Clover creek. There were several nice campsite here, but not nice enough. Ha! I could tell I can afford to be picky here. There were some Jagged rock formations up ahead, this is what I was shooting for. A foot path continues on from here, through some very thick stands of Aspen, Willow, and Thorn bushes. Very thick! Good thing for this trail.
Made it into an open Meadow along Clover Creek that was quite Majestic. The centerpiece of the meadow featured a Jagged Sawtooth-looking rock formation. Behind that, Rolling Green Hills, with the sun behind them. Behind me, the way I came, was another large rock formation. Everything about this little Valley was breathtaking. Except, when you took a breath, it smelled like cow shit. Cow patties as far as the eye could see. I am beginning to notice a pattern of cows in the higher elevations of these Nevada Mountain ranges.
I had to clear several piles of cow shit to make room for my tent. The entire Valley was basically trampled, no green grass, just brown dirt. Only near the spring was there a small patch of grass. I set up near here. Excellent views.
It was a real luxury to have a water source so close to camp. I was able to soak my feet and clean them properly, clean my socks and Gaiters. Filtered a couple liters and rehydrated. Big climb tomorrow up to the crest of the Monitor Range. The views are going to be awesome!
A large animal was heard walking near my tent last night. My guess is, horse. I yelled a few times, then got my headlamp on and got out of the tent. Didn’t see anything.
The first bit of hiking this morning was okay. Pretty much the same as always, Sagebrush, cow shit, some trees to dodge. Nothing too crazy, nothing too steep. That is, until it got steep. Its 2000 ft climb up to the top of the crest now.
My GPS map had a trail marked, Clover Trail number 24052. How funny, you can count the number of trails in Nevada on one hand. They certainly don’t have 24 thousand. Either way, the trail did not exist. I followed its general route until I decided to leave it for a route my eyes saw as the way.
I encountered my first rattlesnake of this hike this morning. It was about 10 ft away under a Sagebrush. I was just shy of 10,000ft in elevation here, not exactly where I was expecting to see this snake, either. Got to keep an eye out now I guess!
Final route to the top of the Monitor Range. I’ll climb right of the cliffs, but a thicket of Aspens stand in the way
Just below the top, there were a few stands of Aspen to work through. Somewhat thick, and on a Steep slope. There were a few false Summits along the way to tease me, of course.
Crest of the Monitor Range, view east into Clover Creek, Little Fish Lake Valley and the Hot Creek Range
Finally, I climbed over the highest ledge and found myself on a massive flat plateau at 10k feet. I’m now on the crest of the Monitor Range, and have entered the Table Mountain Wilderness. Great View, and it felt great to be done with the big climb. Much more climbing to be done today though as I hike the crest of the Monitor Range north.
The first bit of walking was a long a Cliff with excellent views. Then the route veers away from the edge. Here it was a bit of a depression in the plateau, and it was filled with Sagebrush. Hard to believe this is 10,000ft. There were some rather large stands of Aspen on the plateau as well.
Found a very old and faded 4×4 Road, which today serves as the trail here. It was heading up Hill, the kind of ascent where you can’t see anything except the hill and the sky. Kind of reminded me of Colorado, the section in the San Juans with the Colorado Trail High Point.
Soon I would have my first views of the Toquima range to the west. A little snow on top, but not much.
Then, awesome views! Here, there was an excellent vantage point over the route I had just came up, as well as back towards the Fandango Wilderness and the hot Creek range on the east side of Little Fish Lake Valley.
Next was the first real high point at 10500 ft. I stopped here to check for cell phone service, but again, no. It was really windy now. Stopped here and ate lunch.
The rest of the afternoon was an enjoyable walk along the ridge with similar views. The east side of the Monitor Range crest had the steepest drop offs, while the west side was rolling hills. Small patches of snow could be seen just below the crest in a few spots, but not many.
Next I summiting Danville Mountain, the high point of the Monitor Range at 10,888ft. This wasn’t much of a summit, just barely higher than everything else. Still, a cool view over a steep, twisting ridgeline.
Now its time to drop down into North Fork Mosquito Creek. I could see there was a lot of thick vegetation ahead and likely, bushwhacking. I opted to follow a Ridgeline down, hoping the south side of the Ridgeline has less vegetation then the north. I was correct, but there were still bushes to be whacked.
My route took me straight into the thick aspens. Instead of continuing along my route, I noticed a game trail that seem to be skirting around the edge of the trees. Good call, game. This took me around the aspens and led me to a foot Trail. I followed this trail through the Aspen trees, bewildered that a trail on the map actually exist on the ground. A rare moment on the Basin and Range Trail.
Looking back at the route I cam down, through the aspen trees. I would not have thought that was a good route had I been hiking up.
Followed the trail to a spring. However, I missed my turn, I was supposed to cross the creek a little earlier. So I back tracked, assuming the creek would still be flowing when I crossed it. It took me awhile to find my way down to the creek and find this Trail, but when I did, the creek was dry. I could backtrack to where the spring was, but decided to roll the dice and walk another 2 miles to another spot where there could be water. Gamblin’ man, at it again.
The trail became faint pretty quickly after leaving the creek. Then it disappeared. I got off track a couple of times, but eventually made it to the next spring. This whole Creek bed was dry. However, I was on a good horse Trail now. I was also a bit off my route. I followed the horse trail a ways, and then decided to go further off my route to another spring a mile away. Along the way, I stopped to check my map. All of the sudden I heard something in the bushes behind me, maybe 15 ft away. It was two fawns, and their mother… They were bedding down and apparently I scared them. In the process they scared me pretty good!
Not long after, I was on my way to the spring when I saw a small buck in the wash. Cool. Not long after this, I found myself at the spring. There was water, but it was covered in clovers and green plants. So I followed it Downstream. Here, I saw a couple of big bull Elk drinking from the creek, just beyond a downed tree. There were four of them, and one had some pretty massive antlers. I watched them for a minute, before they got wind of me and ran away. Water is all mine now!
Filtered four liters and ate dinner. Feeling much better now, I decided to keep walking. It was 7:30 now. I could have camped in this little Valley, there was a Green Meadow. But I was wanting to get back on my route. I hadn’t seen any campsites all day, and definitely not within the past 30 minutes before reaching the spring. Still, I rolled the dice and moved on.
The flattest, clearest place I can find. Still, not large enough for a tent, will have to make it work
I was feeling pretty good for the first hour. Sun low in the sky, some food and my belly and water and my stomach. It wasn’t long before the pack Trail on the map I was following disappeared. Now, I was on a sloping Hill, working my way around to another hill with a steep slope. My maps indicate a pack Trail here, so that’s what I’m heading for. Unfortunately, I didn’t see it when I got there. Sun is going down, and I have nowhere to camp. It was so thick here, nothing remotely clear or level. I ended up hiking back up to the crest of the Monitor Range again. Even here, I barely had a place to put my tent. I was forced to uproot a couple of sagebrushes in order to make room for my tent, and just barely. The sun had long set, but the alpenglow lingered over the hot Creek range in the distance.
Horse trail going over the crest of the Monitor Range, looking east. I placed my tent on top of this “trail” last night
Didn’t sleep as well as I had hoped last night. I woke up with a headache, neck tension. Feeling pretty rough honestly. Pretty whooped from yesterday. Not much wind last night which was good. Its always a gamble when camping up high on a ridge or saddle. Also, the sun was on me right away since I was pretty exposed up here.
Checked my maps in the tent this morning, trying to figure out the day. First plan is to look for the trail that I could not find last night. After leaving Camp, I followed a game Trail from the saddle down a hill. The game Trail faded quick. I put around the hillside looking for the trail on the map, but gave up. It was really Rocky and sometimes thick with trees.
I started hiking back towards the way I came last night. This meant contouring around a steep Hillside. There wasn’t any trail for this section either. My thinking was, head back until I found one of the trails I was walking last night. From there, I remember seeing a horse trail go over a hill and heading downhill towards the valley. This was an option. Also, mosquito Creek. It looked big enough to where there might be some sort of Trail, although none are marked on the map here.
I started walking towards the hillside that I would Contour around, and realized I needed to gain some elevation. I began to look around and noticed that the vegetation wasn’t insanely thick, it looks like there were narrow paths in between it. I started thinking about game trails, and how animals always seem to have the best route up and down things. So, I decided to just head down hill even though there was no Trail anywhere near here on the map. Technically, the trail I wanted to find last night and this morning was parallel in my path downhill, but on the other side of a ravine.
I worked my way down hill for a while, just weaving in and out of vegetation. Eventually I noticed my path was taking me towards a spring. When I reached the spring, I was surprised to see an actual Trail leading towards it, and away from it on the other side. I stopped to filter water here. I had to dig out a hole to dip my bottle into. Actually, the whole Creek was covered with a clover-like Vine or something. I cleared out the vegetation, then moved a few rocks, then dug out a small hole. Eventually I had a nice little pool to dip my water bottle into. I was pretty thirsty, feeling like I have been always running just a little on the dehydrated side.
I was extremely relieved to be on an actual trail now. It had been maintained too, a wide path cut alongside it, branches cleared and everything. Nothing to do now but haul ass downhill. I had been worried about making it to Carvers at the end of tomorrow, and now this Trail gives me a sporting shot at it.
Soon I was approaching the valley floor. The Toquima range loomed in the distance across Monitor Valley, with a few patches of snow along the crest. But my immediate surroundings were, you guessed it, Sagebrush. And some of it pretty tall too. I was surprised to see a flowing Creek flowing across the valley. It pooled up at a road Crossing. Almost wanted to jump in and wash off, but it wasn’t quite deep enough. Besides, I can do that when I finish crossing this Valley, at the Pine Creek Campground.
Walking across monitor Valley wasn’t too bad. I had a nice road to follow most of the way. I passed one Ranch that looks abandoned, if it weren’t for all the cows. There was another one in the distance. I took a break under some sort of old wooden bridge. It was nice to get out of the sun, this was literally the only shade across the entire Valley. Today felt a little bit hotter than the last several days, but nothing unbearable by any means.
The campground was pretty nice. I was very impressed with the size of Pine Creek, definitely the biggest Creek on the route so far. Campsites along the river, picnic tables, Grill, toilets. The creek had a bunch of rocks built up in a way where there was a pool that one could swim in, or at least soak in. Very tempting!
Took a break here at the campground. Enjoyed a picnic table in the shade, filtered couple liters, and washed up in the creek. The creek was very cold but felt amazing. I took off my shirt and washed it, and boy did it need it. I was tired of smelling myself. Rinsed my face and hair, armpits. Cleaned my socks. Soak my feet and clean them, which really needed it. They were extremely dirty from yesterday and I had no way to clean them last night other than using my precious water.
I left the campground feeling great. There was an actual Trail leaving here, and I could tell I was going to like it. Well maintained, and really nice views of steep Canyon walls. The trail followed the creek, so the vegetation was always green and jungle-like.
Soon enough I was crossing the creek. The first of at least 20 stream Crossings today. Along the creek, the vegetation was really thick, but again the trail was well maintained. All of the crossings had either rocks to hop across or some downed logs to step on.
Really enjoyed the first few miles. In fact this was some of my favorite moments of the route so far. At one point the trail emerges into a bit of a clearing, which provided excellent views of the extremely Jagged Cliffs. It was at this point I realized I was supposed to make a turn for the North Fork Pine Creek Trail. However, I didn’t see any other trails to take. I end up back tracking a ways to see if I missed the trail back there. Couldn’t find it, so I headed back to the opening with the Jagged Cliffs. I started looking around and walking in the direction I thought it would be. I did see what I think was the trail, but it was extremely overgrown. I’d rather stick with the good Trail that I was following. This was a shorter route, as it eliminates a lot of the High Ridgeline walking. I wanted to walk the longer Ridgeline route, but I would probably not make it to Carvers tomorrow night if I do so. Ill still bag Mount Jefferson south Summit, highest in the range, so I’m good with the shorter route up Pine Creek..
So now I’m following the South Fork Trail. The trail emerges from the creek for a while, providing open views. Not quite as spectacular as the area with Confluence of North and South Fork trails. I thought the trail would stay out in the open for a while, but it dips back down towards the creek again, many more times. However, much of this section was on steeper slopes with lots of Aspen trees. Very pretty looking.
I stopped for a break at a small Cascade along the creek. Filtered 2L water. Chugged one, even though I had drank plenty of water today i still felt thirsty. Climbing up mountains is hard work! I’ve climbed 2000ft since I left the campground, and still have another 2000 to go to get to the Crest, the Ridgeline below the summit of Mount Jefferson. This was my goal now, to get up there so I could say I have walked a r2r. Normally this reference is a rim to rim hike in the Grand Canyon, but to me it has a new meaning… Range to Range. I woke on the crest of the monitor range, and I had a solid shot of going to bed on the crest of the Toquima range.
After refueling with food and water, I was ready to tackle the second half of the climb. From here it was steeper, about 1000ft of vertical elevation gain per mile. It’s always a bit harder after a break, but soon enough you get back into the rhythm.
After a few sections of Aspen trees and Bouldery trail, I emerged into a grassy clearing alongside the creek. What do you know, cow shit.
Eventually I reached the upper basin, the Cirque below the Ridgeline. This head strong Colorado vibes. Rolling Green grass with a couple of boulders here and there. A spring feeding the creek.. even this had cow shit.
Filtered 2L. The sun was going down quickly. I was planning on trying to make it to the top of the Ridgeline tonight, for my r2r. However, the logical side of me said to camp here. Realistically, it’s going to be Boulder-y and windy up top. So I decided to camp here in the Cirque, at 11000 ft. This is only 400 ft below Ridgeline. I had plenty of time to do it, but didn’t want to deal with the potential lack of campsites. Still, this could be considered an r2r. I felt good about it at least.
Campsite was a bit slanted but was in a great position to accept the morning sunrise tomorrow. The sunset was really nice, lots of strong pink colors.
Slept okay last night. Slanted campsite didn’t help. Woke up at 6:15 with the sun on my tent, just as I planned. This really was a pretty good campsite other than the slant. I used the remaining juice in my backup battery to charge my phone and a GoPro battery overnight. When I woke this morning, I had 80% on my phone, and 95% on the GoPro battery. That is better than I was expecting!
Because I had 80% on my phone, I could now play some music today. I took the opportunity to jam a few tunes while I got ready this morning. I left camp pumped and ready to go. I need the motivation, because the town of Carvers is a good 25 miles away, and I’d really like to reach it tonight.
It was a pretty short climb up to the Ridgeline after leaving camp. However, there was a lot more climbing to go. The terrain was flat and small rolling sections, a lot like Shale mountain in the Wind River range. Barren, Rocky, and not really what you expect to see on the crest of any mountain range. Just brought back strong memories of Day 10 in the Winds on my 2018 CDT thru hike. How could I ever forget that day!
Toquima Range ridgeline, view north. It would be an easy walk coming in from the north along the Toquima High Route Alternate route
There wasn’t much of a trail anymore, you pretty much just pick your line to the top. Great views at the top of the Ridgeline, but I still had a ways to go to the summit of Mt Jefferson. It was pretty Rocky, lots of Talus and small boulders. No real risk of of major rock slides, but certainly a high potential for a leg slipping in between two boulders and snapping in half. For some reason this has always been a fear for me in Boulder fields. Certainly a worst-case scenario type thing, but you can see how it could happen.
There were several false Summits along the way, but good views none-the-less. There’s always another summit to, uh, summit. The side of the mountain facing Carvers was a sheer cliff in most places, with lots of colorful lichen. So it was pretty scenic in that sense, a great backdrop. I was beginning to realize just how many Bugs there were up here. There were an insane amount of flies and gnats.
Eventually the summit was in sight. There were a couple of large sticks and poles protruding into the air to mark it. Here it is, Mt Jefferson South Summit, 11,941ft, highest point of the Toquima Range. Woohoo! So now I’ve bagged 3 high points of 3 different mountain ranges in 5 days. This was a cool feat that really made this section of the Basin and Range Trail a great one.
However, the summit of Mt Jefferson looked pretty flat. I could see what I thought were a couple of shelters. Instead, they were small structures that housed Communications equipment. The first one looked like an ice Shanty that had been patched together with solder. This one was unlocked, so of course I opened it. When I did, about a hundred flies flew out, and it was empty inside. I kind of laughed about that one.
Close by there was another structure, this one much newer and locked. Clearly, this one replaced the older ghetto looking one with a bunch of flies in it. There were a couple of solar panels, and the large poles I saw from afar had something to do with the communications equipment. So really, nothing too interesting for the hiker.
The summit views weren’t the greatest. The views were better from the Ridgeline on the way up. At least there, one overlooks sheer cliffs over Big Smoky Valley rather than a broad, flat top. Well there were good views Of course, being the highest point around, this was far from my favorite Peak. I took some pictures and Begin The Descent. The bugs were too bothersome to want to stay here very long.
The Descent down the Ridgeline looked interesting at first. And exposed, almost knife edge like. While the Ridgeline looked appealing, and I did walk it for a bit, I noticed a bit of a path running below the top. This made more sense, and of course was safer. But this turned into a Traverse over Boulder fields, and was a bit tedious in its own way.
Eventually the route goes around the boulders and gives a good view of the Ridgeline all the way down to Jefferson summit… The name given to the pass below at around 8700ft. This is the lowest spot on the Ridgeline for me, where I would then drop down into Jefferson canyon which takes me to Carvers. A little higher up the Ridgeline than Jefferson summit, I could see a white truck parked. I assumed he was camping, but you never really know what people are doing. It’s a bit of a curiosity thing.
I really enjoyed the walk down this Ridgeline. Absolutely amazing views. Beautiful green hills, ridges and peaks surrounded me, and with the luxury of heading downhill, these were Some of my favorite moments of the entire section. I’ve been saying that frequently now some of my favorite moments. That’s how you know this was a good section!
This being the final day of this section, knowing I would most likely get to town tonight, I slipped into my favorite mindset of hiking. It’s hard to describe. Reflecting on the section, insightful thoughts, inspired and perhaps the most uplifting mood one can experience ever in life. Basically, a high that rivals any drug on earth. Extremely difficult to describe, indeed.
While walking the Ridgeline down, I was pondering difference between a hobby and a passion. I concluded that emotion was the key difference. I like to fish, but it doesn’t give me a high like one gets after completing an ambitious hiking route. Fishing is relaxing, but it lacks the extreme satisfaction of completing a long, arduous journey. In fact, I’m not sure what else compares to a challenging wilderness journey. It’s almost in a league of its own. I laugh when people say, isn’t hiking just walking? I suppose in it’s simplest form, yes. Walking through unknown terrain, where you do not know if you will be able to make it down the mountain without getting cliffed out, if you can make it through that box Canyon without reaching an unclimbable pour off, without getting Rimrocked, when or where your next water will be, surprise animal encounters, near death experiences on steep slopes, bushwhacking through thickets that no other human has bothered to, discovering hidden caves and mines, and all the other trials and Triumphs of the unknown. Sure, it’s just waking.
When I reached the high point above the white truck that was parked along the Ridgeline, I could see a man doing something with his door open. I could see his truck for miles, I assumed he could see me as I approached. Especially now, I figured he would have seen me. I was only 30 or 40ft from his truck when I said hello, and I scared him. This is somewhat typical, I can see the vehicle from afar but most people don’t notice a hiker approaching, we blend in to the terrain a lot better than a vehicle reflecting in the sun.
His name is Alex, he hunts for antler sheds. He had a big horn sheep head and I think a whole body lying in the back of his truck. He had pulled it off of the west side of Mt Jefferson. I was surprised to learn the value of some of these antlers. Apparently, $15 a pound for basic deer antlers. And once they get larger, they branch off in unique ways and become much more valuable. Of course, Bighorn sheep horns are a different thing. He was very interested in my journey, quite impressed with the places I had traversed. We chatted for a while about The Adventure, the mountain ranges I passed through, animals, rocks and Indian artifacts discovered. He offered to give me a ride into Belmont, but of course I declined. I didn’t think there was anything in Belmont other than a hotel where you can only stay if you do work to fix it up. At least, that was from my research for my 2021 hike. Besides, Belmont is in the opposite direction of Carvers.
It was almost noon when I parted ways with Alex. I had a long way to go to get into town from here, and was beginning to worry how late I would get there. Still, I was feeling great. Downright amazing, actually. The Ridgeline continued to impress with its beauty. The look back at Mt Jefferson was more impressive as I made distance from it, while the mountains to the south beyond Jefferson summit started to show their true character as I drew closer. For the first time on this hike, there were big puffy white clouds in the sky, providing a beautiful contrast for photos while also creating an amazing play of light on the mountains. I’ll admit, I was mesmerized. To further enhance my high, I put on some music. A Couple of the right songs took me to a place I cannot describe. I could feel the most intense energy coursing through my veins, in awe of where I was, what I have done and what I am doing.
And just then, I slipped on some loose Gravel on the dirt road and fell, my right hand taking the brunt of the fall. My hand was bleeding a little, so I wrapped it with my snot rag. This did absolutely nothing to kill my mood. In fact, a little bit of adrenaline only enhanced it. I walked on feeling like I was on top of the world. I felt unstoppable, invincible even! What a feeling it is to stop and realize that you are in the middle of the greatest adventure of your life. If that doesn’t give you goosebumps, you need to check your pulse.
At Jefferson summit, I took the road down into Jefferson canyon. I was amazed that anyone could, or would bother to, drive this road up here. The road was extremely rough, the middle portion of it had been washed out and was 3 feet deep. Great views though, some outcrops of Jagged rocks protruding from the otherwise green and grassy Hill sides. I say grassy, although in reality, most of the green that makes up the mountains is actually Sagebrush. Ha.
Before long I crossed the first flowing water in Jefferson Creek. It was just a trickle here, but would continue to get bigger as I went downhill. The upper reaches of Jefferson Canyon were pleasant. As I dropped in elevation, I could feel the temperature rising. This of course, comes along with the time of day, with the late afternoon being the hottest. The middle portion of the canyon was perhaps the least interesting. Exposed, warm, Rocky Road. The valley floor still looked a long ways away.
Many portions of the road along the creek were very thick with vegetation. In fact, the road would not be seen from satellite or above. The Willow grew in a rhododendron tunnel-like fashion, pretty neat actually.
Eventually I reached an abandoned Stone House, part of the old Jefferson town site. Jefferson had a population of several hundred people back in the late 1800s, when this area was booming with mining activity. The Jefferson town site consists of an upper and lower part of town. This stone house was the first building in the upper part of town, and marked the beginning of a large area of mining ruins. I took a break here, utilizing the shade of the building. It was largely intact, at least compared to the other buildings downhill. One couldn’t help but appreciate the stone architecture, and the fact that this building is still standing after about 140 years. Right across the road from this Stone House was Jefferson creek. I filtered 2 liters, while putting my existing 2 one litter water bottles in the creek to cool them off. Nothing worse than drinking warm water, especially in the Heat of the day.
It was about 3pm now when I left the stone house. Downhill from here, it was like walking through time. All around where old minds, tailings from the mines, structures that supported the mining operations, and many many Stone homes just like the one I took a break in, except in much worse condition. I passed at least 30 Stone structures, and that’s just the ones that I saw or noticed. There were likely many more here, either hidden from view or completely destroyed. Many of these homes had Stone fireplaces built-in, and still intact.
While walking the Road, I heard some commotion in the thick vegetation along for Creek. Something big was back there, and moving. I laughed when a couple of cows Darted out from the bushes and into the road, running downhill and away from me. It’s a Stampede of beef! The best kind of stampede. Man I want a big, juicy burger right now.
For the next several miles, I continued to drive the cows downhill. It’s always a bit funny to me how they were completely fine in the thick brush, but yet when they run away, it seems the only option their tiny cow brains can conceive is to stay on the road.
Ruins from the lower section of Jefferson. The stone work of these buildings were much nice than the ones in the upper townsite
The mining ruins continued, although much more spread out now. There were a couple of mines along the road but their entrances were blocked off. Some Hill sides showed the effects of upheaval, geology in action. There were portions of rock that were completely twisted, most notably, one that was Twisted in a half-circle shape. Just imagine the forces that created rock like that.
The canyon was opening up now, and soon I got my first sight of the round Mountain gold mine. This is one of the largest open pit gold mines in the world (supposedly). It was very warm now. When I crossed Jefferson creek for the last time, I made sure to dunk my hat and sun flap in the water, as well as splash water on my head and neck to cool off.
As the road exits Jefferson canyon, it parallels the round Mountain gold mine. Then, the road I was walking hit a barbed wire fence. On the other side of the fence was a road that exits the mine and runs across the valley, parallel to the Toquima range. This road wasn’t on my map. I had not anticipated this in my planning. Clearly, this road had recently been constructed. This isn’t the kind of place I want to jump the fence and just start walking through.
I contemplated what to do for a bit and ultimately started walking the fence line away from the mine. After a couple hundred yards, I found a culvert that runs under the road. The fence line runs right to each side of the Culvert, but not across it. I dropped my pack and walked through the culvert under the road, which was a hundred feet long or so. On the other side, it was the same thing, the fence line runs to the opening of the Culvert but not across it. Therefore, I am good to go in terms of walking through the culvert and continuing on the other side. So that’s what I did, went for the light at the end of the tunnel. The places I find myself!
Now on the other side of the road to the gold mine, it was a hike across open desert in Big Smoky Valley. At least until I figured out there was a road. However, it was a 4×4 Road, with deep sand. It really wasn’t any better than just walking through the desert, except it there was no Sagebrush on the road. Plus, the road seem to disappear intermittently. Welcome to Nevada.
Dark clouds began to build all around me, especially behind me over Mount Jefferson, and towards the Toiyabe range. It was nice that it was cooler now, but the threat of rain lingered. Alongside the road, while it still existed, was a very old truck that was just sitting there in the desert. It have been mostly stripped and was just a frame at this point. Still, a pretty neat little prop for a photo.
Eventually I hit a better Road, and stopped to empty the sand out of my shoes. Time for the last few miles into town along a network of random dirt roads.
I reached Highway 376, a paved Road. From here it was a road walk all the way to the motel. I was expecting it to be about 1 to 2 miles, but it was more like 4. I passed the Shoshone Market, really the only convenience store in town. I was going to stop here for some food to eat tonight, but figured the motel was just a little further and would stop there first. The spot I had marked on the map for the motel was wrong. The spot I had marked was for an RV/mobile home park, and the motel was even farther down the road.
I was really tired and ready for the motel. My feet were pretty sore now, specifically my right foot which is been giving me slight problems over the last few days. I have a blister on the ball of my foot that is about the size of a quarter that had popped. Dirt was getting trapped inside the flap of skin, and soreness was pretty much constant in that spot.
The jumping jack motel ended up being on the extreme north end of town. I guess that’ll save a bit of walking when I start the next section. Once I reached the Motel, I realized just how tired I was. Feet were sore and just feeling overall worn out. Checked in with Mickey, who runs the place. My resupply box was sitting right there in the office. She had said that the hotel owner was very weary of it, thinking it was somehow a scam or someone sending drugs with the mail. She reassured him I was legit, as I had called several times to keep them posted on the ETA of the package and and my arrival.
Mickey and I chatted for a while about the surrounding area, the mountains, and of course, my hike. I mentioned that I was hungry I’m looking for a place to get food tonight. There’s a bar and grill next door, but it’s closed on Monday and Tuesday, today being one of those days. Mickey offered to give me a ride up to the Shoshone Market, about 2 miles back. I was planning on just walking over to the market after checking in, but this will save me some time and save the wear and tear on my weary body. They have a deli inside, and they also serve burgers! So of course, I asked what their biggest burger was which was a double, and I asked for a triple. I got it to go, along with a couple other items to get me through breakfast in the morning.
After eating and showering, I was pretty much physically incapacitated. My feet sore, even my quads were sore, which is extremely rare for me. Only once on the CDT can I remember having sore quads. Also, I was laying in bed for 20 minutes writing in my journal and when I tried to get up, I couldn’t. Like I threw out my back. It was so painful, I didn’t think I was going to be able to get out of bed at all. After a couple of minutes, I forced myself to get up, needing to get the charging cable for my phone. I forced myself to walk across the room, trembling the whole way. It was a bit frightening to be honest, to go from seemingly completely fine to on the verge of being crippled in 20 minutes. I’ve often felt pretty good walking into town, but as soon as I reach the safety of a hotel, will get extremely tired. But nothing like this. It always amazes me how the body seems to know that it’s over, it’s safe now, you can relax. The amazing thing is, if I had a few more days of hiking ahead of me, this never would have happened. The body just knows. Truly amazing, really.
I took two Ibuprofen and Made my way back to the bed. I passed out a little after 9 pm. So thankful for the ride up to the market, I don’t know if I would have been physically able to walk up there and back. It was either that or go to bed hungry!
I got about 11 hours of sleep last night. For the first couple hours, it was a mix of hot and cold sweats. I was able to turn over in the bed at least without any pain.
Spent the day charging my devices, updating my journal, making phone calls and making purchases online. That is when I had Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi I only worked between 11 and 1 p.m. Then worked fine after about 4pm.
Still feeling tired and worn out. I hope I am in good enough shape to continue on the next section tomorrow.
Ate at the Carvers Cafe next door. I believe Mickey’s brother owned it. Demolished the 1 lb double bacon cheeseburger and fries. Got a grilled cheese and chicken strips to go, this will be breakfast in the morning since there is nowhere else to go.
The winds where howling tonight, easily 45 MPH or more, and some really nasty looking clouds lingering over the Toiyabes. Will I be ready tomorrow?
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