SUMMARY:  Well, it took a killer hill climb (3.3 miles of steep, rocky uphill) and 2 very tough, steep rocky descents plus weather that went nasty plus we have only one day of food left to convince us to go to Plan C—drop out of the mountains and roadwalk to Twin Lakes. So at around 4pm we started following County Road 321, while thunder rumbled and we were being rained on.

We did find a small grove of trees to hunker under while we ate dinner, and then where Road 321 reaches the highway, hooray! An RV/camp place! So right when we needed it, we have a little cabin, out of the wind and cold. Tomorrow the roadwalk.

DETAILS:  It was actually warm this morning at 5:30 am–we didn’t even need to put on our jackets!  The mossies (mosquitos) were out, though, and eager for breakfast.  We got moving quickly and left them behind!  The sunrise was gorgeous, but a bit worrisome, because it was a very bright RED, which usually means rain coming in.  I tried to stay hopeful, though–there were very few clouds.

We reached Mt. Baldy, and began the very long descent to Cottonwood Creek.  The trail was very steep and very rocky, the kind of trail where I slow to a crawl because I’m a klutz and can too easily trip and fall.  I did NOT want to fall on that trail!  It was mega-frustrating.  I hate going so slowly, knowing that we still have many miles before we reach Twin Lakes.

At last we were down, and following an easier trail along Cottonwood Creek.  Apparently it’s very popular with horse people, because it had a lot of horse tracks and the dust was deep.  Our feet were quickly filthy dusty dirty.  We did find a nice spot by the creek to stop and eat breakfast AND treat a LOT of water for the hike today.  This will be the last creek for awhile.  There was a bridge over the creek, which was a good thing–it was roaring and rough and would have made for a seriously nasty ford.

Finally the trail reached Rainbow Lake, where apparently the horses stop, because after that we had no more dust to deal with.   We crossed a road, and according to the map, right after that there was a “black diamond” climb for almost 3 1/2 miles.  So at the foot of the climb, we stopped for a snack, and while we were resting by the trail and thinking about what lay ahead, along came a very sturdy-looking older guy carrying an ice axe and a small backpack.  We figured he was headed out to climb one of the nearby 14’ers.

After that short break, we shouldered packs, looked up the mountain, and said, “Oh boy, here goes!”  The trail lost no time in going UP, very steeply.  It was a sagebrush hillside, so we had great views of Rainbow Lake down below.  My approach to long, steep climbs (I much prefer them over long, steep DOWNhills!) is to get into a rhythm with my breathing and my stepping.  My legs actually don’t feel tired at all on these climbs–it’s my lungs that have a problem, due to the altitude.  So I just sort of get into my rhythm and I can keep going and going.  Not fast, but steady.

Eventually we were back in forest again, and still steeply climbing.  About 2/3 of the way up, Fixit said, “I can’t go on.  I’m too tired.  I have to stop.”  And he just sort of lay down by the trail.  I know he did not sleep well last night, again, so that was part of the problem.  My problem was that I just wanted to get the climb done and reach the top.  So I said, “OK, I’ll just keep going, but I will wait for you at the top.”

I got back in gear and continued the climb.  A short time later, a happy young gal came bouncing down the trail.  “I just came off the ridge!” she cheered.  “You’re almost there!”  Well, that was good news…but turned out her sense of time must have been a bit off…it took me 25 more minutes before I reached the very scenic ridgetop. I took off my pack and immediately began looking for a nice shady comfortable place for Fixit to lie down again.  I figured that by the time he got up here, he would need it!  Once I found a good spot, I got out the stove and the food and started setting up to cook some lunch.  Just then, down from a higher part of the ridge, came the guy with the ice axe.  He was very surprised to see me.  “Wow, you really made good time going up the hill!” he said, and we talked a bit.  It turned out he is a local, and he “does that hill” EVERY week, once the trail is clear of snow, in order to stay in shape!

He also told me the “history” of the Colorado Trail.  He said it was a very hasty/rushed decision for the state legislature, who were saying, “We need a state trail!  We need it NOW!”  So with a very small budget and very poor planning, they quickly cobbled together a “trail” made up of some existing trails plus a lot of old mine roads.  Where there was nothing, they put in a trail as cheaply as possible.  “Like here,” he said.  “You see how steep and rough it is?  It’s really crummy trail, but it was cheap to put in.”   Oh….so that explains why there’s no switchbacking or contouring.  Too expensive.

He left, and finally Fixit arrived, completely exhausted.  I showed him the nice rest spot, and he just collapsed, while I finished cooking lunch.  “I can’t do any more of this Colorado Trail,” he groaned.  “Once we get down off this ridge, let’s just roadwalk to Twin Lakes.”  I totally agreed!  We only have food left for one more meal today, plus enough for tomorrow, and that is it, with many steep miles left to go.  If we roadwalk, we will be able to make it and not run out of food.

So we slipped and slid on the steep, rocky trail, down off the ridge.  It was really bad.  Down at the bottom of the canyon was a dirt road, which according to our map, should eventually take us down to another road, and the highway.  Just as we started to follow it out, it began to rain, and thunder was rumbling all around us.  I looked back up at the mountains where we would have been climbing back up again on the CT–it looked bad, with black clouds and mist.  The rain continued as we walked out to County Road 321 and began to follow it towards the highway.  The rain grew heavier and the wind was blowing and it was cold!  We were so glad we’d decided to bail out.

At 5:30 we reached a little grove of trees where we were protected from the wind and a bit protected from the rain, and stopped to eat.  All around us, the mountains were enshrouded in clouds.  “Nasty up there,” we said to each other.  But I was really wondering what we would do for a place to camp.  We were down in farm country, with everything fenced.  “I guess we will just have to ask permission to camp in somebody’s field, ” I thought. “And oh fun, we get to set up in the pouring rain and wind.”

But when we reached the highway, at the intersection, oh JOY!  There was an RV camp!  And they had little cabins!  So we went to the camp store and rented a “rustic” cabin (small, no bathroom, just a couple of bunkbeds) and now we are out of the wind and rain, and there is a heater in the cabin, so we are warm.  Our wet stuff is spread all over the place to dry.  And to add to the fun, while we were at the store, we met two guys from an “old time religion” church (that’s what it said on their van!) where they don’t have a “band” for their music (like most churches do now) and they sing HYMNS.  Awesome!   They are here with a bunch of teenage boys from their church, and they’ll be doing some mountaineering adventures over the next few days.  Hope the weather clears for them! (Hey, and for us, too!)  They promised to pray for us, and that means a lot.

So we are sheltered and warm and tomorrow, we should be able to reach Twin Lakes!