With the terrible winter storm currently battering the mountains I am hiking through, I decided to link up with the other hikers for at least the first day to play it safe. We rode he historic train up to Cumbres Pass and entered winter. As we left the train and headed into the snow, hundreds of flash bulbs went off as every train passenger snapped our picture and gawked at us. From there it was as tough. The snow fell thickly and wind blew fast across our faces. The ground had up to six inches of snow and at the hottest part of the day the temperature lurked in the 20s. We didn’t stop all day, it would have been too cold. And with the initial thought of night hiking a bit, The combination of finding some good spots to camp under the trees and plummeting temperatures stopped us in our tracks. This reminds me of the Appalachian Trail, and I had to stick my feet (already in my sleeping bag) inside my empty backpack for more warmth. Tomorrow I will have to put on frozen shoes and clothes and it will likely snow overnight, but it will be a great adventure until I can make it to lower elevations and out of the mountains.
Miles 21
Total miles 5311
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