Daily Miles: 22.1, Total Miles: 191.2 Camping just below the ridge protected me from the howling winds last night. I climbed to the top of the ridge and down Sheep Corral Canyon, getting water at a tank on the way down. Before I got to the Gila River, I met my first CDT hiker since Lordsburg, Handy Andy. The next 13 miles were spent hiking up the beautiful Gila River Canyon, crossing the river 49 times, mostly knee to thigh…
Daily Miles: 25.9, Total Miles: 169.1 I had a good breakfast in town while waiting for the post office to open. Headed north out of town and up Little Walnut Creek road where I connected to the Gila River alternative trail. Had lunch and got water at Flowing Bear Creek, just in time to see an eagle take flight. Evidence of gold mining as I hiked deeper into the Gila National Forest. I then passed impressive rock formations called Devil’s…
Daily Miles: 0, Total Miles : 143.2 A restful day in Silver City doing as little as possible. Nursed the feet, planned my next leg and took a nap. I then had a burger and sampled a few Little Toad Creek brews. I backflushed my mini-Sawyer filter. Shouldn’t be surprised by the green crud that came out after those nasty stock tanks this past week. Happy Mother’s Day to Mrs. Haze and my daughters-in-law!
Daily Miles: 7.1, Total Miles: 143.2 I road walked the rest of the way into Silver City. I’m staying at the Murray Hotel, an Art Deco style hotel in the historic district (hiker discount!). This location is very convenient to the PO, laundry, and the Little Toad Brewery, not necessarily in that order. Silver City has a nice vibe to it. I splurged and had dinner at the Curious Kumquat, serving foraged and locally sourced dinners. Wow, what a meal!…
Daily Miles: 23.7, Total Miles: 136.1 I stocked up on water at Goat Camp. While I was filling bottles, a big, black bull came sauntering into the pen to get water from the small round tank – I was the last thing he expected to see – he turned on a dime and made a quick exit. Pretty much all uphill, I skirted Jack’s Peak and over the top of Burro Peak at just over 8,000 ft. First good climb…
Daily Miles: 27.1, Total Miles: 112.4 Rested and on the road by 6am – said goodbye to Juan who was taking some hikers to Crazy Cook. Varied tread today – three miles on pavement up Hwy 90, ten miles cross-country east across the yucca and cactus flatlands, then climbing north into the Burro Mountains. I had lunch under a big shade tree just under 6,000 ft elevation. Refilled water at the Co-op windmill trough and continued up dirt roads past…
Daily Miles: 0, Total Miles: 85.3 Not a whole lot here and many businesses are boarded up. I was told the main highway used to go through town but now you have to exit off the interstate freeway. But no problem laying low and giving the legs and feet a rest. There is a well-stocked grocery store and the only liquor store left in town is across the street. The motel started draining the green pool today – leaving too…
Daily Miles: 7.5, Total Miles: 85.3 The tent was flapping so loudly last night, I broke down and put in the ear plugs. Much cooler – zipped up my sleeping bag for the first time. Filthy, a bit sunburnt, windswept and chaffed in the wrong places – are we having fun yet? No rush this morning – nice, largely cross-country route into Lordsburg. Back to the Econolodge (nice people) for shower, laundry, and next resupply box. I had lunch with…
Daily Miles: 24.5, Total Miles: 77.8 I awoke to clouds and a light sprinkle. This made for a cooler morning walk down to the 4th water cache. While filling up water bottles, a gentleman from Hachita drove in with two hikers he was taking to the border. I gladly accepted the Egg McMuffin w/bacon he offered! The next several miles were mostly flat, barren, overgrazed land – time to listen to a few podcasts. Some cloud cover was appreciated because…
Daily Miles: 21.3, Total Miles: 53.3 Last night was a strange one and, in hindsight, could have ended badly. I was awoken the first time by footsteps and the flashlight of someone walking down the wash behind me. The walker stepped over my tent guy strings and then connecting northbound on the CDT. At 3am, I jolted awake again, hearing someone else coming down the wash except this time , the bright light bore into my tent. The person came…
