Day 7  117.8 (16.8) 7270ft

I wake throughout the night. I have a headache and my legs are cramping up. Not good.

I get up in the dark and start hiking. I am so sloooooow. My phone dings at me as I’d taken it off plane mode and put the sound on the alert me when I have signal. It does its usual go crazy thing. I post a message to see if anyone is behind me so they can keep an eye out for the SPOT, I email the water report to update, and put up a fb status so any friends who are following know I’m alive. This all takes too long!

Finally I find the windmill. There is a gross tub full that I am about to filter from, then check the comments on guthook for the water and find a tap under the windmill! Fresh flowing cold nectar of the gods!!! So happy. But sooo tired. Crap yesterday and dehydration really took it out of me.

I coordinate with an awesome friend to post me a new SPOT to Silver City (somehow SPOTs are hazardous and can’t  be sent expedited by REI??), see more emails that need responding to and generally waste too much time.

The trail is a marked trail now with signs instead of long range sighting for posts and cross country hiking. I’m in a daze as it wanders up and down hills, seemingly going in circles but apparently going forward.

It’s hot again but there are trees. I stop often and try to jump start my motivation but I’m not feeling it. I realise I’ve only eaten a probar and bowl of cereal since I got up yesterday. No wonder I’m sleeeeepy.  I don’t feel hungry and my stomach is still adjusting to the water so I just have small bits and pieces from my trail mix.

I find a spot to hide from the hottest part of the day and put my feet up. Next thing I am opening my eyes and 30 minutes has passed. I don’t even remember deciding to nap!

Onwards onwards I force a bit more food in, stop to collect more water and finally arrive at the trailhead for the big climb up Burro Peak. I  was planning on heading up late afternoon to avoid the sun, but now some storm clouds have come in!

As I round the corner to head up the trail I’m confronted with epic trail magic!!! There are buckets hanging filled with fruit, gallons of water, a case full of beer, soft drink and fruit juice and a bag filled with all kinds of snacks. Giant thanks to Trail Genie who set this up! I eat a banana and take a fruit juice and head on up.

 

Just as I’m wondering if I’ll make it before the storm a huge clap of thunder sounds behind me. Shite. Going up 1690ft in elevation with a storm is not the best idea. I have bad track record of trying to out hike storms so I contemplate staying with the trail magic but look at the elevation and there is a flat spot 2 miles up that should be good for camping.

I make it 2 miles with rain slowly dripping on me and see that there is actually another flat spot in another mile. Except as I’m about to commit another thunderclap sounds and I bail. Better to find a good campsite and set my tarp up well here.

I set up my tiny tarp for only the second time on trail and wonder if it will be big enough, strong enough if I hit a real storm… cross all the things. The storm doesn’t eventuate but rain pitter patters on and off as I eat food and do all the night time things. Tomorrow I will have all the energy back and stop doing baby miles. Hopefully.