Day 60 – August 26

3 Highlights:

• Hotel room with a private shower
• Reconnecting with friends and family
• Luxury coffee

Daily Summary:

• Distance hiked: 30 km
• Starting point: Mile 1366
• Ending point: Rawlings
• Weather conditions: Sunny and cloudy

Daily Reflections (challenges, insights, musings):

Woke up at 5 AM, packed up, and left Tom’s place, clad in rain gear, ready for the day. Thunderstorms were looming, but luckily, no rain hit me. Spent most of the 25+ km hike into town catching up with my parents, sister, Lanski, Bobi, and Pjotr. Of course, I missed the first junction because the trail was as elusive as ever, and I ended up hiking too close to the highway. Not exactly the scenic route.

Once in town, I walked too far west, realized it, and had to backtrack to get to the hotel. But not before stopping by a classic diner for some scrambled eggs. I had grand ambitions in town, but my left foot was sending me shockwaves of pain every step of the way, reminding me I needed rest. The hiking poles I was hoping to fix? Yeah, Walmart had other ideas—no luck there.

Granite ordered pizza, while I played chef and whipped up a chicken salad. It turned out alright, though the bar gathering with seven other hikers, including Resupply (who casually mentioned doing 66 miles in one day), made me wonder if maybe I should’ve gone for the pizza too.

Tomorrow, I’m planning to hitchhike as far as I can, maybe even all the way to Encampment. I need to make it to Grand Lake by Sep 5, so it’s time to cover some serious ground. But for now, I’m just ready for some shut-eye. Sleepy sleepy.