Now back in the CDT hiker bubble

This morning I had planned to start the day off nice and early. It was only 30 miles from Cuba. And since the trail runs through town, it would be the perfect place to spend the night. But even with the tempting motivation of having a bed in the foreground, I still slept in this morning. Finally I got up and started packing my bags. I wasn’t walking very late, but not as early as I expected.

It was a really nice and calm morning without too much elevation. I had to walk about 15 miles before I reached the top of a climb and also a crossing point. Here the new and the old CDT were separated. The last time I was here I took the old route that takes you to Cuba a little earlier. I realized this last night and was very happy with the discovery. This time I will take the old CDT again. Otherwise today would have been closer to a 35 mile day.

There are also distant comments about some aggressive dogs at a house near the current CDT red line. And last time there were no problems with the old CDT. Overall, I was heading in that direction for most of the morning. The day started moderately and the climb was super gradual. But it would get a little steep throughout the day. I was usually going uphill for those first 4 or 5 hours of the day.

I’ve really enjoyed the climbs here in New Mexico though. I don’t know if it’s because I’m at a lower altitude or simply because of the slope. Maybe it’s just because the ground isn’t covered in snow. But I have already felt very fast and strong here. It’s a great feeling and I hope it lasts the rest of the way.

Later in the morning I entered the San Pedro Desert, which was a really nice part of the day. Then, as I climbed higher and higher, I started to see some snow! It was clearly because of a storm, maybe 3-7 days ago. I can only imagine there was a decent accumulation because there was a lot of snow left even though a lot of it had melted. As I climbed higher and higher, there was even more snow. Never enough to be even remotely annoying. But I actually crossed it continuously for about a mile. Although it was a super thin layer of old melted snow.

Everything was covered in frost this morning when I walked through this valley.

When I announced that I would end the year in New Mexico, I remember realizing that no one really knows about the weather in New Mexico. Everyone always told me what a wonderful place it would be to end the year. How nice it would be to be in the desert in winter! I just don’t think people realize how cold desert environments get this time of year. Even the PCT desert is covered in snow. And in New Mexico it definitely snows. In fact, there is a lot of snow here! I’ll be very lucky to avoid it entirely for the rest of my time here. But I would consider myself a very lucky girl.

For a brief moment I felt like I was back in the CDT a few weeks ago when fall was in full effect.

Today was another one of those days where I remembered my hike of 2024. It’s crazy how vivid all my trail memories are. And now that we’re back here at the CDT, they’re even more vivid. This is the most recent section of the trail I hiked before the triple crown of the calendar year. I was hiking in New Mexico on the CDT last year in October and early November. I finished the CDT last year on November 7th.

Now almost a year to the day I am back here in the desert. Only this time everything is completely different. The journey I’m on, the way I feel, the person who is here today walking these miles. It feels like a lifetime since I was back at the CDT. How could that have been last year? I can’t believe I’ve been on the road for almost 300 days this year. Sometimes I wish I could sit with the girl I was on the first day of this hike. So as not to spoil any secrets or anything like that. Just to hear the way he spoke and get an idea of ​​what was going on inside his head. That headspace now feels very far away.

Entering the desert of the San Pedro Parks.

I finally took the old CDT route that would continue towards Cuba. I only had about four more hours left to finish the day. Not long after I ended up walking through a field and started hearing someone talking. I saw a horse in the distance, so I assumed the person was waving at me. I had headphones on, so I couldn’t understand it. Then suddenly these people came out of the forest and approached me. Apparently they had lost one of their other horses. Then they asked me if I had seen a horse on the road. I certainly am not. And that’s not an ideal thing to lose.

I’m not kidding, today I came to the sign and drove by blankly, confused. For a brief moment, I forgot I was on the CDT and no longer the PCT.

Part of the trail was swampy and flooded in sections for the next hour or so. But luckily I managed to keep my feet dry. Other than that, the terrain was pretty easy. And the closer I got to Cuba, the easier it became. In the end I would come out onto the dirt road and everything was smooth sailing for the last few hours. There’s nothing like a flat dirt road. There isn’t too much traffic and you don’t have to pay too much attention to where you are going.

This is not what I expected to see when I returned to New Mexico.

He was making better progress than he had expected and would reach Cuba long before dark. It was definitely a relief. I tried calling Sparkle as I walked into town. But it was in vain. When I arrived in town, I headed to the border motel and checked into my room. All other places closer to the city center did not answer when I called. But I was at this place last year and it was really nice. It’s a little further away from everything.

Fortunately, this was the worst snow I encountered.

I left my backpack in the room and emptied it. Then I took it empty to the store. That way I didn’t have to carry bags with me. The first thing I did was go to the supermarket and restock. I also have a ton of drinks, snacks and things for tonight and tomorrow. Then I went to McDonald’s to buy some food to take back to the room. When I walked into the McDonald’s, I immediately noticed a crowd of day-trippers. A girl was sitting outside on the sidewalk talking on the phone. And three guys were inside, in the booth.

Walking through this wide open field. Within a few miles, I would be coming out onto some dirt roads.

I approached and one of the boys looked at me. And wouldn’t you know it, it was Zen! A hiker I met on the AT in 2023 when I was doing a section of hike. He was hiking with his friend and his dog Piper and they were heading to Trail Days. Then I ended up seeing them back in the Trail days. And I’m pretty sure I saw them at the Trail days the following year too! But we definitely have each other on Instagram, so I check things out from time to time. But I have to be honest, I had no idea it was on the CDT. Although I use social media a lot, I simply don’t consume content to the same extent as I would if I weren’t hiking.

It was cool to run into him and then know I could drop my backpack and join those guys at McDonald’s. I was going to get takeout, but decided to just sit and eat with them. They gave me a big Mac meal with a shake and a 20 piece nugget to take back to the room. Then he sat with Zen at a table and talked with him and a couple of other hikers. One of the other hikers was named Fritos. And I didn’t understand the other boys’ names.

I was there for a while eating and talking to those guys. Then I finally knew I had to go back to the room. I really wanted to do a lot of editing and it was too late. When I walked back to the motel it was already night. I missed a phone call from Sparkle when I was eating with the boys. So I called her and we ended up talking for about an hour.

While talking to her, I packed my resupply and settled into the room. And Sparkle is always so nice to talk to. Lately we can talk endlessly about all the things happening in our personal lives and also about the road. As my trip is wrapping up, she is moving into the final stages of planning her hike for next year. It is a truly unique experience to share this with her. Especially because she is one of those people with whom I shared the most throughout the year. She’s the one I always call crying when shit gets bad. Fortunately, that didn’t happen too much.

We talked on the phone for a while and then I took a shower and spent the rest of the night editing. Even though I started later in the night, I still got a lot done. I think it helps that I don’t feel as tired anymore. A couple of weeks ago, when I was editing in the city after a long day, I could barely keep my eyes open. It was a real struggle to even get a couple of blogs or videos together after a 30-35 mile day. But after getting some rest and cutting back on the miles to some extent, I feel very revitalized. I went to bed tonight and did hours of editing work. The only thing that gave me pause was the realization that I should probably try to sleep. Although I think my body would have allowed me to stay up all night.

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