Turn around on New Mexico trails

This morning I woke up around 4:30am and was feeling very energetic. Which was shocking, because I was up past midnight last night. I had a long day, I was late for the hike, but I still managed to get moving today. I made a cup of coffee and then began to slowly pack up. I then texted Sprinter to let them know it would be out soon.

Being able to sleep in that amazing tent last night was amazing. It’s really hard to put into words how nice it is to not have to camp after a long day. It may not seem like the most important thing ever done, but in the context of what I’m doing, it’s honestly exceptional. I can’t think of anything more relevant and useful for my daily life, really. Before I continued walking, I enjoyed another cup of coffee with Sprinter. He then grabbed some snacks and treats to eat over the course of the morning.

It was still a little dark when I stepped out into the morning. It felt so good to move in early! I was definitely hoping to snooze my alarms today. Which would have been totally acceptable considering how late I was walking. On the other hand, leaving well and early seemed very solid to me. The morning temperatures were pleasant and the terrain nice and easy. I was walking down a narrow dirt path and then weaving in and out of some dirt roads.

Sometimes I can’t remember exactly what a section of the trail looks like. But I can remember the defining characteristics. This next section stood out in my mind because I definitely remember doing some alternate routes in this area. Whether that means connecting some dirt roads or things like that, I really wasn’t totally sure. But early in the day I started looking at my map because I knew something was coming.

I was glad I did, because there was an alternative law in my path. I remember taking this alternative route with Syrup last year. Mainly it would save me a little mileage. Before getting there, I was walking on dirt roads. And there was a section where it looked like I could take a shortcut on Gaia and then reconnect to the trail. But in true Gaia style, the route attempted to take me to the private property of a silent retreat. Luckily, it was very easy to solve that problem.

This morning’s sunrise was really beautiful.

I jumped back onto the trail and followed it for a while. Until I reached Icarus Junction. Apparently the hikers said you could descend to cut a mile. But this route would take you very close to the silent retreat, and hikers have complained about this in the past. All that just to save a mile. Instead of doing that, I took the side path towards this Icarus shrine. It was a very beautiful piece of stone right at the end of the trail. Then I went back to the red line and continued. I have no desire to save 1 mile of walking if it’s going to come at the expense of other people’s joy. Walking past the property of a silent retreat would definitely be a bit rude in my opinion. That’s just not me.

The sanctuary of Icarus.

As you can imagine, that extra effort didn’t cost me much. These days, with so much mileage, I couldn’t really blink at that distance. Although the funny thing is that cutting 3 to 5 miles sometimes seems like an incredible distance. It’s funny how a few kilometers can change my planning and my things so much. When I find a little shortcut that saves me time in that regard, I’m always incredibly grateful. But I wouldn’t bother saving a mile if it meant doing a lot of looting or interfering with other people’s space. Even if it’s not technically an invasion.

The terrain today was really nice and easy. I enjoyed the beautiful foliage and spent a lot of time on a dirt trail or two-track dirt road. Time passed quickly and I was grateful for it too. When I saw Sprinter this morning, I had taken a big gulp of coffee. I knew it was going to be a long day and I thought it would be worth taking it to have later. So in the afternoon, when it was already halfway through the day, I decided to break it up and drink it. Which also worked because there weren’t many water sources along my route. Then I could use the fluids, even if they weren’t water.

Walking through an open field and up a hill. The terrain looked a lot like this today.

Over time I came to the alternative I was going to take. This whole area is just a bunch of different dirt roads, so it’s really just walking on different dirt roads than the ones the CDT lays out for you. Which is kind of funny when you think about it. If the route will take you on a dirt road anyway, you would have thought you would be on the fastest path, right? But that is certainly not the case with the CDT.

Walking these New Mexico dirt roads and trails definitely requires paying more attention than I’m used to. Once again today I found myself veering off the path a bit and having to reconnect using another road or backtrack. I have to retrain my brain to check my map more frequently. But I find that I will check it constantly for a while and have no problems. So almost as soon as I relax is when I’m going to miss a turn. Isn’t that the classic case?

Early in the afternoon, I spent a lot of time walking through a field of vibrant trees. All the leaves change color at the same time. The way the sun peeked through the trees seemed to bounce the most incredible reflection off the leaves. I really enjoyed this time of day and these last hours of light. I continued on dirt roads and would eventually be returning to the CDT. However, you had the option to stay longer on the adjacent roads if you wished.

I loved the way the sun peeked through these bright yellow trees.

Not long before this, I stopped and had some water. In fact, there was a very nice spring along the road. At that point I filled about a liter and just didn’t want to load too much if I didn’t have to. I think I also keep forgetting how fickle the water situation can be in New Mexico. My mind is still used to other trails and other sections, of course. Because lately I haven’t been checking the map as much as I should to look for water sources.

Today would end up being a pretty good learning experience being back in New Mexico. Because that water fountain I passed by in the afternoon and only drank a liter of ended up being the last fountain for over 20 miles. I was hoping to come across something else in the course of my day. But I never did. Fortunately, the weather was nice and cool. That makes a big difference when it comes to drinking plenty of water. Although regardless of the temperature, everyone needs to drink water.

Who couldn’t dislike road trips when they are so beautiful?

I continued down a long dirt road for the rest of the day. As you approach Ghost Ranch, alternate onto the CDT. Once again, there were some dirt roads that ran parallel to my route. So I followed them for a while and into the afternoon. And finally it became night and I moved on. However, finding the route became much more difficult once the sun set.

The sun beginning to set as it continued into the darkness.

I found myself checking my map a couple of times and realizing I had missed detours. Then, as I walked back, I saw that it was very easy to miss the intersection. It was exhausting doing this in the dark and I didn’t really enjoy it much. The roads I was walking on would stop randomly and my map would take me through a wooded area to another road. Which made the route a little faster. But it was very difficult to keep in the dark. I started losing patients pretty quickly and I was feeling tired. Although I was hoping to get a little further during the day, after a while, it became obvious that wasn’t going to happen.

An incredible, bright, resplendent sunset in the desert.

I started looking for a campsite right when I reached the ghost ranch junction. There weren’t many amazing options, but luckily there were plenty of mediocre options. I finally found something and started setting it up. The worst thing about not having water was knowing that I probably wouldn’t be able to make coffee in the morning. But I decided to use some water and have some hot chocolate before going to bed. I thought I was a little dehydrated, so drinking water before bed would be good for me. I then had some snacks and got situated before calling it a night.

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