Wednesday June 14 – Day 25

Tonight is my last night camping up high for awhile. But the spot was so good I just had to stop. It’s going to be cold, though – I can tell. The spot is just past Steamboat Lake on a FS road that is closed for another month. It’s more of a snowmobile trail anyway I think.

I didn’t get out of Steamboat until 2, but still managed to do about 35 miles and camp up high. I think it wasn’t the miles so much as the pace that was hurting me. I can spin and go a little slow and still get 60-70 miles a day I think.

There’s something roaring way off out on the mountain. It sounds vaguely like trumpeting – must be an elk or a moose. Here’s hoping yellow tents don’t get him all horned up. I saw a fox today – the second of the trip. (The first, strangely enough, was on the fairly well-traveled Boreas Pass coming into Breck.) This fox was more grey, where the other one was red.

I’m camped way up high here, probably half a mile or so short of the summit in this mountain meadow/clearcut. From my tent, I can see way down the valley toward the lake and over a few ridges past that even. The sunset up here was gorgeous. It is obvious that nobody has been through here in quite some time – the road is closed, branches are down, and there are no tracks whatsoever. Rugged stuff.

Day 25 stats:

35 miles
2500 feet up
less sore legs