Day 7 in the Bob

I’m starting the day at mile 2760. I am 17 miles from the trailhead to my resupply box at Benchmark Ranch. It’s another few miles after that. 

I got up early before everyone. It was raining a little. The trail was muddy in places and sometimes blissfully dry. I stopped to get water and make a protein drink otherwise I did not stop. 

I started seeing more and more people as I approached ever closer to the trailhead. Mule trains and backpackers. I stopped to talk briefly with some of them. My five friends blew by me and then they stopped for some reason and I passed them by and didn’t see them again. A nice lady from Sweden who is American, she got dual citizenship as soon as Trump was elected, hiked with me for a while. She hiked so fast I had to push myself so hard I was peeing my pants. I finally had to let her go on ahead. 

It rained off and on all day. I finally reached to trailhead at around 2 pm and set off in search of my box. I followed roads and trails until finally a nice couple who had hiked the CDT northbound from Mexico to Twin Lakes offered me a ride. It was a long way! I was so grateful. 

I got my package and it was full of way too much food. I ate a bunch of it right there. It felt so good to eat. Almost like a town day right there. My five friends and the Swede were there too. The five got in the shuttle to Augusta and were gone. The lady and I returned to the trailhead, getting a ride with two funny old men who had a cabin nearby. 

The two of us hiked 3.4 miles to a tent site listed by the Sun River, with a better site across the river. The river was wide and swift. It was hard to see how deep. There was a skinny rope across the river. She made it across up to her crotch using the rope. I did not see how using the rope would work. I tried my trekking poles. I stepped in a difficult spot up above my crotch and lost my footing and fell in. I was now completely soaked. She said try the rope. I tried and almost fell in again. I would not be able to cross. I yelled across the river I was sorry I would not be able to hike with her. It was raining harder now and I needed to make shelter and put on dry clothes. 

I set up my tarp in the pouring rain and stripped off my wet clothes until I was naked. I fought my rubbery clothes. They would not come off. All this spandex they put in everything. I cursed my rubber shirt and my rubber bra. I got them off but found it hard to put in my jacket with wet skin. I fought the sleeves to let my arms in. I yelled at my clothes. I finally got the dry things on and got into my warm sleeping bag and made a hot drink of soy sauce packets, kelp, sesame seeds and butter powder. I messaged Tony on the Zoleo. Probably used all the messages for the month on the 3rd of July. Oh well. 

I thought about what I should do. I could walk the three and a half miles back to the trailhead and maybe that nice shuttle man will take me to Augusta. I could hang with friends and wait for the river to subside and the sun to come out.