Day 70: Walden, CO to Encampment, WY

Distance: 50.0 mi, Climbed: 1,749 ft
Completed: 2,743.0 mi, 125,721 ft

As I was soaking in the scenic beauty of Rich’s and my fifty-mile ride today, I was taken by how much we have experienced as we were heading north out of Colorado towards our 13th state, Wyoming.

Today’s ride was one beautiful mountain scene after another, as if we were riding through the pictures for 1000-piece jigsaw puzzles. There were no gas stations, convenience stores, or any obvious houses along today’s ride — just wide expanses of ranching land surrounded by the majestic Rocky Mountains.

We saw several antelope along the road today. Rich had a family of antelope follow alongside him for a bit. They were stuck between a fence and the highway. They seemed to be afraid of Rich. As he would bike closer, they would run away along the fence until Rich caught up again. At one point, just before the top of a hill, one of the antelope came out into the middle of the road. But again, they hopped away as he approached.

At the 22-mile mark, it was right there — the Welcome to Wyoming sign. Entering a new state brings all the emotions of accomplishment. I can barely contain my giddiness as I signal for passing truck drivers to honk their horns at Rich’s and my accomplishment. They can easily see that we have bicycled to this spot and that we are asking to be recognized in that most amazing blaring way of trucks horns.

Ah, the weather forecasts — they are predictably unpredictable. We checked last night and several times this morning before heading out — no foreseeable rain. Soon after entering Wyoming, we saw the storm clouds forming. We’ve seen this before, and we checked the weather app. Yep, two bands of rain clouds were heading in our direction. 

Since we could see blue skies ahead, we hoped we could outrun it. We started riding hard. But soon, we hit the big hill of the day. Two miles at 4%. Manageable, but our speed dropped considerably. The wind from the edge of the storm reached us on the lower slopes. Suddenly, 4% felt like 10% as we rode into a stiff headwind. We did our best to soldier on, but we were barely moving. About halfway up, the rain started to reach us. We pulled over and put on our rain gear. We got back on our bikes ready to tackle the rain and the fierce wind. And just like that, the storm was gone. No more rain, no more wind. We finished the hill in blue skies.

The forecast said we may get a second storm, so we booked it the rest of the way. We stopped when we got to Riverside, a small town a mile from our hotel that had a few restaurants. We found a spot in the shade and discussed whether we wanted to eat there or head to Encampment. We decided not to have dinner in Riverside as we would rather not ride the last mile uphill on a full stomach.

Just when we were about to leave, a hiker seemed to appear out of nowhere, walking with a big backpack. “Hey! Where did you come from?” I called out. He explained that there were public restrooms around the corner. “Got it. What are you doing out here?” This is how we met our first Continental Divide Trail (CDT) thru-hiker. His trail name is Cowboy. Okay. I don’t know anything about long-distance hiking, but I am learning. There is a tradition among thru-hikers of using trail names rather than their real names. They do not get to choose their own trail names. Rather, they are assigned by others on the trail. Cowboy was from Vermont, and he was walking the CDT from the Mexican border to the Canadian border, hiking through the Rocky Mountains the whole way. Very cool!

Cowboy continued on walking, and I went into the small market to get some cold drinks for Rich and me. When I came back outside, Rich was chatting with Puff Puff. These trail names are fun! I thought maybe she was a smoker, but nope. Puff Puff gets a little cold sometimes while hiking so she wears two puffer jackets. Cute. Puff Puff is from England and is on her 77th day hiking north on the CDT with only four rest days along the way. That’s pretty hardcore.

When I went back into the store to throw out our drink bottles (unfortunately, no recycling out here), I could hear Puff Puff asking the store attendant if she was sure there wasn’t a nearby campsite because that is what she had been told back on the trail. “Sorry, there are only cabins here.” Puff Puff looked dejected hearing this news. 

I wanted to help and offered to pay for Puff Puff’s cabin that night. I had a feeling that it was going to be a modest fee, but Puff Puff said that she couldn’t accept. When I heard that it came with two beds and a shower, I said that I was willing to pay up to $100. With the price coming in below that, Puff Puff thanked me and began to cry.

No sooner than I said she was welcome and that she should just pay it forward, into the store came another thru-hiker, Jan from Maine, with her Trail Angel, Sandy. Sandy and her husband had been out for a day hike when they ran into Jan from Maine on the CDT. Sandy offered Jan from Maine a ride into town, and she was happy to take it.

Puff Puff had met Jan from Maine out on the trail and was glad to tell her that she had an extra bed in a cabin with a shower. These thru-hikers clearly spend most nights camping without access to running water. Since Rich and I have experienced so much kindness on our trip, I am glad that we got to help fellow travelers in this small way.