Chuck's News: Day 77 - Sunday, July 10, 2022 - 17.6 miles - 44,779 steps - MP 1502.1 (Gravel Rd 3 miles into Wyoming) to MP 1519.5 (Battle Pass) - Vert Up - 3689’ - Vert Dwn - 2843’ - Total Miles to Date

Day 77 - Sunday, July 10, 2022 - 17.6 miles - 44,779 steps - MP 1502.1 (Gravel Rd 3 miles into Wyoming) to MP 1519.5 (Battle Pass) - Vert Up - 3689’ - Vert Dwn - 2843’ - Total Miles to Date - 1207.1

Last night was a little scary. We were camped in the forest because we couldn't find anyplace else good to camp, nothing level, or cleared or dry. But, we were camped in the middle of a totally dead, standing forest. Many of the dead trees were leaning. And these are full sized 100' trees looming above us. Dallas, in particular, had a tree with a yellow ribbon on it, as if marked for cutting, leaning about 20 degrees just off to the side of her. About an hour after I set up my tent a dead branch fell on my tent, startling me. Thank goodness it wasn't very big, but there were many more hanging up above me with the potential of falling, but it was a totally calm night and we made it through.

In the morning my foot was very stiff. The fact that we started on a hardpacked gravel road didn't do it any favors. It took over 3 miles for it to loosen up enough that I could get back to a normal gate. By this time Dallas had to be a mile in front of me.

The trail followed the ridge nearly exactly. This meant it went up and down every bump on the ridge. The ups were straight up the fall line, the downs the same. These were very steep chunks of trail. This made the going very slow for me as the steep stuff just wears me down. Old Bag, Short Sticks, and a few others passed me. The other factor that slowed me down besides my foot were my shoulders. I would expect my left shoulder, the one I got the COVID booster in, to hurt, but not my right one. In fact, from left deltoid to right deltoid across my spine and shoulders my body just ached. At night, the pain in the tent was all enveloping, as if crawling into the tent was crawling into a cocoon of pain. I popped Ibuprofen as often as common sense and kidneys would allow and it would keep it somewhat at bay, but I have begun to really dread the nights.

I sat down along the trail for lunch and Gib stopped by and joined me. As we ate and talked Short Sticks passed by. Gib took off ahead of me after eating. I didn't see anybody else for the rest of day.

Did I mention this is a town day? Yes! We are headed for the small town of Encampment, WY, about the size of Vader. The last 5 or 6 miles of trail passed through open meadows 60 acres or bigger in size, separated by tracts of forests. These meadows were beautiful, but incredibly soggy. Many times I was sloshing through mud right up to the top of my shoes and leaping flows of water in the low points of the fields.

When I finally emerged at Battle Pass where Hwy 70 crosses the divide my feet were wet, my body hurt and there was no one there, everyone before me had caught a ride to Encampment. I walked through the parking lot down to the highway and set up to hitchhike. After 5 minutes and not a car a vehicle approached from the opposite direction. In the back seat I saw Feel Good and Caddie Shack and Lemon Hope. They pulled into the parking area. Lemon Hope's mom was up from Utah and had brought them back to the pass so they could start northward this afternoon. She was not heading back down for an hour or so. I stood on the highway hoping for a ride. I stood there for 45 minutes. Not a single car came by. Finally, she was ready to return to Encampment and gave me a ride down. Dallas texted me that she had gotten the last cabin for rent in Riverside, the town right next to Encampment (only a mile apart). They dropped me off there.

Imagine the shack that the Joads lived in upon arriving in California from the midwest in the Grapes of Wrath. Built in the 40's, furnished with furniture and art of the same vintage. Linoleum floors. Only one power outlet in the place, a light above the sink with a three way plugged into it and extension cords running to the fridge, to a fan in the living room and to a fan in the beddroom. Basic, but out of the wind and rain. Dallas took the bedroom with its "Deep Valley" bed. I slept on the hide-a-bed. We had dinner at the Bear Trap Cafe. It was good. Bought a few supplies at the grocery/hardware/autoparts/outdoor store (think Olsen Brothers only 10 steps down), iced and rolled my foot and then spent another near sleepless night fighting pain in my shoulders and neck.

The post office opens tomorrow morning at 8:30am. There must be 20 of us needing to get our resupply packages from there and then needing to hitch back to the pass. Dallas and I decided to get to the Post Office at 7:30am and wait there for it to open rather than wait in our shack. This way we are first in line.