San Juan Day 5

Waking up knowing that it is your last day of an adventure is difficult. Your mind wants more, but your body is trying to say it's over. Even if you did manage to decide that your body wanted more, sometimes bills, work and life pull you back to reality. Above all, it is incredible that we even have the ability to make it to these remote, incredible places (stamina, resources, a sound mind, etc.). Frequently, these are the thoughts that go through my head as I am riding.

First, some coffee and donuts were my winning breakfast choice that morning. Then on to Highline, chilled pace necessary to enjoy the surroundings.

You can insert your own dialogue for some of these pictures....

After Highline, we started riding Indian's Ridge at the same chilled, yet steady pace. We had another incredible day for weather....beautiful skies with no wind. It's the kind of thing you are lucky to have so high up.

These are the views that I could enjoy for days....

True to form, we enjoyed the views in some incredible weather.

We stopped here for a quick lunch, spaghetti (probably my least favorite of the options for Mountain House).

We bombed down from the higher elevations into the lower Colorado Trail. Durango was going through a heat wave and the last 10 miles were incredibly hard for me. I did not take my camera out during most of the time during this section. Upset stomach was the first problem. Fatigue plagued my body and mind. I had to rest while Aaron continued ahead.

Last section of singletrack before heading back to Durango.

After resting for 10 minutes, I pressed on in the heat hoping for some water. A stream never materialized but the fatigue subsided. Honestly, I think just knowing I was getting close was the cure I needed for my upset stomach and fatigue.

The need to know about the route:
170 miles, 27,744 feet of climbing in 5 days.
I can email you the GPX file if you want. Just post a comment here or email me directly.