into Steamboat

I really enjoyed Rawlins. The hostel, run by Kate, was peaceful and had everything I needed... Laundry, shower, a bunk, a fridge...

young man at the coffee shop won a state prize for his amazing art.

I got creative with a 38 mile road walk. I asked Christine for a ride 13 miles out, then I'd use the satin to walk back to town and enjoy a steak dinner. What a great character she is. She moved to Rawlins from Hawaii in the 1980s and ran the laundromat with her husband for many years. He passed on, and she sold the business to Kate and her famous pet goat. But really, they are partners, clearly holding each other in high esteem like a mother and daughter. 

I enjoyed the walk with a light pack, sharing water with a couple southbound hikers heading out. Not a tree in sight, just high sagebrush country. After the steak, I hung out, chatting with a great Canadian couple, Shamrock and Scraps. Later, we met again in Steamboat Springs and shared a dinner with a guy who motorcycled across Wyoming. He was astounded that we track each other by our footprints. In that conversation, I asked Shamrock if she saw a Altra Lone Pine shoe print where the right foot goes at a rather extreme "bowlegged" angle. "Yes! We did, and wondered about that."

To the surprise of the motorcyclist, I was able to say "then you were behind my buddy Cory, and not by more than a day thanks to the rain in that section at night."

After a full rest day, involving a trip to Walmart, where our shuttle driver enthused that the "idiots" on town were getting ready for war since "their president" had been arrested by the current regime. Okay. Well. My thoughts were different. It's the first time in our history that the ruling party locked up the leader of the opposing party, and zooming out, this can't be a good sign for the continued rule of law and respect for the continued rule of law. 

All systems fail, and sometimes we are unfortunate to live in historical moments. It would be highly premature to be gleeful about that. I am conservative because I think civilizational systems are more fragile than they appear, and should be adjusted only incrementally.

The next day, Christine drove me out to where she left me before, but this time I would walk south for 25 miles to get on trail. As it turned out, she shared my thoughts about the current moment, so that was fun. She's a sharp lady, 😉.

After a couple of hours, a truck pulled up and a nice older guy asked if I needed water. "I wouldn't turn it down!" I said. In the passenger seat was Lavender, a young woman from Texas who I'd last seen up in East Glacier, Montana. I envied her getting a ride, but my personal ethic was to walk every mile, within reason. The man said there was a cache of water 11 miles ahead, and that made my day.

Up there, I drank ice cold water and smoked a thin cigar. That cache really saved me...I could make it the rest of the way up into the mountains where water was plentiful.

Slowly trees began to appear... First on high ridges, then creeping down towards me. The sun arced across before me, and only rarely did a car drive by. This was huge country, and I was glad to be crossing it.

Mostly, this trip has had less opportunity for reflection than last year. Walking with a friend keeps your mind usefully focused on the practical next steps. Now alone, I wandered a bit more in inner space. I feel good about the certain knowledge that I'm back this year to finish because it is something I said I would do and therefore I must do it.

sheepdog with Peruvian sheep herders.

Keeping your word feels so good, that you can go through all kinds of work and sweat in order to do it. It seems a bit silly, but it is not. Maintaining a continuity between word and deed is probably a bit like the way strong core muscles and good posture affect and improve any physical endeavour.

It is a topic upstream of any particular endeavour, yet essential to all completions. So...I feel good and steady.

southern Wyoming

at the Colorado border.

a ride into Steamboat Springs from these wonderful campers.