Sunday, August 8

I'm now home, safe and sound. My trip home went astoundingly well. Friday morning I hiked out to Hwy. 50 along the Monarch Crest Trail, which was shorter and easier than the way I'd hike to Green Creek. The MCT follows the Continental Divide and gave me fabulous views, including of Mts. Ouray and Chepeta blanketed in gray clouds set against a clear blue sky. Shortly after arriving at the highway, I was picked up by an ecologist working for the summer at the field station near Crested Butte who was driving all the way to the Denver airport. We had a lot in common both professionally and personally, so the trip went quickly. It was especially fun for me because our drive took us through a lot of the country I hiked the last couple weeks. Once at the airport, I successfully changed my flight plans and found a nearby hotel. I caught a 6:30 AM flight and got home yesterday afternoon.

It's good to be here. I had a great trip and already look forward to more hiking, camping, and even backpacking (this morning I read the latest issue of Backpacker, which came while I was gone). But it's time to be here. I'm enjoying time with Maddy and talking on the phone with Toby, my parents, and my sister. And the comforts and familiarity of home feel good. My feet are healing now that I'm able to stay off them.

Over the next weeks I'll update the brief reports Lori posted with notes from my journal and some of the many photos I took. I want to thank her again for making the great maps and posting my brief reports from the trail.

Day 17, August 5

After resting for a day, Geoff has decided to head for home. He had developed some serious blisters on the balls of his feet and they just aren't healing quickly enough for him to hike comfortably. He plans to make his way to Salida tomorrow and will figure out the rest of his travel plans from there. He said "I enjoyed myself a lot but home now feels right."

Day 16, August 4

"Reached upper Green Creek."

Day 15, August 3

"Made it to Monarch Mountain Lodge this afternoon, in the rain. This is the halfway point and the next 150miles are more remote. It feels great to be showered and have clean cltohes and I'm looking forward to dinner and a real bed. 38.552   -106.294"

Day 14, August 2

"Camping along Sand Creek with Tinley, another thru-hiker. Caught by a big thunderstorm about 2 miles from camp, but it had moved on by time I got here. Otherwise a good hiking day. 38.529 -106.180"

Day 13, August 1

"Nestled below a mountain near Maxwell Creek, waiting for my Kung Pao Chicken to finish cooking. Climbed 3K feet in 3 miles, then went down 3K feet in 3 miles. Ugh! Fortunately the other 11 miles weren't bad."

Day 12, July 31

"tonight I feel smart. I'm at Harvard, Lake that is. very calm and peaceful. 38.890  -106.240"

Day 11, July 30

"hiked 21.5 miles today, but it was lower elevation and not a lot of up and down so I feel fine. a deluge hit when I was about 3 miles from camp. thank goodness for good rain gear! by time I got to camp along Clear Creek, the rain had almost stopped. some incredible views today. 39.018   -106.280"

Day 10, July 29

"camping in the rain by Half Moon Creek. 39.152  -106.419"

Day 9, July 28

"overlooking Galena Lake. tired but happy. 39.298  -106.420"

Day 8, July 27

"crossed another mountain, this time only 12,400 feet. now at Camp Hale, former mountain warfare training base. 39.419 -106.303."

Note: Geoff is sending messages via satellite phone so is limited to a few characters in his texts. His plan is to go back through this blog, add more commentary (he's keeping a journal) and photos. Stay tuned!

Day 7, July 26

"Crossed '10 Mile Range.' Reached altitude of 12,600 feet. Beautiful flowers. Great views. Exhausted. 39.496 -106.135"

Day 6, July 24

"I made it to Breckenridge and enjoyed a bed, shower, real food, a rest day, and being able to talk with Lori, Toby and Maddy. 39.483 -106.044."

Day 5, July 23

"crossed continental divide today. blisters manageable. 39.515 -105.936."

Day 4, July 22

"ok but have blisters like the 6 other thru hikers I've met. 39.427, - 105.803"

Day 3, July 21

"Having a great time! now in beautiful valley at 39.344, -105.590"

Day 2 - July 20, 2010

Text from Geoff: "Ok. Stopped early by a lovely creek at 39.339 -105.341

Day 1 - July 19, 2010

Text from Geoff at 6pm mountain time: "ok and tired. did 20 miles. at 39.402, -105.198 th at 39.491, -105.095" (th=trail head)

The maps I will be posting are not interactive. If you'd like to follow Geoff's trek and be able to move about the Google map freely, you can go to gpsnavigator.com and enter latitude and longitude for your own interactive map. I'm not sure what other resources Geoff shared but here are some links you might want to explore:
http://www.coloradotrail.org/
http://www.coloradotrail.org/google-earth.html

A day in Denver

I flew to Denver yesterday, arriving late enough that the record-setting heat had moderated. Everything went very smoothly getting here. My hotel is The Curtis, which I highly recommend if you're looking for a good quality, fun place to stay in downtown Denver.

Today I had fun while getting acclimated to the elevation. After a brief trip to the wonderful REI here along the Platte River, I visited the Kirkland Museum of Modernist Fine and Decorative Arts. Kirkland was a prominent Denver artist from the 1930s to 1970s who also worked to promote modern art in Colorado. He also believed that art should permeate every home, so he collected decorative art. His home and collections have been expanded since his death.The fine art was interesting enough, but what sets the museum apart was the decorative art. There were great examples of ceramics, furniture, and other materials from all the major 20th century American and European decorative art schools, well displayed in a salon-like setting. It's well worth a visit if you have time in Denver.

I then walked to the Denver Botanic Garden, one of my favorite gardens. It was an especially great visit because they are showing a major collection of Henry Moore's sculptures. Seeing 17 Moore sculptures was great in itself, but seeing them here was even better. Moore wanted his works displayed in natural outdoor settings, and the Garden did that wonderfully. My favorites were a giant reclining figure of white material (unlike Moore's typical bronzes) on a small grassy hill and the striking "Totem Head" rising unexpectedly out of a lovely prairie.

This evening, after a truly fabulous dinner at Tamayo, a "modern Mexican" restaurant, I finished packing for an early start tomorrow. I'm excited about hitting the trail and getting into the mountains. At the same time, I'm still feeling a bit anxious about how I'll do. This trip is longer than anything I've ever done before. Earlier this week I came across a this quotation from Goethe, "Do not hurry; do not rest." This captures perfectly how I want to approach this trip.