Sept. 2nd-6th, 2021

After a restful zero day we hitched back to Molas Pass and hit the trail for our final leg of the hike. From where the Colorado Trail crosses Hwy 550 we had just 75 miles left to get to the southern terminus, and Durango. The three of us were very excited to be nearing completion, at the same time wishing we had more time to enjoy the experience.

After several hours of hiking in the rain we decided to set up camp. We were a little short of our original plan, but we decided the best move to improve our moral was to set up camp and relax. We spent the rest of the afternoon huddled under trees, trying to do our best to avoid raindrops. The storm cleared a bit later in the evening and we were treated with a few glimpses into the valley below.

On our final night we set up camp on a small ridge overlooking a valley. It was a perfect spot to spend our last evening. Like we experienced throughout our trip the scenery was gorgeous, and the weather was perfect. The three of us enjoyed our final dinner together and then crawled into our tents for our final night on trail.

On the morning of our final day I peaked my head out of the tent to soak in the amazing view. As I was zipping up the fly I noticed that there were a few blades of grass in my shoe. Oddly when I checked the second shoe there were a few blades of grass in it as well. Upon further investigation I noticed that deeper in the shoes there were also a bunch of small mouse droppings. I removed the insoles and found that over night a mouse had pissed and shit all over the inside of both my shoes. I couldn’t believe it. I spent 150 days camping over the summer of 2021 and each and every night I set my shoes in the vestibule of my tent. This was the first time I’d ever had an issue. I attempted to dry my insoles of the mice piss while we packed up camp. Luckily I had some gold bond powder which I completely covered the wet spots with. It might have just been in my head, but I was convinced I could feel the slight moisture of mouse piss at the bottom of my toes as we climbed up the first hill of the day.

The final few miles of the trail were a real celebration. The three of us were very excited as we made our way down the last few miles of the trail. Day hikers and mountain bikers that passed cheered us on for the accomplishment. We were so charged that we practically ran the last mile to the terminus of the trail. The three of us talked excitingly as we skipped down the trail. And then we turned a corner and could see the cars in the trailhead parking lot. We gathered at the sign that designates the official terminus of the trail and took our obligatory pics. Our section hike of the Colorado Trail was now in the books! Over three separate trips the three of us had hiked the entire Colorado Trail! Thanks to Katie and Torsten for being such great adventure partners! And thanks to all the amazing people that we met along the way. I look forward to running into you again on the next adventure.

See you on the trail!