17: A Traveler
I once met a man who was 26 days into a solo winter raft trip through the Grand Canyon. He said that any such long journey unfolds in phases. The first week is all novelty: establishing patterns, routines, and mastering logistics. In the second phase, you are simply present. A traveler. Your life takes on the rhythm of the river. The third phase is the Zen phase: you integrate your journey with who you were, and who you will be.
17 days in, I’m beginning to feel a traveler. My life has taken on the steady rhythm of the trail. Wake. Eat. Pack. Pedal. Bask. Camp. Repeat.
There’s less lactic acid in my legs in the mornings, and fewer odd (see: alarming!) aches and pains. My cravings for town and civilization are abating, but for the need to recharge my electronics and the perpetual craving for cold beer.
After breaking camp I completed the last 500 vertical feet of climbing up into an alpine bowl. The riding today has been very much Alpine in character and, while challenging, absolutely blissful.
2.5 days after leaving Wisdom I pedaled this afternoon into Jackson, MT to pick up a resupply box. Jackson, as it happens, is about a 1.5 hour bike ride from Wisdom, if one took the highway rather than the high route. I’m recharging and enjoying a few cold beverages at the Bunkhouse Hotel before pedaling back to the CDT.
