Update from Chris 4/27/2014

Hello all, Martha here:

I talked to Chris on Sunday the 27th and all was well.  He and Gary and Beaker ( Bob Turner) had stopped in Mimbres to take a well eared zero.  Everyone was tired, a bit sore and just needed to relax.  Gary has taken some great photos.  Are you following his blog, Our Endless Earth too?

Chris started hiking again Monday, 4/28 and will hit Pie Town (!) then Grants and Cuba.  the stop after that is Ghost Ranch where I will be sending all his winter type gear, ice ice, crampons, gloves, lined pants, stove and more.

I'm sure you have read of Chris dedicating his hike to Andy-Astro.  Read here for a post from Andy's Mom, Elizabeth Gosselin http://hikingthepacificcrest.wordpress.com

I'll continue to update here when Chris doesn't have time or connectivity.  Feel free to join me on my Facebook page,  https://www.facebook.com

Some very nice and generous donations have been coming in.
A HUGE thanks to everyone out there.

This is what a zero day looks like:

And They're Off!

I'm finally home, where I belong. Back on the trail. 

After two hellish days and nights on a Greyhound bus, Gary and I finally met up with Beaker and made it to Deming, NM. Trail Angels Keith and Mary Schwarzer helped us with local info and made sure we made it down to Palomas, Mexico. We ate a huge meal while a Mariachi band played. Getting back across the border was no problem and the hike had begun. Didn't get started until about 2pm and did a straight road walk about 12 miles north right back to Willie Pritchard's ranch. He kindly let us camp and water up on his property.

First full day on the trail was a blunt reminder of how harsh this environment can be. Every plant wants to stab you - each of us had 1 1/2" thorns poke through the soles of our trail shoes and into our feet. The sun is intense and there is absolutely no shade to be found. Sand and wind that can blast a license plate clean. Carrying enough water to get to the next source and navigation are the main concerns. Made 23 miles today and set up our tents in 30mph winds. 

Stay tuned for posts about the prototype backpack that Honor Point made for me, using Fitbit to track my mileage, staying warm with Stormy Kromer and my Montrail shoes from Ann Arbor's Running Fit. 

Gary and Beaker mark the GPS location of a water cache in the middle of the desert. 

Trail Angel Keith Schwarzer.

Gary and Chris hold the CDT bandana in front of the Pancho Villa statue in Palomas, Mexico.

Chicken mole and a Mariachi band to celebrate the start of the hike.

Mostly road walking the first day. 

FITBIT!

Huge thanks to Megan Serow and the good folks at Fitbit. I'll be using their technology to track my hike. I'll be carrying both the Flex and Zip models for comparison but it will be hard to keep the Flex charged up. The Zip has a battery that last 5 to 7 months.

The devices themselves were easy to set up. I assigned an account for each of them. I look forward to posting some big numbers.

Thanks, Fitbit!

Fitbit Flex

Fitbit Zip

A Dedication

I had the honor to hike with Andy 'Astro' Lyon during our thru-hikes of the Pacific Crest Trail. Astro was young, educated and full of life. Yet he was dying of cancer. I came to regard Astro as a teacher and a healer. We had hours and hours of great conversation while we hiked and I learned a great deal from him. We had some crazy adventures and some serious situations but we both finished the trail.

Astro and I toasting our completion of the PCT

Astro passed away not long ago. I miss him terribly. Fortunately, I'm able to keep in touch with his mother, Betsy and his step-father, Michael. Betsy was kind enough to send me a bandana that belonged to Astro and that he carried with him on the PCT. I'm going to carry it with me for my thru-hike of the Continental Divide Trail.

I'm carrying this bandana to remind me of Astro and all that I learned from him.

I hereby dedicate this hike to the memory of Andy 'Astro' Lyon. I am so glad to have known him, so grateful for all that he taught me and so lucky to know his mother, Betsy and her husband, Michael.

Betsy and Michael

Astro and I in the Goat Rocks Mountains of Washington

There's the bandana!