It was cold in the meadow when we woke up this morning so it took a little while to get moving. I woke up kind of late too since I’d been waking up all night due to a sloped tent site again. After we were packed up and ready, the sun finally hit the trail and then it felt fine.

We walked through some avalanche debris and past the beaver pond again but did not see any moose this time. This first climb was hard since I hadn’t eaten much yet, but we sat at the top of the saddle to eat more breakfast. We’d known that we’d be slower after not eating dinner last night but did it anyway. I don’t think I caught up on hunger until we stopped for a long, late lunch before the last climb of the day and our high point of 12900′.

After that, it was a long, gradual descent along Cochetopa Creek. We eventually ran into some cows grazing, and saw another moose nearby, exited the Wilderness Area, and set up camp at the Eddiesville trailhead after 17.1 miles. It was dark by the time we finished setting up and eating.

There’s a pit toilet here, water, and mostly flat, clear ground. What more could you ask for?