Day 13 on the Arizona Trail

Mileage: 16 miles

Weather: Windy and cold

The morning started with frost all over the tent. We took the fly off the tent and shook as much of the frost off as we could. Then proceeded to fold up the rest of the tent. The poles felt like ice sticks on my hands. I have gloves but I don’t have much dexterity with them on, so I had to suck it up and deal with the cold as we packed up. I then put them back on my hands to get warm again.

The terrain was the same as the past few days. More flat, zig zagging through the field. It was boring so I found myself day dreaming a lot. The strong cold wind would bring me out of my day dream and remind me I seemed to be aimlessly walking in the cold and my feet were killing me. Family Mules feet was killing him as well even with the inserts he bought in Canyon Village.

I must have been letting off bad vibes or vibes of being miserable and cold. Family Mule picked up on it and made the comment, “that hot tub is going to feel good tonight”. I looked at him and just shook my head. He said we have an intersection coming up where we could get a ride to town and reassess! I was on board with the plan! We needed to hike another 7 miles to get there. We had a quick lunch with some hot chocolate and pushed forward.

We past a hiker named Rubbles. She was feeling the same way with her feet killing her and this was the most boring and cold past few days! It was actually comforting to know it wasn’t just us feeling this way! She was ready to get to town as quickly as she could as well and was deciding if she was going to continue or not.

About half a mile from the intersection we past a couple guys with a van and a jeep. They were a support team for a hiker who was trying to beat the fastest known time. She has to finish the trail in 14 days. She is fully supported which means she carries nothing just has to complete the trail. We learned there are supported and unsupported fastest times. I don’t know what the unsupported fastest time is currently. I know for the men’s, it has to be done in 13 days. Either supported or unsupported, that is awesome they can do that challenge. It is not something I have any desire to do mainly because I want to be able to look around and see the views. Also, I’m not a runner!

We made it to the intersection! We tried to get an Uber but no luck in the area. We were able to get ahold of Apex Taxi Service and they picked us up in the next 45 minutes! The driver was great. He educated us on the area as he took us to the Drury Inn. The cost was only $75! Well worth it!

We checked in to the hotel, put our stuff in the room, and headed straight to dinner with our hiker friends, Maple and Shufflin! It’s so wonderful how the Drury Inn serves dinner as part of the stay. I ate 2 baked potatoes, 2 salad bowls, plus a cup of chicken Alfredo! I was starving!