Final Post

We both had good intentions, but life has finally caught up to us--bills, jobs, relationships, and a lot of decisions.  Reflecting on the trail has taken a back burner, and it may be months before we even tap some of the lessons learned from our adventure.  To us, the trail did serve a greater spiritual purpose that, I think, is still being realized.  

In the meantime, I think it is time to close the blog and leave the trail life behind as we journey ahead into what is still unknown.  We know not toward that which we journey, but as my Colorado t-shirt states so well: "The journey is the destination."  We'll do our best to take in the moment and not miss out on the daily blessings, the daily lessons, and the daily opportunities to serve.  

We hope you'll do the same.  

Much love,

Hatteras Jack and Do-Rag

Pictures

Pics from the trip!

https://vimeo.com/102529067

Last Section of the Trail and Afterward

Reality hits hard I’ve learned.  We’re back in Oxford, which is exciting, but all of a sudden the responsibilities are pouring in, and so things like pictures and blogs have taken a back burner.  Ben had started a blog several days ago, but time with family too precedence (as it should!) and now that we’re in town I am not sure that he will finish (priorities you know).  I suppose I can give him a break, since he is trying to find a way to earn a living so we can eat.  :)  I’ll see what I can do to help.  Back to the drawing board for both of us!  Jobs and a place to live to come soon, we hope.    

In the meantime, though, I thought I would post a couple things to finish up our thoughts and stories from the trail.  We have SO many stories that we could probably write a small book, so I’ll just sum up a few of the highlights of our last few days on the trail and shortly after:

-We saw two very young bear cubs climb a pine tree (with mama sitting hidden below).  As I was hiking I heard crashing and was hoping it wasn’t Ben falling down the mountainside.  When I learned it was a small group of bears, I cautiously but excitedly looked on.  After watching them climb, we decided that hanging bear bags to preserve food is probably a waste of time—still a good idea to avoid getting mulled in a tent, but we’re guessing with such climbing skills, if a bear wants a food bag, he’ll get it somehow.  Pretty impressive.    

-After our crazy evening on the Continental Divide, the monsoon weather patterns were rather good to us.  In fact, overall, I think we really lucked out on weather for this trip.  Countless times we saw isolated storms in one direction or another, but we were rarely hit, and the temperatures stayed cool, usually between 35 and 60 or so.  Hiking down into Durango was quite shocking—our hitch took us into town to a campground, where it was a whopping 93 degrees.  I wanted to go back to the mountains…

-One of our trail friends, Bergie, lives near Denver and was able to meet us for breakfast in Boulder once we returned.  So fun!  We hope to stay connected with her and meet up when we are in the area. 

-The wild flowers were astounding, almost to the very end of the trail.  I never really appreciated wild flowers until this trip. 

-We easily found a hitch into Durango, without thumbing at all.  Tedda offered us a ride before we even finished up the trail—we were so grateful.  She and her dog were finishing up a morning hike, and I guess we looked like we needed a ride.

-Thanks to Carver’s pub, Ben and I both received a free Colorado Trail Brown Ale once we got into Durango, a generous offering to those who thru-hike the Colorado Trail. 

-Ben has quite a trout story from our last night on the trail.  I hope he can write about it at some point, but if not, next time you see him, ask him about it.  It’s pretty great. 

-After the trail, we decided it was time to once again summit Long’s Peak.  I forgot how scary it is at times!  It was a much different climb than anything we were doing on the Colorado Trail.  It felt good to get up to 14,000+ feet and not feel terribly winded due to the lack of oxygen.  Our bodies had adjusted to 12,000+ feet on the trail, so a couple thousand more didn’t seem to faze us too much.  What a beautiful mountain!  Thanks, David, for summiting with us!! 

-We’ve had several days now of eating super well thanks to relatives in both Boulder and Oklahoma (thanks Bonnie, Joe, Carolyn, John, Jan, and Dwight!), so we’ve gained back a good portion of the weight we lost on the trail and are feeling good.  Our blisters are about gone by now, and our backs feel much better.  We feel well-fed and ready to face the world—mostly.  :)

I wish there was a way for me to transpose what we’ve experienced into words or pictures or videos, to share the depth of the trail, but there doesn’t seem to be a way to capture the last several weeks or put into words how we are feeling or what we learned.  I guess my best encouragement is, if you are in relatively good health, get out and experience the beauty God has created in the world around us.  Otherwise, we’ll share the best we can!  Pictures and few more thoughts to come, and then we’ll put a cap on our posts and move into this next phase of our lives.

A Special Thanks

Ben and I wanted to take just a few moments to thanks some very special people for adding something super to our trip:

Thanks so much to Ben's parents, Bonnie and Joe, for not only taking time to drop us off at the trail head near Denver, but then taking time off work to drive all the way to Durango to pick us up.  Not only that, but they brought us special treats, paid for lodging, and took care of our vittles.  This is the first time we've had the same people drop us off and pick us up before and after a trip.  Bonnie and Joe, you guys are awesome, and we are so grateful!  

A very special thanks to our friend Stefan, who not only flew into Durango to meet us after the trail, but rented a car on our behalf, paid for our lunch in Durango, and treated us to the hot springs in Pagosa, a much-needed healing soak for us.  Stefan, we are so grateful to have your friendship, and our bodies are thanking you for the hot springs.  Thanks for bending over backwards and adjusting your schedule to come spend some time with us.  

 

A big thank you to David Coffey, Ben's brother, for joining us on a section of the trail.  It was so awesome to have someone come share in our experience with us.  David, we hope there are many more times of sharing these adventures with you!  

Thanks to all of you who emailed, Facebooked, or posted on our blog.  We were so encouraged by your words!  Sorry we did not have a lot of internet access and time to respond to all of you comments, but they were all greatly appreciated.  We felt (and still feel) very loved and supported!  

It's the relationships that we have with all of you that makes our experiences worthwhile.  Thanks for being a part of our lives and sharing in our journey with us!  

Ponderings

Well, we've been off the trail and "in civilization" for a few days now--I've been amazed at how much my mind has been processing since then.  I've been on long backpacking trips before, but it seems to me that this trip has brought on the most contemplation and that of all the trails I've done, this one is taking the most energy to readjust to life outside of the mountains and my daily hiking routine.  I am most certainly enjoying having all modern amenities at my fingertips, from flush toilets to fresh foods, but a large part of me longs to be back in the mountains, in the simplicity of waking, packing up, eating, hiking, unpacking, gathering firewood, eating, enjoying, and going to bed.  

One thing that struck me right away as we headed into town, freshly off the trail, was the overwhelming sea of choices.  I have this horrible habit of picking the skin on my thumbs--I've been doing it since second grade--but since getting onto the trail last month, the habit has only returned when heading into town.  Without even realizing it, as soon as I stepped foot in Durango, or even shortly before, the habit returned.  Going from such simplicity and so few choices to the onslaught of decisions we then had to make was overload on my nerves.  It makes me wonder if, as a society, we've just surplussed ourselves with choices that, in the end, really don't make our lives any better but only more stressful and complicated.  I am challenging myself to try to find how to simplify my life when I return to Ohio.  I have found much joy and beauty in the simplicity.  

As we neared the end of the trail, Ben and I also had some good conversation about competition and comparison, spurred on by a brief encounter with a day hiker on the trail.  We were a day and a half and about 20 miles from Durango and finishing our 500-mile trek when we came upon a couple who inquired about our journey.  When the man found out we were hiking the entire trail, he responded by informing us that there was a girl who had set a record on another trail by averaging 44 miles a day.  This comment was followed by "So how many miles are you doing a day?"

Wham.  It was like a slap in the face really.  Ben and I have both done big hiking miles before, but we had vowed to each other to slow down and enjoy everything this trail had to offer.  We were content with our 15-mile-a-day average, which left us with time and energy to build fires, talk with other hikers, write post cards, journal, and enjoy dinner together.  But all of a sudden, this one comment of comparison was threatening to take away the joy we had found in our daily routine.  Now we were questioning ourselves--why weren't we pushing harder?  Are we lazy or inferior?  What's wrong with us?  

One of my favorite quotes of all time is "Comparison is the thief of joy."  I was letting this man steal my joy right out from underneath me.  I found myself walking away from the conversation feeling a bit defeated as well as a bit of anger that this man would dare to attempt to steal my joy.  I wanted to defend myself, to make my case, to prove I was still worthy of something.

However, it didn't last too long as I realized he could only take my joy if I allowed him to.  I bet Miss 44-miles-a-day didn't have fires as night or take time to smell the wild flowers or have entertaining conversations with other hikers.  I bet she didn't take a side trail to a rocky outcropping to inhale a breath-taking view or watch the sunset over the mountains with brilliant colors painting the sky.  No, she can keep her record, and I'll keep my joy.  

Now I am grateful for the man who dared to compare me, as it has since spurred me to contemplate why we are so quick to compare and compete.  My second challenge to myself as I return to my home and friends is to find contentment with whatever I have, wherever I am, and to stop comparing myself to others--to find joy with who I am and what God has given me.  

I am reminded of Paul when he writes to the Philippians, when he says "...I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength."  He found contentment in all circumstances, from prison to riches, and this is the kind of joy and contentment for which I strive, the kind that cannot to stolen by others.  I also want to share and bring out this joy and contentment in others rather than steal it away.  It is a difficult battle to fight, but I want to strive to limit my comparisons.  After all, "Comparison is the thief of joy."  

Few Pics

We hope to get our pics organized and posted somewhere online, but until then, here are a few to get you started.

The end of the trail!

DONE

Ben and I have returned to civilization!  We are in Durango, Colorado...we finished up the trail early this afternoon! 

It still feels a bit surreal...so I am still processing the fact that we are not in the mountains and that I don't have to hike 15+ miles tomorrow.  I think it may take a few days to really feel like we are finished. 

I have lots to write about, but for now, I think we are going to go explore Durango and get some chow.  My stomach is grumbling.  :) 

We should have a few more interesting posts within the next few days.  We've had some good conversations and some really interesting encounters, so stay tuned...

Love,
Do-Rag