CDT Days 25-27: Cuba to Ghost Ranch

Day 25: 5 Miles

It was a pretty short road walk into Cuba this morning along the highway. We stopped at the first restaurant we passed and went in for breakfast, sitting way back in the corner to charge our phones and not subject everyone to our smell. We grabbed a few groceries at the market and some sandwiches from Subway before heading to Rebel’s Roost, a hiker hostel just out of town. It was a really awesome property owned by a really cool guy named Vince. It was just me, Piñata and Jupiter. We showered and did laundry then hung out on the couch watching movies and chatting with Vince. We decided to stay the night and get back on trail in the morning. It was a great rest day.

Day 26: 24 Miles

Vince made us a great pot of coffee this morning while we got packed up and ready to go. Around 7:30 we were hiking again, along the road out of town. We climbed up and up and up, to over 10,000 feet and entered the San Pedro Parks Wilderness. There was trail! Grassy meadows! Running water! Have we died and gone to heaven? I think so. We had a great afternoon walking in the pine and Aspen forest. We also met a thru-hiking couple we knew from Instagram, and they were lovely. We set up camp in the forest, feeling grateful for the awesome scenery today.

Day 27: 30 Miles

Unplanned 30 mile days are the best kind of 30 mile days. We planned a much slower day, to camp just outside of Ghost Ranch and arrive in the morning to pick up our packages. Since they closed at 4 we figured we wouldn’t make it in time today, and they don’t open until 8am so there was really no rush to get there. Nevertheless, we made good time and stopped for lunch at 1:00 having done 18 miles. We stopped there to enjoy the Rio Chama, our first river since the Gila.

At lunch we realized Ghost Ranch was actually open until 6. We were 11 miles away, and it was mostly a road walk without much climbing, so we decided to push it to get there. We made it by 5:30! Then we realized they were open until 7! We organized our resupply, ate some food, chatted with other hikers and then walked another half mile or so to set up camp off the ranch property. The scenery this afternoon was exposed but still beautiful.