update

Quick update from out zero day in Leadville.

First off, we had to make the rough decision to send the dog home in Breck.  I thought about dropping with her, grabbing the jeep, and crewing for $100 but she talked me out of it.  Dog is living the life with my sister or Amanda.  She is currently here in Leadville and we miss her terribly, but believe we made the best decision.  The dog wasn't injured, but we knew with another day or two of big mountain miles she would have gotten hurt.  The brightside to this is that I feel my pack weight has been cut in half now that I don't have to carry food and water for the pooch.

Other than the dog issue, $100 and I are loving the trail life.  The simplicity is awesome.  Get up, eat, pack up, hike ten to twelve miles, eat, hike another few miles to a great campsite, eat, sleep.  Repeat.  We are still on somewhat of a schedule due to Salida, but after that we will probably start to crank out some bigger mile days.

Meeting all kinds of characters on the trail and it's been great.  We are currently on a 200ish mile stretch that is part of the Continental Divide trail and we love seeing and chatting with those guys.

We are coming to terms with the fact that our hike will more than likely end at Molas Pass near Silverton, as the CO trail is currently closed south of that due to fires.  Doutbful it will open by the time we get there.  We will be content with a 400 mile thru-hike and will return to finish the trail in the future when the trail is open.