Continental Divide Trail – Day 63
July 25, 2023
Miles Today/ Total: 4.3 / 1073.3
It’s a short day to Silverthorne so I slept in a little later than usual. As I was packing up my tent it began to sprinkle and I hurried to get my tent up before it got too wet. As soon as I had it packed up the rain stopped – just enough to get my tent and footprint wet.
I was on the trail by 7:00 and it was a nice walk into Silverthorne. The trail had a few ups and downs but overall a pretty gradual descent. The last mile was walking through a neighborhood from the Trailhead and then into a commercial area near I-70.
Once in Silverthorne I crossed under I-70 and headed into Dillon. My first stop was Sunshine Cafe’ where I had a breakfast skillet and toast. Finishing my food and several cups of coffee, I headed across the parking lot to Best Way Laundry.
Their sign said “phone, laundry, showers”. There was a pay phone and laundry, but no showers. Not even a bathroom. I slipped on my rain skirt and removed my hiking shorts and shirt and washed all my dirty clothes (about 8 items) in a triple load washer (smallest they had). I have a town shirt I put on and once the clothes were done, I put back on my hiking shorts.
Packing all my gear up I headed to the Super 8 Motel – too early to check in, but they let me leave my pack there while I ran some other errands.
I headed to the grocery store to pick up my food resupply. And then over to Panera Bread to utilize their Wi-Fi and update my blogs. Finishing about noon I headed back to a Chinese restaurant I saw near the grocery and grabbed some lunch.
With my stomach full I headed to REI where I picked up some new shoes – Altra Lone Peak 7. I have been wearing Lone Peak 6 up to this point and hope there isn’t any major changes to the fit of the 7’s. I also picked up a new pair of socks (my old pair had a hole), some insect repellent and a fuel canister.
With all my errands completed I headed back to the motel and they were able to check me in early. I went up to my room, showered, and fought with their Wi-Fi for about 30 minutes before just giving up and utilizing cellular. I repacked my food, dried my tent and footprint, and then headed across the street to get Mexican food for dinner.
The food was great and I grabbed an IPA at the liquor store on my way back to the motel. Back in the room I tried to find something on TV and ended up just flipping through channels until I went to bed.
