Rain was not in the forecast – yay! We lingered a little over breakfast, as it had rained overnight and was gloomy in the morning. Then we struck out at 8:20 a.m.
Gosh, the initial hike through town was such a steep climb! We did not expect that. Once on the actual trail, we again encountered many people, as this is clearly a popular path for the locals.
As we neared noon, we heard rumbles of thunder and put on our rain gear. It began to rain, then cleared up. Phew!
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Snags
I’d read that part of the Silverthorne Alternate was poorly marked/visible. After lunch, more thunder and storms were approaching, right as Ed and I were nearing the summit/pass. We sped up, hoping to be up and over the pass before the storms.
Yay – we made it! Except once we crested, we realized we’d missed a turn. This is where 
the Silverthorne Alternate goes from a clear trail to navigating by app.
To make a long story short, we tried to “bushwhack” back to the trail over low vegetation, but then encountered big drop-offs. At one point we slid down a patch of snow to get back on the trail.
More Snags
Despite having our app out a lot, we missed a few more turns, which greatly slowed us down. Then it began to rain.
We ended up logging way fewer miles than planned, although I have to say we did pretty well considering all of the extenuating circumstances.
Tonight we’re tucked into a nice campsite near the South Fork of the Williams Fork (yes, that’s what this stream is called). We’re praying the next few days are much easier.
Snowshoe
Today’s Miles: =11 (17.7 km)
CDT Miles to Date: 938.3 (1,510.1 km)
CDT Miles to Go: 2,161.7 (3,478.9 km)
