Today was such a weird, wonderful day. First, Steve told me the wind yesterday got measured at a peak of 57 mph (91.7 kph). Wow! Today it was supposed to be about 10 mph (16.1 mph) weaker. I don’t think that happened!
Because of the excessive wind, I opted again to hike backwards, which would have the wind mostly at my back all day. So we dropped my car at the Chain of Lakes where I started yesterday, then Steve took me to a bridge near Turtle Lake to begin my trek.
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Heading Out Toward the Chain of Lakes
Because I was adding several miles to an already-long day, thanks to Steve’s new trail, I started out a little earlier than normal. For the first few miles, I just had my head down because of the fierce winds, which where then at my side. The canal path, while lovely, was very reminiscent of many prior days. And then …
I don’t quite know at what point things changed. Was it when I hit the Chain of Lakes? Probably. Lots of trail here is real 
trail, although it hasn’t been mowed yet. Steve said the volunteer is coming next week (all the way from Bismarck!) to mow. But since the grass was knee- to waist-high on the official trail, I opted for the roads. I still had pretty amazing views of the lakes, although it would have been great to have been on trail, and closer.
Suffice it to say the scenery here was gorgeous. My photos in no way do it justice. Lots of RVs are suddenly out in the camping spots. I’d planned to camp here, too, but with the crazy winds and having my Big Agnes ultralight tent – no way,
Back in the Church
The hiking was easy, in that it wasn’t too hilly and I had the wind pushing me. But it was a long day. Back at the church, I 
couldn’t find my wallet. I eventually did, but the search ate up time when I wanted to rest.
Thanks to Steve and his church, which has a HUGE kitchen, I was able to buy a pizza at the local grocery and cook it for dinner. YUM.
Can’t believe I have only 2.5 more day to hike to reach the western terminus!
Snowshoe
ND NCT miles today: 25.8 (41.5 km)
ND NCT miles to date: 403.2 (648.9 km)
Total NCT miles to date: 3,305.2 (5,319.2 km)
Total NCT miles to go: 1298.4 (2,089.6 km)
