Day 162

Woke up right before the sun rose and decided to just get up and go rather than to lay there and try to go back to sleep. Wasn’t happening. I was on the road by 7:30 am. I had a pretty big hill for the first 2 miles but all downhill after that. It was absolutely beautiful with the sun rising and mountains everywhere. 
I would’ve had such a great day but the traffic was pissing me off. It was blowing my mind how close people were getting to me. I just don’t understand it. I really dont. I tried to let it go but it just kept happening. 
Then I saw a car turn around and pull over to talk to me. He was so nice and asked if I was ok and what I was up to. We talked for a minute about the overdose problem and then I talked about the walk. I felt so much better after that. All it takes is one kind gesture people. If you ever see someone walking on a highway just stop to check on them. You don’t even need to offer anything. Just be nice. They won’t hurt you. 
I came into the small town called Mancos. I planned to make it a quick stop. Just grab a bite to eat and keep going. It is Sunday so I knew I couldn’t do the newspaper or get anyone who works for the city so I figured I’d just keep going. 
I stop at a breakfast restaurant and there was a wait for a table. Must be good. I waited outside with the rest of the people on the list and I took the opportunity to tell stories and talk about the epidemic. A high school in a neighboring town just had someone die of an overdose there. I let them all know some signs to look out for and other information that I hope they’ll never need. 
Two of the ladies were called and were sat at a table for three and invited me to join them. We sat and had the best damn breakfast I’ve ever had in my life! No wonder there was a wait. My mouth is watering thinking of it right now. Not only was the food great, but Angela and Cindy were so nice. I was able to get some valuable information about the area that I will be going into in a few days. They picked up my tab for me as well. 
I walked through the rest of town and I loved it. A beautiful town in a beautiful part of the world! Way to go Mancos! They even had sidewalks! I haven’t seen those since I’ve been in Colorado. 
A woman who was in her driveway shouted out at me and asked about what she was seeing. I told her and she was thrilled that I passed her house. We talked for at least 30 minutes. Maybe longer. It was incredible. She helped me realize some of the things that I’ve gotten out of this walk. She looked to be in her 50s but she told me that she was 73. I’ll never forget meeting Madeline. That was incredible. And so cool how you can just be walking through a new town and the next minute having a great conversation with a kind stranger. I freaking love it!!!
8 tough miles from Mancos is Mesa Verde National Park. I was very excited about this place. I wanted to take a tour and camp at the campground. I went into the visitors center and about my options and they said that the tours are an hour DRIVE up the mountain. I asked if a Ranger could take me but that wasn’t an option. I asked a few people around the visitors center but none of them were headed to the same place. 
I was tired and remembered an RV campground that I passed about a half mile before the park entrance on the other side of the highway. I called and asked if they had tent sites and Carol told me that there were plenty and she’d be happy to have me stay there. Very nice over the phone. 
I accepted defeat at Mesa verde and figured I’d try again in the morning. I went to the office at the campground and immediately realized that this place is well taken care of. They are putting in a lot of work to make this place nice. I appreciated it a lot. 
I paid for a tent site and then Carol gave me the keys to a cabin and showed me on the map where I’d be staying tonight. She surprised me with a bed and four walls. What a great gift!!! They even had a hot tub with my name on it. 
I settled in and went right for the hot tub. It helped my legs a lot. After that I was able to do laundry and watch some TV in the rec room. A nice family came in to play pool and I talked to them for a while. It was good to have the company. The campground had frozen pizza that you can buy and cook so I did that for dinner. 
Now I’m sitting here watching the Olympic closing ceremonies and looking out the window Mesa Verde. Getting some good relaxation in. I’m going to need it. I’ll be in the desert in a few days and it’s going to be really hard. But I’ll worry about that when I get there. 
Today was great. Hope you had a good day also…
Update: a Polish family just came to the rec room where I’m watching TV. There’s like 12 of them. It’s about to be a fun night…