Day 142

I got to sleep in a little since I had to wait for the post office to open so that I could get a package. I was out of bed by 630. I just can’t sleep in anymore. Crazy. I wandered over to a Carl’s Jr. for breakfast and then headed to the post office. 
I finally got my new front tire. It’s a solid rubber tire that can’t go flat! I wish I would’ve thought of this 5 months ago. It took about an hour to force it onto the rim but I finally did it. Boom. Now I’m ready for the Rockies!
I headed up the mountains and wow. Just wow. I can’t even express the beauty. I felt so bad for all of the people driving by at 70 mph. They were missing so much. I was entering the Spanish peaks area and could see them unobstructed by anything. 
I saw a thunderstorm coming and I knew that I probably would’ve been ok to just gear up and walk through it but I was feeling tired. After walking up for 9 miles I was already beat. I knew I could have and probably should have kept going but I used the storm as an excuse to call it a day. 
I found a great spot with a stunning view. I set up my tent and took a little nap while it rained. I woke up about an hour or so later and I could tell that the sun was out again. I woke myself up and decided that I’d pack back up and keep going. There was still time to get at least another 9 miles in. And the closer I got to the mountain pass the better. 
I want to go over La veta pass tomorrow and getting closer helps that task out a lot. I got back on the road and was feeling better. I made sure that I drank plenty of water today and it helped a lot. I had to pee every 4 seconds but at least I didn’t feel light-headed. 
The mountains got prettier and prettier with every step. The sun was starting to get low so I began scoping out places to camp. I found a place that would’ve worked but looked ahead and about a mile up was a cluster of a few buildings and some cars. I couldn’t tell what it was but I figured that I’d try to camp there. I always sleep better when I have permission to camp somewhere and I was hoping that they may also have water and power that I could use. 
I get there and it’s an old restaurant that’s closed down and truckers use the parking lot as a rest stop. I saw a picnic table and a spot to set up my tent. No water or power but that was ok. I had what I needed. 
I set up and ate dinner in a chair while watching the sunset. It’s so freaking beautiful here. I’m excited to reach the first of my two big summits of the Rockies. I have La Veta pass and then I go down into a valley and then I have Wolf Creek pass. Wolf Creek is the larger one but La veta is still up there. Can’t wait to see the world from up top!!