Gila Wilderness Loop-Day 2

At 5 a.m. we woke up, packed, had breakfast, and left by 6:30. Everyone was in good spirits as we started up the Middle-Fork canyon. It was in the low forties, and we watched the sun creep down the canyon walls as we walked along. Splashing through cold river crossing after cold river crossing, it was almost 8 a.m. before the sun reached the canyon floor to warm us. And warm us it did. We eventually reached the low 80s later in the day.

We walked the canyon 8+ miles up to The Meadows camping area, where we stopped for a snack and a bit of a rest among the towering ponderosa pines. From there, we pushed on, up the next, less traveled, section of the Middle Fork. It would be 6+ more miles of sketchier trail through the canyon to our camping spot. The canyon narrowed even more in places, and the sheer walls loomed overhead.

It was in this section that Cappuccino slipped on some rocks in the river and accidentally went for a swim. Slinky was with her and helped her keep from slipping downstream. I came back and waded in to help, but when I went to stabilize her feet, so she could push up and out, I slipped and went in, too. Now all of this was happening in about six inches of water running over a shelf of rock into a 3-foot-deep pool. I was able to scramble out of the pool fairly quickly, but soaked everything from my waist on down. Cappuccino was lying on her side half in the pool and half in the shallow water and was able to finally get out and stand up with Slinky’s help. We were all laughing pretty hard when it was all over.

It was a long 6+ miles winding through the canyon, but we finally got to our camp area about 3:45 p.m. Everyone hung out their wet clothes to dry in the sun after setting up camp. Then, following some much-needed rest, we all had dinner. Since it was my birthday, Cappuccino had brought a raspberry crumble freeze-dried dessert. It was delicious, and we shared it all around with a small celebration.