Colorado Trail Ministry, Part 2
Post Race Travels, Part 3
The continuation of the Colorado Trail Ministry adventure is here! Feel free to read up on the first five days: https://bretthaas.theworldrace.org/post/to-meet-the-church-where-its-at. Thank you again for your prayers as this took place. Meanwhile, please pray for the remaining group who is still out on trail planning to finish the whole hike near the end of August. May the Lord continue to touch those who we have talked to- and that the Gospel will spread on and off trail in Colorado.
After a night at the campfire, I woke up the next day and broke down my tent. We left early in the morning, with a big mileage day ahead of us. An hour later, I stopped at a restroom and was greeted by a sweet older lady who is from Hickory, NC (where I did my undergrad at). She was also an extra in the Chosen TV series and ultimately gave me much needed electrolyte packets to continue the hike. Praise God! Our group pushed on, climbing Georgia Pass, gaining spectacular views and then pressing on past Swan River. After nearly 26 miles of hiking, my tired feet reached the camp where Paul, Ellie, Sam, and I spent the night. It was a welcome sight, and we were just a few miles out of Breckenridge.
Breckenridge had been a place that we as hikers had looked forward to for the entire first week. It’s a cool town nestled in the Rocky Mountains- famous for its ski resort. After a short hike on Day 7, we made it there. It’s weird seeing civilization after hiking in the woods for so long. We did our laundry, took showers, and had a huge restaurant lunch together. At lunch, we got to see Alex, a friend that I talked to who works with YWAM. My friend in Armenia connected me with him a couple months back. During some downtime, I got the chance to go into the Breckenridge resort. The mountains were spectacular, and it was a blessed time of being in God’s creation before the next leg of the journey. We spent dinner swapping stories, including some about nomadic missions in Central Asia. Late in the evening, we went to sleep in a neat hostel (https://www.thebivvi.com/), where we set off from the next day.
Our group was mostly back together for Day 8, where we bussed to Copper Mountain to hike the Tenmile Range without all of our gear. Termed “slackpacking” by thru hikers, it helps with hard climbs, and it gave me a chance to save some energy. The climb was grueling, but filled with spectacular views. It was also a terrific time to get to know more of the group deeper and run into a family that is on trail from North Carolina a 2nd time. A double rainbow greeted us, showing strongly through the trees. We had a nice dinner at Wendy’s near the mountain before going back to Copper Mountain to rest for the night.
Day 9 served as a reminder towards God’s faithfulness despite the uncertainty of not knowing what’s ahead. I left to get on trail at 6:30 am. The trail climbed over Kokomo Pass, granting spectacular views. The area around Elk Ridge looked like a scene from the “Lord of the Rings” with high altitude paths above treeline marked with cairns to navigate the way. It marked one of the most picturesque places ever experienced- the sheer beauty of God’s mountains as the trail graced itself elegantly through them. Later in the day, we descended into the next valley. A running race was taking place, and the people running the aid station were nice enough to let me eat some of their food. This ended up being very helpful as I did nearly 27 miles that day. Yet at camp, I reunited with Paul and unexpectedly ran into the Minnesota group from the beginning of the hike again. Very thankful that the Lord made this possible given the uncertainty of seeing them again earlier in the hike. After pitching my tent, I entered into a peaceful night’s sleep.
The next day’s section was difficult and brutal due to the many steep climbs on the trail. Our group split up and hiked at our own paces. This opened the door towards engaging other hikers and also getting to have some alone time with God. Coming off the hike yesterday, this was one of the more physically taxing parts of the whole hike. Sometimes, it takes tenacity, grit, and determination to get through a hard patch and to just press on (and also seek the Lord, of course). This hearkens back to when my team and I attended a class at Tbilisi, Georgia’s missionary school. We discussed some of the famous missionaries (like William Carrey)- and they all had the quality of tenacity- to not give up on the vision or what God’s calling them towards despite very hard circumstances. To just not quit. Some days are like this. But days like this shape me for times like this down the road. Especially if that road leads to more missions in the future.
We regrouped at our campsite. I had a nice trail dinner before going to bed. After getting to catch up with the Minnesota friends again, we later went off to sleep. The summit of Mt Massive, the 2nd highest mountain in Colorado, towered above us, waiting to be climbed.
I know you have been a blessing to so many on the trail. Glad you are walking in your calling!