S2E11: What is the Grand Enchantment Trail?
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Today we sit down and chat with co-hosts Constantine and Magpie the grandest of trails, the most enchanting, the most...emotional, the Grand Enchantment Trail!
We begin the show as we begin every show, with talking only and we mean only trail and hiking related content. That's right we discuss energy drinks! We get "Bucked Up" while drinking Bucked Up. Yes, that is not a euphuism, that is the actual name of the energy juice. As we crack the can we smell America, and guzzle some "Rocket Pop."
After the most important part of the show we dive into all things the Grand Enchantment Trail. A wonderful route through Arizona and New Mexico that spans about ~766 miles. From just outside of Phoenix to Albuquerque the trail may begin and end in cities but goes into very remote territory. We discuss the "trail" conditions and the expectations when hiking a trail that is mostly a route.
We discuss and thank the creator of this route, Brett Tucker for making such an amazing journey. We chat about everything that wants to cut you, stick you, bite you, scratch you, and generally "ouch" you. We try and break down the trail by resupply points and wonderfully get lost in memories.
We chat the "town" that is not a town of Klondyke. We miss a fantastic opportunity to make a "what would you do for a Klondyke Bar" joke. We chat how not all miles are created equal. We chat about permits and being respectful to the trail so others can experience the beauty of this route in the future. We thank land owners, we talk about change in the route in the future, and we thank Brett again for all the work into creating a truly special, even enchanting, hike.
We give a shout out to Rocketman and talk soaking in the Gila Hot Springs. We chat "Horse Women" and hot spring shaming. We chat wild turkeys and what to do if a wild turkey falls on your head. We chat cinematic turkey silhouettes.
We then transition into the sad portion of the show as we talk wildfires. We discuss being some of the last people in Diamond Creek to see it in all its grandeur. We chat the Black Fire and Bear Fire and the feelings of being stopped when physically and mentally we were ready to go.
We discuss monsoon season, continuing and connecting footsteps, wilderness, and what it means to be a "thru-hiker." We chat about our New Mexico Grandmother. We chat shortcuts that are not shortcuts.
We wrap the show with our realization that we had a blistering average of 3 miles per day when factoring in all of our "technical zeroes" on this trail due to wildfire season.
We lose a part of ourselves to grow.
Our ramen rating review takes a weird turn as we compare Creamy Chicken Ramen with Shrimp Ramen. How can it be so low but so high? Let's find out!
Thank you Brett Tucker, thank you Grand Enchantment Trail, thank you land owners, thank you for letting us grow.
FAVORITE QUOTE:
"Brett knows Best!"
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