I had a sort of butterflies-in-the-stomach feeling all of Thursday, knowing it was the unofficial start to the trip. We weren’t leaving for Wyoming until Sunday or Monday, but we were heading towards Twin Lakes for the weekend and would not be turning back. Goodbye to Colorado Springs for two months! It was simultaneously exciting and daunting.

I spent the morning working and putting the final touches on my house, which I’m renting out for the duration of the trip, while Ryan spent the morning working ad putting the final touches on his car, our home for the duration of the trip. At lunch time, he arrived at my house, which had a couple sprawling piles of stuff to add to the already packed car – one solely consisting of food, the other being all my individual and group gear to contribute. Pancake mix and bear spray and camp slippers and passports, Canadian dollars and parks passes and Band-Aids and a bottle of white wine. All of it would be loaded into the Forester strategically, with us agreeing on their individual locations. read more