• Date: March 19, 2019

• Trail Mile 51.1

It felt particularly monumental to arrive in Patagonia because, honestly, this was the place I was unsure we would reach given the state of my knee.  We love this town and decided we would take a zero day to allow my knee to rest/recover.  Janna got us a room at the Stage Stop Inn.  The historic hotel was followed by a morning at Gathering Grounds restaurant, where I honestly got the best breakfast burrito I’ve ever eaten.  

After watching a four-wheeler roll up with a dog on the back, we made our way over to the Patagonia Public Library for the rest of the morning.  We laid out our itinerary for the remainder of the trip while we took advantage of the free wifi.  Knowing that we had successfully made it here, we felt compelled to take the rest of the itinerary seriously.  The late start due to the snow storm meant we needed to make up days to be done in time for Janna to head back to her school.  Additionally, we still wanted to get to Phoenix to meet up with Taylor (who was flying out from Ohio with her friend for a short spring break vacay).  

For lunch, I got Gorditas from MJ’s downtown, and then we hung out at the town park before making our way to the hotel to check in.  Running to the post office, we picked up our drop boxes and bounce box, signed the official AZT register kept there, and then went grocery shopping.  Patagonia has a true locavore market with organic offerings called Red Mountain Foods, in addition to a small corner market with traditional fare.  Stocking up on supplies for our push to Colossal Cave, we ran to the laundromat and got dinner while everything washed/dried.  Returning to the room, we spent the evening rebadging good, cleaning gear, and reorganizing before watching Wonder Woman and passing out.