“I’m about to be without a job,” thought Tracy Davis, after 40 years of continuous employment. Because my employer was selling the stores I had been operating, I was not going to have a place to go one morning very soon. This idea came to me in September of 2009, and my immediate reaction was, “I’ll just get up and walk if that is what it takes to be busy.” A few minutes later I said, “I’m going to walk the Colorado Trail next year.” Where did that thought come from, I wondered? The husband of a friend from work had walked some of the trail seven years ago, but since I had no interest at all in backpacking or hiking, I barely paid attention to her stories.
I was excited and energized with this new idea and went home to tell my wife, Myra, that I had made two important decisions today. First, God already knows how my unemployment is going to work out, and I must go through the situation so I can learn more about my walk with God. Second, I am going to walk the Colorado Trail the next year. Myra asked, “What is the Colorado Trail?” I replied, “I don’t know for sure, but I’m going to research it right now.”
I spent months researching the equipment I would need, ordering maps and learning about calorie consumption. I began working out, walking on an incline, and carrying a weighted back-pack. While I was at our family’s country place and Myra was busy with her volunteer work for Inspire Women, I realized that all these years we couldn’t go to the country because I was busy at work, and now that I had time, Myra was busy volunteering. The final thought came to me: I will turn my walk into a fundraiser for Inspire Women (www.inspirewomen.org).
I mapped out the segments of the trail I would walk. From segment 9 which was about six miles north of Leadville, Colorado, to Durango was 341 miles. I chose to start at segment 9 because it would incorporate Mt. Elbert, at 14,433 feet, the highest peak in Colorado and second highest in the U.S.
While I was training to hike the trail, the three bad discs in my back seemed to get better instead of worse. When I was at our country place, I decided to get some real training on the hills. It was hot and humid, and I didn’t have the drive I needed to push myself in the walk. I was just about to cut the training short, and then my iPhone began to play on its own. It normally takes about five keystrokes to make a song play on an iPhone, but mine began playing “Keep On Walking” by the Hoppers (out of 471 songs on my phone) for no apparent reason. It soon became apparent. I kept on walking!
After about 10 months of preparation, the big day finally arrived. On Friday, July 23, 2010, I arrived at the trailhead in Leadville. The first two days were a learning experience. I set up my tent, prepared my food and became accustomed to the solitude. That Sunday I awoke to what was supposed to be my nine-mile round trip up Mt. Elbert, an additional climb of 4,500 feet from my camp. My back was really sore, and I thought I had better not jeopardize the rest of the trip just to satisfy my ego, so I decided not to make the climb. I headed off on the Colorado Trail, but after a little confusion, I realized I had taken the Mt. Elbert split after all. I met a couple from Denver, and we hiked along together. I quickly realized I had made a mistake carrying my entire backpack up the mountain, and with 1,633 feet still to go, I began to run out of water. I knew it would put other people in jeopardy if I chose to keep going. I was exhausted and was becoming dehydrated. I just broke down emotionally, (male ego word for “cried”), and started back down the mountain. About 150 feet down, I ran into three other people. They asked how it was at the top, and I explained to them I had failed, I had run out of water, and I was too exhausted to continue. “Give me your backpack, brother, we’re going to get you to the top,” one of the men exclaimed. For the next hour and forty-five minutes, he carried my 45-pound backpack and I just followed. When we reached the top, it was a great celebration! I found out they were all Christians, and Ben, the one who carried my pack, quoted Matthew 25:40. “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” That scripture will forever have a new meaning for me. I understand now how it feels to receive humbly what I could not do for myself.
Thunderstorms came frequently, and I prayed God would keep me from the rain and lightning. I was surrounded by the rain much of the time, but I was never in it. As I was traversing the mountain around day seven, my shoes began to cut into my ankle bones. Each step became more and more painful, and my plan was to get to the highway, catch a ride to a lodge to which I had mailed my supplies, and tend to my ankles. When I finally arrived, the lady at the counter said there was no room for me. She had pity on me and drove me to an R.V. park that was also totally full. The worker at the R.V. site offered to let me sleep in the office and general store. I was shocked but so grateful for the offer, and soon learned that she was a new Christian. She helped me find food, and I counseled her about her troubled marriage. It was glorious to be able to minister to her while she ministered to me. God had a plan that was much better than mine.
On day 13, thunderstorms were prominent. I again asked God for protection from the rain and lightning because I had to cross the Continental Divide at 12,895 feet, and then descend into Creede at 8,852 feet. Much of this time was above the tree line with absolutely no protection. My plan was to get to Creede and pick up the re-supply box I had mailed to myself, find a room, do laundry, and get a hot meal. I hadn’t rested very much because the inside of my sleeping bag was damp and I spent a cold night drifting in and out of slumber. As I hiked, the water ran down the trail like a stream, the foliage was waist high and wet, and so was I. My shoes had water sloshing around on the inside, and even as new to hiking as I was, I knew that was not good. I was miserable, tired, wet and cold, and then the trail took a turn and went straight down. I went for seven miles and came to a trail for off-road vehicles. Several hikers passed me, all going the opposite direction. I came to a fork in the road, and the trail went straight back uphill! I lost it. I held my poles in the air and screamed, “God, please help me…I can’t go any further. Please send me a ride to Creede!”
I walked a few more yards, and saw a four-wheeler approaching. A young man stopped and we spoke. “Is this the road to Creede?” I asked. He wasn’t from the area and didn’t know, but as his dad approached, I was shocked. Right in the middle of nowhere, Buddy Fortenberry (Sagemont’s Minister to Senior Adults), along with his wife Terry, son Troy, daughter-in-law Christin, and two grandchildren, TJ and C’Ann, appeared. Right in the middle of nowhere, God had performed a miracle! Buddy loaded me up and took me to where they were staying. I picked up my supplies at the post office and did my laundry. I then spent the night in a bedroom better than I have at my own home. I didn’t sleep much, however. All I could do was lie there and say, “Praise You Lord!”
On day 15, I felt a severe pain in my right knee. There wasn’t anything else to do but keep going, but I began to feel overwhelmed again. I said, “God, I know this hike is what You want me to do, so either heal my knee or give me what it takes to deal with the pain.” I kept going another 11 miles and set up camp. I didn’t sleep much, and the next morning I walked another four miles and met a northbound hiker. It was 10:30 in the morning, and I thought it to be quite unusual for him to still be in his camp. We began talking and he noticed my limp. “Do you need a knee brace?” he asked. “Why, do you have one?” I answered. Once again, in the middle of nowhere, God provided. I wore the brace the rest of the trip and it helped immensely.
Many “God things” happened along the trail: I was provided food when I needed it, a night’s sleep in a million dollar mansion, protection from the rain, sleet and hail, and a blessed plane ticket back home when I thought I couldn’t get one. I met mighty Christian people all along the way who were used by God to encourage and support me as I worked to support Inspire Women. This story hits only the highlights of what God did as He protected and provided for me far beyond what I could ever have done for myself.