Newfound friends on the Colorado Trail

Guest Article by Kris Ellis

When Glenn and I opened Platte River Outfitters in the fall of 2015 in our hometown of Bailey, Colorado, Carhartt clothing was our main product. Before we opened, you couldn’t buy a shirt or pair of pants without traveling at least 30 miles, so it made sense. 

We shared space with the owners of the Sasquatch Outpost, who were transforming from a country grocery store to a souvenir and gift shop. We shared a small area with some fishing and a few camping supplies in the store. 

It was going well and we had no intention of branching out. But, a funny thing happened the following spring that took us by surprise and inspired us to expand into a full outdoor gear store.

It was a pretty quiet day at the store when I looked out to see three “kids” (kids to me) hop out of the back of a pickup truck. They shook hands with the driver and proceeded to unload their huge packs, take off their boots and prop themselves up against our building in the warm spring sun. 

Well, I was curious!  Bailey was a town that people flew by on their way to the great outdoors. Sometimes stopping for gas, but rarely anything else. We’ve lived here for 21 years and that’s just the way it was and we were used to it.  

I headed out to find out what they were up to and, as a mother, if they needed help. Turns out they had just hitched in from the Buffalo Creek Trail Head off the Colorado Trail and were looking for a few supplies, a hot meal and a break from the trail for a night. I really had not heard much about the through trail experience from Denver to Durango up until that day and was fascinated by these three young people. They spent a good three hours at the store.

We had some of what they needed, filled their water bottles and offered a clean bathroom break. While talking with them, they gave us a ton of ideas for supplies to have on hand for folks on the CT. They told us about the “Hiker’s Magic Box” and gave us our first donation. That box was filled and emptied with goodies all summer long!

A hiker's magic box is a box found at some resupply points that hikers use to
exchange food or gear. If you are tired of eating the same old thing or are
carrying too much food, you can leave your extra food in the box for someone
else to take. If you see something in the hiker box that looks interesting,
you can take it. If you need a few ounces of stove fuel, and you can only buy it
by the gallon, you can leave the unused portion in the hiker box for someone else.

After some calling around, we found them a place to crash for the night as well. Lynwood Park B&B was just starting to experiment with opening a hostel and told them to come on down. They were offering cots inside or tent areas outside, laundry and a shower for just a few bucks. 

We had known Bill and Lyn for years and had no idea they were doing this! A great partnership began and we shuttled hikers from our door to theirs every week that summer.

From that day on, we made it a priority to become a resupply stop for hikers on the Colorado Trail. One side of the store is now fully stocked with things like sleeping pads, dehydrated food, insoles, meds and toiletries, water purifiers … you name it. 

We accept drop boxes and have even met people on the trail to deliver them. It amazes me how many connections have come about by meeting people from the CT in our store and we are thrilled with the direction it has taken us - thanks to those three kids!

Kris and Glenn Ellis are the owners of Platte River Outfitters in Bailey, Colorado.