We got up at 5:15 AM (using my alarm, because Nathan slept through his 5 AM alarm). We dropped the bear bags, gathered our breakfast food, water bottles, and cameras and climbed up on the rocky outcrop on the edge of the ridge to see the sunrise, which was at 5:55. It was spectacular.

As we were packing up to leave, crew 1 came ambling by our site with Rich Goldman playing caboose. Without any instigation on my part the crew spontaneously broke out into a rousing: "Hey, lady!" Rich smiled and waved, while the rest of his crew looked puzzled. He later told me that they were really confused by our repartee and he explained to them that we really were good friends who enjoyed teasing each other. Iím not sure if he explained the significance of the cheer, though. He also told me that his crew was not really taking a side hike through our site but actually was "laterally misplaced".

We made a pack line at the junction of the Tooth Ridge trail and the side trail into our camp at 6:50, then hiked to the trail to the Tooth (backtracking from yesterday). After a hand-over-hand scramble up the rocks we reached the summit of the Tooth of Time. Larry and I were the last of our crew to arrive, hitting the peak at 7:10. We took ample opportunity to drink in the views and take pictures. I performed my ritual of taking portrait shots of each of the crew members with the background of their choice. For me, this was a truly wonderful place.

At 7:45 Blake gathered the crew and we sang the Philmont Hymn. This was indeed a special crew and I was happy to be a part of it. Our trek was rapidly drawing to a conclusion, but I hoped that this moment would be burned in the memory of each of the guys in our crew and would later evoke for them a sense of pride in their accomplishment and an appreciation of this great opportunity that was theirs to share.

We gingerly (in my case, at least) made our way back down off the peak at 7:50. At 8:20 we had our packs on and were on the trail to Base Camp. It was a hot and dusty trail, which seemed to take forever. Even though it was a downhill jaunt, it was a rough hike. Of course, it didnít help knowing that our adventure was almost over and we had the rigors of Base Camp to deal with again.

We walked under the "Welcome Back ń You Made It" sign at 9:55, pausing briefly to have some pictures taken. Larry was especially moved. He wiped a tear from his eye and said: "It gets me every time!"

Upon arriving in Base Camp we split up and took care of our chores in parallel. We returned our crew gear, gave away our unused fuel, got our tent assignments (D28 to D24, with Larry in D33 and me in D34), retrieved our mail and valuables, and emptied our crew lockers. Unfortunately, I had to reprimand some of the guys who decided to hit the Snack Bar and then phone home before the crew chores were done, but we did manage to get everything done without too much hassle. Then it was time for a shower and shave (my first of the trek). Boy did that feel good! I also downed a couple of liters of water in an attempt to get re-hydrated.

We went to the crapeteria for lunch at 12:15 PM, then afterwards Larry and I treated the crew to ice cream at the snack bar. We took Adam to the Health Lodge because he was complaining of an ingrown toenail, then the rest of the crew walked over to the Villa Philmonte for a 2:00 tour (Kathleen was our guide). Afterward we visited the new Philmont Museum, which is located in the Villa and which has a small but nice collection of Waite Phillips memorabilia, photos of the ranch and the surrounding area, etc. We picked up a calendar with some good photos of the Villa, which Larry later scanned and distributed to the crew and the other advisers. Then we walked over to the Seton Memorial Library and gave the crew a chance to browse and shop for souvenirs.

On our way back to Tent City we stopped by the Health Lodge and found that Adam had been released. I returned $15 to him from his "hat fund", and he promptly visited the Trading Post.

I thought I had left two clean Class-B shirts in the locker for after the trek, but I only found one that was clean. I hustled over to the Advisersí Lounge with my 2-gallon Zip-Loc bag and Camp Suds and resolved the problem. I also called home. We got our packs prepared for the trip home and the guys spent a little time tossing a Frisbee around.

After dinner, we went to religious services and then to the Closing Campfire, which was a lot better than the Opening Campfire. Now that the trek was over, though, the guys appeared to be anxious to get home. The teamwork and crew unity that we had developed was beginning to fade and the Troop 22 vs. Troop 32 separation was becoming evident again. Also, the behavior of some of the guys was slipping below standard a bit and I had to bark at them, but there were no serious problems.

After the campfire Larry and I gave out the 50-Miler patches to the crew. We also gave each of them a Philmont Bull felt patch and a plastic Arrowhead Patch protector as gifts from us. Nathan gave out the Arrowhead Patches that we had earned from our trek. It turned out that we had been issued 11 patches, which was one extra. I took the extra patch to return to the Registration office in the morning.