Category: 3. CDT Colorado

I enjoyed a 25 mile day hike on July 15 inside Rocky Mountain National Park where the official CDT route makes a nice loop up to Flattop Mountain (12250′).  It was on Flattop where I hiked in 1977 with my brother Brian, and my first serious mountain hike at 23 years old. 

Continue reading “CDT July 15-20: Grand Lake to Steamboat Springs, CO”

After spending three two zero days in Fraser with Cindy and our friends Nancy and Sandy, I was back on the trail for three days and 56 miles.  The highlight was the climb to James Peak and a scenic ridge-top descent to Rollins Pass. 

Continue reading “CDT July 11-13: Berthoud Pass to Grand Lake, CO”

CDT: THE ANNIVERSARY EDITION.

I enjoyed my two-night stay in Breckenridge but I looked forward to the incredible hiking that awaited me.  The maps showed the trail on top of the Continental Divide, only sometimes dropping below the divide.  And Grays Peak, a 14,270 foot peak would be my first Colorado “14er”.  While at Twin Lakes a week ago I agreed to camp with my friends Nancy and Sandy at Herman Lake 13 miles past Grays Peak.  But the most exciting day I looked forward to was July 8 when I would meet Cindy at Berthoud Pass and take two zero days at Nancy and Sandy’s cabin.  I was not disappointed.  Moreover, at Herman Lake I received the biggest surprise of the entire 82 days of this hike.

Continue reading “CDT July 3-8: Breckenridge to Berthoud Pass and Fraser”

Before leaving Twin Lakes on June 28 I decided that I wanted to arrive in Breckenridge in just four days. It is 69 trail miles between the two towns, and I really, really needed to get to the post office before Saturday, July 2, when the post office closed for the 3-day 4th of July weekend. This meant I would have to hike at least a couple of 20+ mile days, something I had not done for ten days. This was not the easy, flat Cochetopa Creek valley I hiked back then. Instead, I would be hiking over a couple of passes higher than 12000 feet, and climbing steep ascents in rough terrain.

Above: The squirrel was as curious about me as I was to it

Continue reading “CDT June 28 – July 1: Twin Lakes to Breckenridge, Colorado”

Me and Elusive were treated by my friends Nancy and Sandy McVie to a wonderful campground dinner feast here in Twin Lakes.  It made the hard five days of hiking well worth it.  It took Elusive and I five days to hike 70 miles, a section I thought I could cover in four days.  Each day included long ascents to beautiful mountain passes.  I do not time to write many details.  The photos will provide glimpses of the challenges and rewards.

Continue reading “CDT June 23-27: Monarch Pass to Twin Lakes, Colorado”

Summer finally arrived in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, with warm, even hot, days with clear skies (no thunderstorms for five straight days), and rapidly melting snowpack!  As Mr. Snowman says: “Oh no!  I’m melting…melting!”

Continue reading “CDT June 15-19: Creede to Monarch Pass”

I left Pagosa Springs on June 11 after two days of welcome zeros.  But I did not feel mentally ready to go back to the CDT, and instead wanted to stay another day in wonderful Pagosa Springs after taking care of town chores.  The result was an unsettled mind state.  And I believe this contributed to forgetting to pack my headlamp in my backpack.  I hiked just 4 miles on June 11, and that was all I could handle, and discovering I had no normal way to illuminate the dark night made my unsettled feeling even worse. 

Continue reading “CDT June 11-14, Wolf Creek Pass to Creede”