Am I tough enough for the CDT???

[Spirit Walker]

If you don't really care whether or not you thruhike, chances are good you will not finish a thruhike. It takes a pretty strong desire to finish to keep you going when things gets hard. That's true of all the long trails. I've seen a lot of people quit because they simply didn't want it enough.

On our first CDT hike, we started the trail with a younger much more fit and experienced hiker. One day he said, "If it were just a matter of being fit, I'd be the one sure to do the whole trail. But I don't have the fire in the belly that you two have. So reality is, you're a lot more likely to do a thruhike." He was right. He got off the trail at Yellowstone.

[quasarr]

So you guys are making some strong arguments for the "chunk hike." I think Spirit Walker and Dogwood are right, for now I don't have the fire in my belly to finish a thru. In fact on the PCT I found this to be very liberating. For example, in Tehachapi I skipped the 8 miles between the highways, as well as hitching on the road walk into Seiad Valley. I thought, well it's not a thru anyway and I've had enough of these windmills!!

What would everyone recommend for a long section, for some nice scenery and most likely have good weather? My school semester will end in early May.

As far as New Mexico, the impression I got from Wired's blog is that she often had 50+ mile stretches of road walk. There was even a 10 mile paved road into town, which I would have hitched without a second of regret! I don't know if this was due to her route choices or if it is avoidable. The Gila looks amazing though!!

[Venchka]

Early May on the CDT? Hmmmmm...
New Mexico, NOBO from Silver City, NM.
Stop when snow accumulation makes you stop. Probably in southern Colorado.
Later in the year, a crescent shaped hike in Wyoming would be nice. Northwest through the Wind River Range, with a side trip to the east side of the Divide through the Wind River Indian Reservation (Thanks to Mags for this), through Yellowstone N.P. and then southwest along the Teton Crest in Grand Teton N.P.
Wind River Reservation:
http://www.backpacking.net/forum/ubb...&Number=147130
Teton Crest:
http://www.awayfromthegrind.com/blog...e-teton-crest/

Wayne

[Mags]

with a side trip to the east side of the Divide through the Wind River Indian Reservation (Thanks to Mags for this), through Yellowstone N

Wayne

Part of the divide / Wind River Range most people don't see! Awesome, awesome, awesome place.
From http://pmags2.jzapin.com/gallery2/v/wyoming/winds07/

[Venchka]

Wyoming is hard to beat.

Wayne

[Dogwood]

Quasarr, pull up Jonathan Ley's WELL DONE CDT mapset. It's free. you can also get a hard copy for a donation to Ley for all his continuing hard work on this mapset. You can look at what is typically recognized as the "official" CDT route and the MANY alternates. He even has on his maps notes describing the possible advantages/disadvantages of the alternates verse the "official" route. You also have lots of CDTers trail journals that describe why they took what route they took as well as CDT trail materials, such as Wolf's CDT trail materials, that describe why one route might be preferable over another. It depends on your hiking desires and WHY you hike. There are basically an infinite number of ways to thru-hike or section hike the CDT. It makes the CDT very much a trail, both in terms of boots on the ground and in the planning stages, a hike where you have to stay mentally engaged to a greater extent than the AT and even the PCT. The CDT was my 9th or 10th long distance thru-hike(when applying known trail/route labels) and even with all the thru-hiking organizational experience I had previously I still found my CDT prep work to entail the most amount of work than any thru-hike I have ever done. I took lots of ridge line alternates and added about 250-300 miles of additional non-CDT trail mileage on my CDT thru. There are really endless worthy variations/additions to a CDT hike IF YOU DON'T GET CAUGHT UP IN THAT I'M A THRU-HIKER I DID A THRU-HIKE LABEL! IMHO no one I know is currently applying this mindset better than Andrew Skurka. What he came up with on that Great Western Loop was awesomely creative. I like what Francis Taupon did on the Camino de Santiago too. It's the same with the AT IF YOU ARE WILLING TO FOREGO WHAT"S TYPICALLY DEFINED AS A THRU-HIKE! HYOH.

[Spirit Walker]

Mid-May is early for most of the CDT. You could start in Grants and hike north, but if it's a normal snow year, you'll hit serious snow in southern Colorado the first couple of weeks of June. It's very remote country, so kinda like starting in the Sierras at the same time of year. Hard when you aren't at all trail hardened. If you wait until mid-June, you could start at the border and hike Montana and northern Wyoming - about 1000 miles. There is a lot of beautiful open country, with lots of wildlife. If you have extra time, spend a couple of weeks exploring the Winds.

[Venchka]

Mid-May is early for most of the CDT. You could start in Grants and hike north, but if it's a normal snow year, you'll hit serious snow in southern Colorado the first couple of weeks of June. It's very remote country, so kinda like starting in the Sierras at the same time of year. Hard when you aren't at all trail hardened. If you wait until mid-June, you could start at the border and hike Montana and northern Wyoming - about 1000 miles. There is a lot of beautiful open country, with lots of wildlife. If you have extra time, spend a couple of weeks exploring the Winds.

I'm curious, for my own thinking & scheming. Is there a problem with starting in May farther south in Silver City?

Wayne

[Seesfar]

Perhaps I will see you on the trail. I was thinking AT but some of the guys steered me this way I live not far from the trail in Wyoming in the prairie portion. If you get in trouble in mid Wyoming give me a call. 307 747 7424. My wife and I could perhaps find you. Be safe and I have no doubts you are better prepared and capable than 99% of folks who contemplate this adventure. I hope to do the part of Wyoming from where the Wind Rivers Peter out to Colorado. Then I would do the bear country part later. Rich

[BrianLe]

"I hope to do the part of Wyoming from where the Wind Rivers Peter out to Colorado. Then I would do the bear country part later."

It's helpful to be able to do bigger mileage days through the Great Basin portion, as water sources are pretty far apart in there. And it's good country to cruise right through anyway, IMO. An interesting experience, but four days of it was more than enough for me (Atlantic City to Rawlins).

My point here is from where you're talking about starting, you won't have your trail legs yet.

[Sly]

As far as New Mexico, the impression I got from Wired's blog is that she often had 50+ mile stretches of road walk. There was even a 10 mile paved road into town, which I would have hitched without a second of regret! I don't know if this was due to her route choices or if it is avoidable. The Gila looks amazing though!!

On the CDT, many forest service and county roads (dirt) are trail. It's not that bad and you get used to it fairly quick.

Hitching on paved roads won't be your greatest loss. Having to skip the Weminuche or Glacier because of high snowpack, regardless of whether you road walk around, will.

[Sly]

I'm curious, for my own thinking & scheming. Is there a problem with starting in May farther south in Silver City?

Wayne

1st of May is a normal start date at the border. Average mileage will get you to southern Colorado (Cumbres Pass) in mid June. You can expect lots of snow any earlier in normal snow years.

[ChinMusic]

The CDT possibility will be a few years down the road for me, if I ever get to it. I too wonder if I would be "tough enough". I'm only getting older. If I thru again it will be the PCT first.

I did the AT this year in 6.5 months but could have easily cut half a month off of that. I may have struggled to complete it in 5.5 months.

With my current health I feel I would have a good shot at the PCT. The CDT seems daunting. Can a person whose max is a 6-mo AT hike do a CDT thru?

[Mags]

I've said it before, but in many ways a two or even three year section hike of the CDT is something to consider.

A thru-hike of the CDT means you are constantly moving, good chance you'll have to take a lower route due to snow, fire closures are de facto part of the CDT experience every summer since 2005 (if not earlier) and so on.

By doing a "chunk hike" (a term that is cool..wish I coined it! ), you can cherry pick the sections that work well for you and your time frame.

Colorado in the wild flower season, northern Montana when the snow is melted out, the insects are mainly gone and you are not racing to beat the snow, spring in the desert...well, you get the idea!

I absolutely loved my thru-hike experience on the CDT, but it is not the optimal way to experience the CDT at times.

[MuddyWaters]

Am I tough enough for the CDT???

Your tough enough, your smart enough, and gosh darn it.. People like you.

300px-Stuart_Smalley.jpg

[Draggin]

You might think about riding The Great Divide Mountain Bike Route (adventure cycling.org). It runs along CDT and you are in lots of the same towns as the CDT and it is doable in 2 months. Its like thru-hiking on a bicycle, it's 80%dirt-10%single track-10%paved . I did it in 2010 in 56 days and loved it.
www.crazyguyonabike.com/artimas

[Dogwood]

That was on time info Draggin. THX Sounds like you had a great trip. How did you like the maps Adventure Cycling puts out for the GrEat Divide Mt Bike Route? pros.cons? Did u stick entirely to the bike route maps?

[Draggin]

The Maps were good but you need the book by Mccoy (Cycling the Great Divide)to go along with the maps. I followed the maps and book for the whole trip.

[Spirit Walker]

The CDT possibility will be a few years down the road for me, if I ever get to it. I too wonder if I would be "tough enough". I'm only getting older. If I thru again it will be the PCT first.

I did the AT this year in 6.5 months but could have easily cut half a month off of that. I may have struggled to complete it in 5.5 months.

With my current health I feel I would have a good shot at the PCT. The CDT seems daunting. Can a person whose max is a 6-mo AT hike do a CDT thru?

My husband did the AT at age 53 in a little over six months (185 days). Seven years later we did the CDT. It took us exactly six months. The PCT a year after that took 5 months 5 days. His second CDT hike at age 66 was again 6 months. He has very bad knees, but otherwise good health, if that helps.

The PCT is easier, certainly. The trail is easy to follow and well graded for the most part. There is a strong community both on and along the trail. The CDT, is, in many ways, more of a challenge, but it is also very beautiful, very remote, and with a lot of wildlife that you don't see on the PCT. We did the CDT before the PCT because we figured that if we only had time/money/knees for one more hike, we wanted it to be the one we most looked forward to doing. The CDT remains our favorite of the long trails, though we enjoyed the others a lot. Don't let fear of the challenge keep you from doing it, if the CDT is something you'd like to do. It's hard, but it is doable.

[Just Bill]

Quasarr- Your avatar looks like it's already on the CDT and doing quite well. My guess is you will too.