Category: Continental Divide Trail

August 8th, 2019 Mm 1209 to mm 1240.6 Distance in miles: 30.2 0620-1840 Wow, today was such a turnaround from the day before. It was also the opposite of all the things I expected. Overnight, I started to seriously have doubts about doing the Cirque of the Towers alternate. I read Carrot Quinn’s blog post from that day and she had the hardest time. I read it to Relentless and he up and decided not to do it. Plus, we didn’t make our miles the previous day, leaving 5 more miles just to get to the alternate. The forecast is for thunderstorms and 50% chance of rain…not good for above-treeline, exposed passes. I wake feeling pretty refreshed but still convinced[…]

August 7th, 2019 Mm 1180.5 to mm 1209 Distance in miles: 28.5 0620-1830 Today is a hard day. All day I struggle to get my miles done, coming up short in the end. The total elevation gain is only 6000′ but there are so many 200′-600′ short and steep passes. Plus the tread is rough, with rocks and roots everywhere. It’s technical hiking, always having to adjust each step to avoid a rock or to clear the height of one. My eyes are glued to the trail all day. I have to stop to be able to look around, otherwise I might trip and fall. Still, it is a beautiful day of hiking! By 10 am, I’ve only gone 9[…]

August 6th, 2019 Green River Lakes campground mm 1152 to mm 1180.5 Distance in miles: 28.5 0730-1830 After 2 zero days, I really want to hike today. But am I in any shape to do so? I wake up feeling quite ill, not surprisingly. I only got a few hours of sleep and I can’t get up when my alarm goes off. Maybe I can just sleep another hour. It’s light when I finally rally. I just want to pack up and go. No breakfast or coffee, I just want to move. I walk by the party site on my way to the toilet. There’s an epic mess and skinny bodies are wrapped in sleeping bags laying in the dirt[…]

August 5th, 2019 Hitch back to Green River Lakes campground Distance in miles: none I am going to a hikertrash wedding today! Two people I have never even met before are getting married on the trail and only thru-hikers are invited. They purposely planned it this way. I have no idea what to expect but since we saved about 24 miles not having to take the side trail to Pinedale, we figure we earned a zero. I have never taken a zero on trail before and this seems like one of the better reasons to do so. But first we have to get back to the campground. And before that, I have a lot of online business to attend to.[…]

August 4th, 2019 Hitch to Pinedale Distance in miles: just walking around town We planned to hike for 2 more days, taking a 12 mile side trail and hitch to Pinedale on the 5th for resupply. Relentless also has new shoes waiting in town, which he desperately needs. But that side trail would have meant an additional 24 miles RT for us, adding to an already long section through the Winds Range. Yesterday we started formulating a plan to hitch to Pinedale from Green River Lakes campground, no side trail necessary. It would mean a 5 day food carry (115 miles) to finish the section, which is certainly within our ability. Seeing so many people at the campground for the[…]

August 3rd, 2019 Mm 1117.3 to Green River Lakes mm 1152 Distance in miles: 34.7 0600-1830 We hope for another big day to make it to the Green River and Lakes, portal to the Wind River range. We are on the march early as usual, our actions almost mechanical at this point. The trail flows up to a ridge where there are views of the Tetons and back to the buttes where we started the day before. The miles tick by as we roll along. Twelve down by 10 am, nearly 21 done by 1 pm. We could be in camp by 6 pm at such a rate.But I always slow down by the afternoon. We take a long break[…]

August 2nd, 2019 HWY 26 mm 1099.3 to mm 1117.3 Distance in miles: 18 1140-1830 I toss and turn a lot in the night, not as comfortable as I thought I would be on the cot. At least it is pretty quiet, in spite of the highway noise. I have to open a window that is right near my head, as it’s stuffy inside. It rained for a long time overnight and the morning is brisk and fresh. We go to a coffee shop that does breakfast items. I have been dreaming of a lox bagel for some time and they have one on the menu…the most expensive item at $14. But I have to get it, plus a breakfast[…]

August 1st, 2019 Cabin mm 1077.7 to HWY 26 mm 1099.3, then hitch to Dubois Distance in miles: 21.6 0515-1240 We nail our early start, timing it so that we only use headlamps for the first 20 minutes. Grizzlies are heavy in the area, so I don’t want to be hiking in the dark for long. I then have to do my morning business off trail a bit and wouldn’t you know it, Relentless goes around a corner to give me some privacy and promptly spies a grizzly go tearing up the hill. I miss it because I’m off doing what bears do in the woods. I figure we will probably see another one somewhere this day but we never[…]

July 31st, 2019 Crooked Creek Campsite mm 1046.9 to Cabin mm 1077.7 Distance in miles: 30.8 0615-1940 I sleep the best night’s sleep in a long while. I think I have to do over 30 miles to be tired enough these days. We’ve noticed a lot of bear evidence around and talked to numerous people that have recently seen them, so you would think that might make me restless. But no. The bears have to sleep too…don’t they? We continue to follow the watershed up to the headwaters, outside the National Park boundaries, then up and over a 10,000′ saddle. The alpine meadows allow views of the Tetons and back the way we’ve come. We pass 3 NOBOs before 0730[…]

July 30th, 2019 Moose Creek Meadow Campsite mm 1012.6 to Crooked Creek Campsite mm 1046.9 Distance in miles: 34.3 0615-1940 What starts as a pretty bad morning finishes strong and bright in the end. The mosquitoes are just so bad for the first 10 miles, I’m struggling to find any pleasure in the day. The trail winds above Shoshone Lake and there’s not much to see but dense forest, with a few views of the lake. I walk as fast as I can but the bugs chase me down, latch on, and bite through my R1 fleece and shirt, as well as through the buff that I have covering my face and head. They are so fast and can go[…]