Twig Adventures

#2 of 20: Humboldt Peak 14,064′

May 31, 2020 kaulua26 14ers, Short Hikes

07:00-17:30, Sunday, 5-31-20 My CO 14er count: 7 of 53 Distance RT: 17.5 miles Elevation gain/loss: 5,350′ Starting Elevation: 8,800′ Summit: 14,064′ Rank: 37 of 53 Location: Sangre de Cristos, Southern Colorado Route: South Colony Lakes 2WD Lower Parking Lot to Humboldt West Ridge, Class 2 Companion: Jolly Rancher (Kevin Parsons) Photo from 14ers.com After I’d recovered from my climb up Pikes Peak, I felt really inspired to do more. What next? I’d been in touch with my friend Jolly Rancher (JR), who lives less than 1 hr from my base camp in Canon City. I met JR while hiking the Colorado Trail in 2017. His amazing Earthship home is nestled in the Wet Mountains, facing the awe-inspiring Sangre de[…]

#1 of 20: Pikes Peak 14,110′

May 21, 2020 kaulua26 14ers, Short Hikes

05:45-18:30, Thursday, 5-21-20 CO 14ers: 6th (& 1st) of 53 Distance RT: 27 miles Elevation gain/loss: 7600′ Start Elevation: 6,650′ Summit: 14,110′ Rank: 30 of 53 Location: Front Range, Central Colorado Route: Barr Trail, Class 1 Pikes Peak was the first peak above 14,000 feet (here on referred to as 14er’s) I ever hiked…but only halfway. Back in 2003, I went up with a friend and we got a ride down with my parents. Pikes Peak is one of two 14er’s in CO with a road all the way to the top (the other being Mt Evans and a 3rd, Mt Antero, has a road within a few miles of the top). At the time, it was the hardest thing[…]

A 2020 update

April 28, 2020 kaulua26 14ers, Long Trail, Short Hikes

Nov 27th, 2020 Dear blog readers, First, thanks for following! My goal in writing this blog has been and always will be to provide positive and uplifting content about my hikes and other adventures. I strive to focus on the beauty of nature and inspiring elements of human-powered travel. But I felt a brief explanation was in order as a per-cursor to my hiking blog series “20 in 20,” the short stories about the 20 14er’s I climbed in 2020 while “stuck” in Colorado. It’s the “stuck” part I struggled with, because it involved disclosing a painful personal experience. It was my hope that in telling a bit of the story, my own healing process could benefit some, too. 2020…what[…]

2019 CDT & AZT Gear Summary

February 11, 2020 kaulua26 Arizona Trail, Continental Divide Trail, Long Trail

This is a summary post on my gear and stats from my 2019 thru-hikes, combining both the CDT and AZT, since I didn’t change a thing about my gear in between. In fact, I’ve barely changed a thing from my previous 3 thru-hikes. I carried a bit heavier gear in 2019, mainly because I expected some rain and colder conditions. I wasn’t wrong about this. The CDT is high-elevation and therefore a colder and somewhat wetter thru-hike. The AZT was dry but also quite chilly at times, given that we were above 8000 feet during many parts of the trail and also approaching the end of October / beginning of November. I needed my 22 degree quilt and women’s Thermarest[…]

2019 Trail Angel Recognition

February 10, 2020 kaulua26 Arizona Trail, Continental Divide Trail

This is a special post to recognize the many trail angels and trail magic that made my hiking so memorable and cohesive. I’m truly blessed to have had so many positive interactions and made many new friends. I’m amazed and humbled by the kind souls that exist out there. Someday I’ll write a book honoring trail angels and this year gave me so much material to work with. I’ve listed the trail angels and their magic by state. I don’t expect people to read every bit of this post but at least scroll down to the bottom just to realize the sheer magnitude of this kindness. I’m so sorry if I omitted anyone or their contributions, and that I didn’t[…]

2019 AZT Summary and Stats

February 3, 2020 kaulua26 Arizona Trail

For links to each of my daily posts, see here. I thru-hiked the Arizona Trail for several reasons. One, I said I would when I first learned about it while visiting my friend Jon near Phoenix at the end of 2018. And secondly, I wanted to hike from Canada to Mexico again in one season. I finished my thru-hike of the CDT going southbound through Montana/Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, and half of New Mexico…long story, see my CDT summary. I finished this journey by hiking all the way south through Arizona. The official CDT is a 3100 mile trail but in reality/practicality, it’s about the same length as the PCT (on account of all the popular alternates). By adding the AZT,[…]

2019 CDT Summary and Stats

January 30, 2020 kaulua26 Continental Divide Trail

For links to each daily post, see here. What a strange, long trip it’s been. The CDT will go into the record books as the thru-hike that never stopped testing, frustrating, enchanting, and forever changing me. It was the best of times and worst of times, all wrapped into a long and incongruous season of hiking. To further prolong the magic, I went straight onto the Arizona Trail only a week after finishing the CDT in Grants, NM. I wanted to get the full experience of hiking from Canada to Mexico for the second summer/fall in a row but somehow fell a bit short in replicating that magical feeling I got at the end of the PCT. That trail was[…]

AZT Day 34: The Hiking Season That Finally Ended

December 24, 2019 kaulua26 Arizona Trail

November 9th, 2019Bathtub Spring mm 780.5 to USA-Mexican Border mm 788.6Distance in miles: 8.10605-1220 This post is about my last day on the AZT and of a very long 2019 hiking season. Between the CDT and AZT, I calculated that I hiked around 3,500 miles. This is not including all the day hiking and short segments I did in Florida and Colorado, which probably brings my total to around 3,800 miles. I will follow up with summary posts but in the meantime, enjoy this last day, as I did. It was very quiet overnight and I had one of the best night’s sleep, ever. I was right about the condensation, though. My tent hadn’t been so wet inside and out[…]

AZT Day 33: Feet Dragging

November 19, 2019 kaulua26 Arizona Trail

November 8th, 2019Canelo Hills saddle mm 761.8 to Bathtub Spring mm 780.5Distance in miles: 18.70605-1540 What to do with a whole day on the trail when you have less than 20 miles to hike? Go on a side-trip. I found a good one…a lake and marina store were just off the trail 6 miles ahead. I could get some easy water and extra snacks. I traveled down from the saddle and past a few creeks. The temperature was perfect for a leisurely morning stroll. It felt weird to be going so slow, after pushing pushing pushing for months. I guess I earned a break but I really like moving all day and getting somewhere. It just became habit. I took[…]

AZT Day 32: Canelo Hills

November 18, 2019 kaulua26 Arizona Trail

November 7th, 2019Patagonia mm 737.4 to Canelo Hills saddle mm 761.8Distance in miles: 24.40910-1750 I was packed early, so as not to alarm anyone that might be out for an early morning stroll. I took advantage of the public restrooms in the park, which were nice. I headed to the Gathering Grounds for breakfast once again, having biscuits and gravy. Then I got another plate of french toast. Both were delicious. I of course saw Deb and Brent again, also having breakfast. They had been stewing all night about quitting their jobs and becoming thru-hikers. I’m a bad influence. I also failed to mention that thru-hiking ruined me from caring about much of anything else in life. Two thru-hikers come[…]

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