Colorado Trail - July/August 2006

The Colorado Trail (CT) extends 482 miles between Denver and Durango. It passes thorugh many of Colorado's most impressive and most infrequently traveled wild lands, notably those along the Continental Divide and in the San Juan mountains. Its remoteness, rugged terrain, high elevations, and extreme weather conditions make the CT one of the most challenging -- and, not coincidentally, most rewarding -- long-distance trails in the country.

I thru-hiked the CT solo for the first time in late-June 2004, finishing in a 15 days and 4 hours (an average of 31.4 miles per day). Starting out I was a little unsure as to whether I wanted to spend more than 2 weeks by myself when in another 6 weeks I would be starting a 12-month solo hike, the Sea to Sea Route. But I had an absolutely awesome time and it was everything that I hoped it would be: an opportunity to see parts of Colorado that I have never seen before, to refine my gear and develop efficiency-maximizing systems, and to get in good "hiking shape."

I thru-hiked the CT again in 2006 with Krissy Moehl, a stud ultra-runner from Seattle who had never been backpacking before. This was a "for fun" trip, with no goal other than enjoying Colorado's beautiful backcountry. We finished in 14.5 days, which is an average of about 34 miles per day (like I said, Krissy is a stud), and still had time to do the town stops, take mid-day naps, and go swimming (when it wasn't raining on us, which seemed like always).

A few weeks later I attempted to do the entire trail without a resupply, but my IT band became severely inflamed after doing 198 miles in 4 days and I was forced to abort.