DAY 36: Colorado Appa is the first one out of camp this morning as we make our approach to the New Mexico/Colorado border (I can't imagine why Appa is so eager to get to Colorado). Moist and I set out together up a climb through some snow. The snow isn't deep, but the ground is sufficiently
The Continental Divide Trail in Four Minutes [VIDEO]
When I hiked the Pacific Crest Trail I took a small video every day because I thought "it would look cool to see how the trail changes over time". More than two years after my Pacific Crest Trail thru-hike, and I finally go around to putting all those clips together into a short video. Said video
Continental Divide Trail Week 5: Don’t Die
DAY 29: Cuba, New Mexico A benefit of cowboy camping? (That's sleeping with no shelter, aka just your sleeping bag/pad on the ground, for those of you who haven't been paying attention.) When you can't sleep at night you can just lie on the ground and watch shooting stars (or possibly alien
Katadyn BeFree Water Filter Review
When I first started using the Katadyn BeFree I thought to myself, "By the beard of Zeus! This thing is absolutely amazing. I can't understand how it hasn't already driven all other lightweight water filters out of business. What was I doing not using this thing before?" However, after a month of
Caching Water In The New Mexico Bootheel On The CDT
"Do I need to cache water for the first section of the Continental Divide Trail?" This question was a big concern of mine before starting the CDT. Assuming you are beginning your hike at Crazy Cook, the first 85 mi / 136 km of the CDT is a scary place for thru-hikers (especially those out on
Continental Divide Trail Week 4: One Month In
DAY 22: On-trail pizza delivery There may only be two of us now that Appa is MIA until we make it to Grants, but that doesn't mean Moist and I get going any earlier in the morning (it's not like we start hiking together anyway - you start hiking when you're packed up and ready to go). The sun
Continental Divide Trail Week 3: We Got A Dog
CDT DAY 15 - Last day in the Gila Today is our last day in the Gila and to celebrate our departure back into the high desert we have a rare morning fire. Technically, we'll still be in the Gila National Forest for a bit, but the campground at Snow Lake marks the end of our time actually
Continental Divide Trail Week 2: The Gila
CDT DAY 8 - Arriving in Silver City After falling asleep in one of the most crap places I've ever camped, we wake up and bushwhack our way back to the trail. Silver City is within striking distance and few things rival "town" as motivators (I guess trail magic or thunderstorms would be close
The CDT Gear Guide: Class of 2017 Survey
In an effort to maximize the utility of the Continental Divide Trail Thru-hiker Survey, I have done a deep dive into the gear that hikers used on the trail this past year. The results detailed here should help to give an idea of what gear made hikers successful and what gear hikers realized was