Pre hike
Is there really a better way to start a hike other than sitting at the airport watching a video of a CT thru hike sent to you by someone you met on the JMT while waiting for your flight to Denver? I met Matt and his son back in 2018 and they thru hiked the CT a few years later. After catching wind that I was heading out for a CT hike Matt sent an email of a video of their thru hike. Talk about motivation! All the beauty and adventure in that video inspired me even more to seek out my own experience out in the mountains of Colorado.
I got to Colorado two days before the first day of the hike. Meeting Sheena in her town of Leadville lent itself to a fairly decent acclimation process. Sitting at over 10k’, Leadville is the highest incorporated city in the country. Thankfully I drank what felt like gallons of water (I made sure to get an aisle seat on the plane) and staved off the worst of any altitude sickness. I even felt good enough for a 4 mile walk to Turquoise Lake! And rumor has it I’ll be seeing this lake again soon in my future…
Sheena and I spent all day running errands and ensuring we weren’t missing anything for this adventure. We finally wrapped everything up around midnight… just in time for a 4:30am wake up call. Good practice for what I’m sure will be plenty of lack of sleep nights on the trail.
Day 1 July 18; 11.8 miles
“Please, don’t get eaten by a mountain lion!” were the departing words from my dear friend Carolyn. These words I’m sure will ring through my head plenty this trip, along with avoiding many other maladies.
With a 2 hour drive from Leadville to Denver, we woke up super early to get to the trailhead before the predicted high temperatures. After a ceremonial stop at McDonalds for breakfast and a few pictures with the trail head sign, we were on our own and off to head for Durango.
The trail itself started as a road that followed along the river. It was exposed but we were hiking in the morning when the shadows shielded us from the sun and the temperature was mild enough to avoid a full blown sweat. We logged in 8 miles before noon – my goal was already achieved! There is no camping allowed for the first 7 miles of the trail, so we had to make it at least that far. So imagine how happy we were to bust out nearly 12 miles on day 1! But those 11.8 miles weren’t easy. Our packs were loaded with days worth of food and a ton of water. Being in the high desert with limited water and a dry camp, we had to carry close to 4 liters of water. That’s a lot of weight to be hauling up climbs!
Without going into too much detail, it took about 4 hours before we reverted back to our bike trip days where real world etiquette and social manners become a thing of the past. This is our lives now – we live in and are one with the dirt! We met a few thru hikers also starting their journey. One of whom was Bob, but his schedule sounds a little more aggressive than ours, so I’m sure that’s the last we’ll see of him.
We rolled into camp around 6:30pm with plenty of daylight to set up camp, eat dinner, watch a beautiful sunset, and do a most frustrating bear hang. I have a feeling we’re going to regret not bringing our bear canisters.
Day 2 July 19; 15.1 miles
Right before going to bed, I (along with probably anyone within a 10 mile radius) heard a bone chilling shriek. Poor Sheena was charged by a mouse and put us on high alert. What’s so scary about a tiny little mouse? Well if they feel it necessary, they will happily chew through your backpack, tent, or anything else they can get their grubby little teeth through. They are so destructive I have a hard time deciding if I’d rather go up against a bear or a mouse. All I can say is thank God there aren’t any raccoons out here. But all that to say we slept very poorly. I was very worried about waking up to a mouse nibbling on my nose and the whipping wind led to a very interrupted night’s sleep.
But alas, the show must go on. And we had a long and hot day ahead of us. We had a short climb before enjoying a glorious 4 mile descent to a large river. We filled up on plenty of water in preparation for a 10 mile water carry over a very exposed desert section. That’s were I met Liz and Ben. Liz is embarking on her first solo section hike and is kicking butt! Ben is a part of a foursome and let’s just say a mutiny may be happening soon, I’ll keep you updated on that.
While ascending from the river, Sheena informed me that this was her least anticipated section of the entire hike, because it is through an exposed burn section with high temperatures and beating sun. Luckily for us, the clouds took care of the sun and we were shaded from its aggressive rays.
While taking a rest, Sheena and I both energized with a Gu. I let her know every Gu has a motivational quote on the bottom. Mine was “pain is temporary”, a go to phrase for me. Hers was “stash your trash”. While still a very good piece of advice, we both couldn’t help laughing at how appropriate it was for how she was feeling. While giggling a little too hard I experienced a pretty bad nose bleed which is right when we met Ruth (that’s not her name, but that’s what we called her because of her likeness to the character Ruth in Ozark). While trying to contain my gushing nose, we learned she is from Bellingham and is solo hiking. She had an eventful night after her sister called SAR in a panic after not receiving a Garmin check in (apparently there was a global outage? Wouldn’t know, we’re living in blissful ignorance of the real world!). After finally getting a hold of her sister the rescue attempt was aborted, but still left Ruth shaken. She contemplated getting off the trail, but we were adamant that the insecurity she may be feeling is temporary (we didn’t find it necessary to tell her to stash her trash) and at least she has someone at home checking in on her! Hopefully we see her down the trail.
After saying see you later to Ruth, we were caught in an afternoon storm. It blew in quickly and we were fully exposed. Rain, lightning, and wind encouraged us to hasten our pace but it soon died down and led to a beautiful double rainbow. Maybe we were a little too lackadaisy with our approach – the Foursome were seeking shelter while we were yelling about how much I hate Apple – that’s a story for another time.
Fortunately we all survived and refilled our water at the fire station. We are so thankful for the station allowing us use of their spigot. Otherwise it would be an even longer water carry – yikes!
We went another mile to camp and are sharing it with a few other hikers, including the Foursome.
Day 3 July 20 13.1 miles
Wow that was the best sleep I have ever had in my tent, I’m pretty sure. And I’ve spent a lot of nights in that tent. It was so good in fact I slept through my alarm and in a panic shot up at 6am. Yes, that is sleeping in for me!
We had a later start than normal for what we anticipated to be a shorter day. But after getting to our goal by noon, we added a few more miles. I love that we’re feeling strong to push ourselves to eat more miles!
We decided to take a 2 hour break by a stream where Sheena took a dip in attempt to wash away the stink. I know it’s a futile attempt – we have to embrace the stink cause it’s not going away anytime soon! In addition to lots of mountain bikers, we ran back into Liz and met some new folks who either caught up to us or are section hiking starting a different trail heads. We haven’t seen the Foursome, we may have lost them.
While getting in the last few miles, not only did it start thundering, but we walked past a very active gun range. Thank God I left little Addie girl in the very capable hands of my parents, for she would have definitely dropped dead from all the loud noises.
While gathering water right before setting up camp for the night, we met Strawberry. After talking a bit, we realized we basically live in the same town! In fact, we were practically neighbors when I was a wee bitty thing. I never got her actual name, but wow what a small world. Maybe I’ll run into her when I get back home.
Setting up camp the storm clouds rolled in. Looks like we might be in for a rough night.
Ps no pictures because my phone ran out of storage (see previous aside about Apple). Apparently the App I use for navigation eats up storage like we’ve been eating up miles. So add that to the list of things I have to figure out! But luckily there weren’t too many picture worthy views today.
Day 4 July 21 14.1 miles
What a day. I thought I could wrap today’s events up with a pretty little bow and put it behind me, but my hands are shaking too much to make it look any better than sloppy.
It rained all night with some pretty intense thunder that reverberated through the mountains. With the drenching rain I woke up in a drenched tent. But alas, it had to be packed up… I’ll just dry it out later (famous last words).
Strawberry left super early and we went on our merry way up a steep 5 mile climb. We were serenaded by thunder the whole way, which was just a taste of what was to come.
Once we started the descent, the heavens opened and we were greeted with a heavy downpour that was accented with dip n dot sized hail. It lasted briefly and we entered into a beautiful meadow just as the weather seemingly stopped. Soon that meadow turned dangerous with another strong storm blowing through. We spent the next 3 hours battling strong rain, winds, and thunder. We were drenched and eventually my hands went numb. That’s when the concern for hypothermia kicked in. We figured it was best to keep moving rather than sit and wait it out cold and soaked. And so we marched on right to camp, which is right when the storm ended.
We set up our tents and ate our cold dinner, shivering the whole time. I really regretted not having my sleeping bag liner with me. But with dry clothes and a dry sleeping bag, I was able to regain my body temperature even though I couldn’t stop shaking.
During our time out in the storm we saw no one. We wondered if they sought shelter or were just as bullheaded as us. Either way, it sounds like we all survived.
The only good thing about today is our bags are that much lighter and we are that much closer to Jefferson, our first resupply stop!
Day 5 July 5; 10 miles
After a freezing night on an uneven surface rolling all over the tent wishing I had my sleeping bag liner, we woke up late in an attempt to dry out our soaked gear. It was a feeble attempt, as the sun was not cooperating. So we settled for damp gear with the plan to dry it out later. We at least were warmed up and no longer shivering.
We set out for a 10:30am departure, hours later than our norm. But we had a short day with easy elevation and light packs! But that’ll be short lived. We resupply it in Jefferson tomorrow and it’s quite bittersweet. We’ll have the opportunity to get off the trail and eat real food, but also return to the trail with heavy packs. It feels so great to not be weighed down, but alas, all good things must come to an end.
We were chased by storms all afternoon. Pretty sure yesterday traumatized us and any sign of rain or thunder has us reaching for our rain gear or playing the “thunder or airplane?” game. Luckily we evaded the storms and look to have a dry night at camp.
We have a great camping spot and started completely alone in it. I said out loud how nice it would be to see more people, and lo and behold my prayers were answered. 7 people rolled through, 5 of whom are camping with us. Plenty of space to share!
Day 6 July 23; 10 miles
It was another wet, rainy, cold night but fueled by the knowledge that civilization and a hot meal were waiting for us in Jefferson, we packed up our wet gear in anticipation for an easy day. Jefferson is a tiny little town, but to us it’s the Emerald City. And given Sheena’s Tin Man bike trail name, she was ready to receive her heart!
The last few miles of the hike were breathtaking. We walked through an aspen forest with a full scale wildflower bloom. All the colors are so dainty and delicate. From pastel pink and purples to deep red indian paintbrushes to bright and happy yellows, it was like walking through a fairytale that pictures just couldn’t capture.
The tail end of the hike was riddled with a low level anxiety – we had to hitch 4 miles to get into the city. From everything I read, this was a seemingly easy task. We just couldn’t imagine exactly how easy it would be. We must’ve looked like 2 lost kids when a couple asked us “need a ride into town?” We jumped at the opportunity and hopped in with Monica and Brian, a couple who just finished a segment hike and wanted to give out some trail magic.
After getting dropped off in town and walking into the small general store, a local stopped me and said “you ain’t from around here cause you sure are confused. In this town you come in with one leg on one side of a horse and the other on the other side. Ain’t no such thing as walking with a pack!” It was a great welcome.
In the store we picked up our resupply packages and had a hot meal. Just as much as you can be hungry for food on trips like this, you are also hungry for information. Whether it’s family, friends, pets, or current events, being disconnected for almost a week can really be a mental load. Luckily, everyone is doing great! It took us 3 days to learn Biden dropped out of the 2024 election, what a year it’ll be!
We had to dry out our wet gear outside and deal with our large resupply. We definitely have way too much food! While outside we were approached by a woman asking if we needed a ride back to the trailhead. What a fortunate day for us! Didn’t even have to attempt a hitch. We took Bear Bait (she hiked the CT last summer) and Kyle up on their offer along with thru hiker KDog, a retired postal worker who is living his retirement in thru hiking bliss.
After getting dropped off we fell upon even more trail magic! We filled up on fruit and cookies. Amy and Johnny Walker are acclimating before a thru hike in early August. They’ll be out there all week helping out hikers!
We hiked another 3 miles to camp completely zonked from the events of the day. Another threat of rain, but looks like we should avoid the worst of it!
Day 7 July 24 13.5 miles
Had a poor night sleep last night due to a few brazen mice and a poor bear hang. But we woke up to unchewed packs and untouched food bags. The only good thing was the warmth the newly acquired bag liner provided – top notch!
We hit the trail early knowing we had to go up Georgia Pass, which involved a long climb with 2k’ of elevation gain. I am a sucker for passes and loved every minute of the ascent. It helped that we got some more trail magic a mile into the hike. I didn’t get his name, but the trail angel had to bail from the CT because of altitude sickness. Fortunately for us he is spending some time spreading the love with cookies, oranges, and plenty of other goodies. We would’ve stocked up if we hadn’t just resupplied the day before. Hopefully the trail magic continues further along!
As we were ascending we ran (pun intended) into a few ultramarathon runners competing in the Summit 200, a 200 mile race through Summit county. Once I’m done the trail I hope to compete in an ultra or two, likely not 200 miles but who knows, maybe I’ll return to try out this race!
When we got to the top of Georgia Pass we were greeted with beautiful views despite smoke from Canada and Oregon lending a slight obstruction to the mountains, but what we could see was spectacular. We met up with KDog and said our goodbyes, this might be the last we see of him.
We trudged along for the last 5 rocky downhill miles to camp, where our trail converged with the CDT. Can’t say that trail is on my bucket list.
Camp is quiet, some threats of rain but fingers crossed it misses us. We could use a dry night!
Day 8 July 25; 10 miles
Officially one week on the trail! To think just a week ago we were crawling up climbs with loaded packs. Well, nothing much has changed, but at least we have 7 more day’s experience!
Because the mornings are so bitter cold we decided to sleep in and get a later start to let things (mainly our hands) thaw out. We set out for an expected climb, one that kicked my butt. Mentally it was a struggle. Yesterday felt like a breeze compared to today. I think I just really like passes – they feel like an accomplishment as opposed to just incessant climbing. But surely enough, we made it to the top and had a nice downhill to enjoy.
We decided to take it easy today with a low mileage day to have a nero day tomorrow in Breck. Coming off a long and exhausting day yesterday, we took plenty of long breaks to reach our 9 mile goal. During one such break, Sheena got up slowly and said calmly, “Emilie, you have a huge cricket on your crotch”. Not wanting to look, I stared at her in panic. Her calm approach was likely to stifle the chaos that was sure to ensue. I looked down, and just like she warned, there was the biggest blackest cricket on the planet staring up at me. And all the swatting and screaming and dancing wasn’t enough to get him away from me. But persistence pays off and I managed to free myself from its death grip.
We got into camp early and prepared for our half day in Breck tomorrow by writing shopping lists and looking at all the food establishments to determine where to get the best coffee and burgers (not together, although at this point any food sounds amazing).
The camp site is beautiful with a stunning view of the valley that butts right up to Dillion reservoir, it even has a bench to sit and relax. I’m sure the sunset will be spectacular!
Ps – foursome update. Apparently now they are just a twosome. Received information just now from a woman we are sharing camp with that one of them actually broke his ankle day 1 and was hiking through it before bailing out in Bailey with his girlfriend. The other two are forging on and apparently are hot on our heels so we should be seeing them soon!
Day 9 July 26 6.5 miles
Woke up to dry tents this morning despite a little rain overnight. Happy to not have to worry about drying out wet tents in Breckinridge!
We had a slow hike into Breck with many stops. It was nice and easy because of low miles and a late check in to our air bnb. On the trail we met Mike, AKA Skyline. We talked to him for a few and said see you later because we knew we’d run into him again soon. We didn’t realize it would be so soon! On the bus into Breckinridge, we bumped back into mike! We all were looking for a place to eat and decided to get lunch at a bistro together. Mike is a recently retired IT guy who has hiked the PCT and now attempting the CT. We had a great lunch with him and hope to see him soon on the trail!
Aside from lunch, we ran errands including food resupply and laundry. But best of all, we enjoyed a shower to wash off a week’s worth of accumulated crud. You really take for granted cleanliness until you spend some time in the dirt!
We hit just over 100 miles today, a huge accomplishment. Just over 1/5 of the way there. But in order to meet time requirements, I have a feeling we’re going to need to see some higher mileage and longer days soon. The clock never stops ticking, and I’m really starting to miss everyone (and every pet) at home.
We plan of having dinner then going to bed early (in an actual bed!)for an early morning wake up to get to Copper mountain to slack pack back up to breck. It’ll feel incredible to hike with a light pack!
Emilie Bikes and Hikes 