2021 Jun 24-Sep CDT SOBO

  •   Category Price Weight
  • Food $13.50
    3.75 lb
  • Water $0.00
    2.2 lb
  • Clothes, Worn $0.00
    0 lb
  • Sleep $481.89
    2.15 lb
  • Clothes, Carried $412.29
    1.55 lb
  • Shelter $278.00
    1.17 lb
  • Pack $221.50
    1.1 lb
  • Electronics $161.97
    1.02 lb
  • Water $37.00
    0.48 lb
  • Kitchen $80.55
    0.29 lb
  • Ditty $41.93
    0.25 lb
  • Navigation $75.00
    0.1 lb
  • Toilet $1.00
    0.06 lb
  • Glacier NP $0.00
    0 lb
  • Yellowstone NP $0.00
    0 lb
  • CO $0.00
    0 lb
  • NM $0.00
    0 lb
  • Total $1804.63 14.14
    lb
    • oz
    • lb
    • g
    • kg
  • Consumable 6.17 lb
  • Base Weight 7.97 lb

Prev: 2020 May 11-Sep PCT

Next: 2022 Apr-Aug AZT+PCT

Results

Averaged ~30 mpd and enjoyed it; Montana and Idaho flew by, Wyoming started out great but I hated it by the end, Colorado really threw me for a loop and broke my rhythm; loved the state but had non-stop trouble there. Great peaches though. Injured my knee peakbagging Mt. Massive near Leadville, managed to hobble as far as Pagosa Springs and had to call it; a hard decision. Happy I made it through the San Juans, the first full day west of Lake City on the CT was one of the best days on trail. I will definitely finish the remaining section (NM and change) at some point. My most memorable CDT experiences were almost always when I went off the trail proper on alts, shortcuts, road walks, fire closure workarounds, peakbagging, etc. The CDT has taught me that the trail isn't as important as the journey. I'm satisfied with all my major decisions re: the CDT -- timing-wise, gear-wise, going SOBO and going fast is definitely the way to go -- but ultimately I liked the PCT and AZT more. Going forward on my next trip I would like to go faster, lower volume and even cheaper.

Gear worked out well, no major fuckups. Base layer+wind shell were enough 99% of the time, enjoyed sleeping in just the bivy with no tarp 95% of the nights before Colorado (Gatewood Cape zipped up makes a great pillow), Prolite was fast to inflate, very comfy and didn't pop, quilt was great but too hot a number of times. Burn was comfortable and durable: only damage was 3 small holes in the mesh from endless blowdowns in the southern Winds -- though it rode a bit lower than I would have liked. Cook kit worked well; I ended up enjoying alcohol more than esbit which was a pain to light, blow out and clean up. 550ml was just enough for ramen+peanut butter+olive oil, I wouldn't go smaller. Often I wished I had cold soaked just for efficiency, it was nice to stop sometimes but I didn't always want to have to stop to eat... then again, hot coffee in the morning was a nice luxury. Didn't really need the snow gear in Glacier but it was reasonable to bring, wouldn't do so again unless I started earlier or the snow was higher. 50cm axe simplified shipping as it fit in the stock USPS box, East Glacier postmaster mentioned it. Gatewood Cape was just ok as rain gear, it was kind of fiddly to walk in and I didn't like it as much as a rain jacket, but for me rain jackets are impossible to avoid sweating excessively in. MVP rain layer was definitely umbrella, which worked better than expected for rain (and hail) as long as the wind wasn't too strong. Could have survived without the gloves, but they were nice to have in Yellowstone which had very chilly mornings. Puffy was used 5-6 times total, mostly in town, could've been a light fleece instead. NU25 worked great but could've been a tiny rechargeable flashlight with a clip for my visor. Sawyer Squeeze was fine but I used it less and less as I went, after it froze I tossed it and didn't replace it. 1 oz hand sani was overkill, I never came close to using it up. 13L dry bag for food was overkill and enabled me to carry too much food, will downsize to ~10L draw cord sack instead. My DCF stuff sacks are fraying badly, I will replace them with Ziploc or silnylon bags. The dual shoulder pockets were great, I would like a pack with integrated shoulder strap pockets as they were incredibly useful; I'd like to start carrying some water up front to redistribute some weight. Paper maps were a waste of time; I legitimately tried to use them for navigation on 2 occasions where my digital maps fell short but they never helped -- I ended up using best guesses and that worked out, would not bring paper again.

Used single digit number of times, could've lived without: puffy, gloves, bug headnet, paper maps, rain jacket

Overkill: food: carried too much and always had some left over. socks: I carried socks based on my PCT experience of them being destroyed in short order but this didn't happen, I had socks last 1000+ miles(!); I think the difference was the relative lack of dust.

Torn to shreds but still hanging on: gaiters: I brush my feet together very occasionally when I walk, this kills gaiters. Goodrs: love these things but a thru is hard on glasses. GG Thinlight: increasingly ripped and patched but not dead yet

R.I.P.: Sawyer (froze in Aug @ 11k ft), EE Copperfield wind pants (blew away in the San Juans), trekking pole (left in a car on a hitch), pot lid (blew away), USB C to lightning adapter (died almost immediately, just use a dedicated cable)

Stupid light: DCF stuff sacks, USB C-to-lightning adapter

Never used once: compass, printed permits, thermometer

The next year I picked up where I left off...

Planning

SOBO June 24 — with the east side now open: fly to Kalispell, walk/hitch/train to East Glacier, hitch/walk to Two Medicine, try to get a permit to/from Chief Mountain, get it or give up when food runs out. either way, take best route available to first resupply @ Summit Mountain Lodge south of GNP and head into the Bob...

Highlights: CO overall, Glacier NP, Wind River Range, San Juans, the Collegiates, MT/ID border, ~~the Bob~~ , Yellowstone NP, the Gila, ~~RMNP~~ .

Conditions:

  • COVID: got vaccinated, bringing a dedicated mask.
  • USPS: still under attack from within, luckily none of the CDT states are battleground states...
  • hitchhiking: assume hitching in the back of a pickup truck is still viable. if not, consider Butte Cutoff as regular MT/ID border route relies on long hitches.
  • thunderstorms: on the PCT I just wore a Frogg Toggs jacket and hiked through the brief afternoon thunderstorms, sometimes in my wind pants, and was fine. the thunderstorms on the CDT are worse, so my plan is to bring a windshirt, poncho, umbrella and wind pants and figure out which combo I like best.
  • snow: snow and melt is certain in GNP and the Bob but the specifics are impossible to predict. bring spikes and an ice axe for GNP, and if the snow is high consider keeping the spikes through the Bob. i've considered some combo of tights, a light fleece and neoprene socks but don't think i'll actually need them.
  • ~~it's a La Niña year so prepare for possible higher than average snowfall up north and possibly lower precip down south...~~ scratch that, snowfalls are avg

Things I'm focusing on/doing differently:

  • Training: wearing minimalist shoes around town and on a treadmill to try to toughen my feet, build my arches; control my diet and stay fit.
  • Resupply: all boxes; value control over flexibility + minimize distance traveled off trail (learned this from Mercury on the PCT)
  • Food: get calories per ounce up to ~150 inexpensively and enjoyably
  • Time: make the most of long days early on: walk more hours per day at a slower pace, longer carries and resupply faster
  • Nav: bring paper maps + compass for backup + alts, but expect to use Guthook 99% of the time.
  • Compact: I expect more blowdowns due to less trail maintenance due to COVID, so I am using an MLD Burn which is narrow and can be ratcheted down with all its straps and buckles
  • TP-less: a combo of found objects, water and hand sani is enough
  • Pilot stake: using 1 durable stake to create pilot holes for other lighter, less durable ones

Resources:

Check/Ship:

Red star = need to get

Gold star = need to weigh