Couple of big questions for people experienced with the CDT

[Sly]

By substance vs prettiness I mean ups downs, interesting/challenging terrain, etc. I like a challenge.

The CDT happens to be both, pretty and challenging. Not only does it have rugged terrain, it has plenty of route finding which will keep you busy, and the logistics aren't the easiest.

If you really want a challenge, figure it out yourself!

[Slo-go'en]

The CDT is one of the most challenging trails around and the least forgiving. Make a mistake and you could well die. It also looks like one of the more expensive trails to hike and it takes the most planing.

It's easy to wing it on the AT with a $15.00 guide book or none at all. The PCT takes a little more planing, but it is also well blazed and traveled, so as long as you pay attention, shouldn't be too bad.

But on CDT it's easy to get hopelessly lost and your a long, long way from anything or any help. I'm spending a lot of money to ensure I don't get lost. I'm not sure how much it's going to cost me to do 1200 miles or so of the CDT, but I expect it will be a lot more than $2,000. Just getting there and back isn't going to be cheap either. I'm going to spend 3 weeks on the AT before heading west just so I'll be in shape to do 20 mile days right off. Resupply points are over 100 miles apart and I hate lugging more than 5 days worth of food.

BTW, here is a great video about a CDT through hike by a couple of Brits in '08. Watch the 2 hour version. http://www.made-in-england.org/videos/cdt/ This page also has links to several sources of info about the CDT. Before you attempt the CDT, you need to get as much info about the trail as possible. I highly recommend Yogi's CDT planning guide as a start. If you want to start a NOBO this year, you don't have much time left to plan or get ready.

[Mags]

The OP is quoted in an earlier thread as saying he never thought of even hiking (never mind backpacking or long backpack trips) and was more into rock climbing until recently.

I suspect he'll find the CDT to be a very big challenge.

[BrianLe]

"Rather than trying to do the entire trail on the cheap, why not just plan on hiking half of one year and the other half another."

I completely agree with others, this is the sane approach for anyone not just inherently stuck on the idea of doing it all in one go. Of course there are advantages/cool aspects of thru-hiking it all at once, but wow --- it's a tough trail to try to do all at once, being able to adjust to better weather could avoid some seriously gonzo snow and creek crossing scenarios. I started SOBO last year in June with a guy I'd hiked with a fair bit on the PCT, and literally the morning of the second day he was swept off his feet trying to ford the Belly river, injured himself somewhat in (barely) saving himself by catching a low-hanging bridge cable. This just never seemed to heal up for him on the trail, he had a hard time taking deep breaths, so finally (this is a tough guy) he packed it in after a month+ and over 600 miles. He's starting again this year where he left off, and having those 600+ miles already done will allow him to start in a lot less snow, and with water crossings a lot less perilous. Still somewhat of a race to get through the San Juans, but less pucker factor there too.

Ditto also on the "hand you your butt" comments above, particularly southern Colorado. Dunno if it's age-related, but I found that things just got tougher when spending much time above 12,000 feet.

[djcoin]

I suspect he'll find the CDT to be a very big challenge. [/QUOTE]
The more chalenge the better

[djcoin]

Thanks for the video link Slo. They both have Naos packs, lucky bastards.

[moongoddess]

Why not consider hiking the CT first, as a training run for the CDT? The CT has challenging terrain (and landscapes don't get more gorgeous than Colorado), but at approximately 500 miles it's a much more budget-friendly option. Mags has a great info page on both the CT and the CDT which you should check out (if you haven't already).

[djcoin]

CT is still a bagillion miles away from me. If I'm gunna do the CDT I might as well do it all the way, besides why wuss it out? I'd rather try the whole thing and fail than do it the "safe" way. My situation has changed slightly from a few days ago and I can manage an unlimited budget via debit card but I can only use $500 a month. Need to do some research on the pricing of things alone the cdt so I can hopefully manage that.

[moongoddess]

On the CT, failing equals retreating to a nearby town with your tail between your legs. On the CDT, failing can mean dying. Trust me, there's absolutely nothing romantic about dying of dehydration and heat stroke in the desert or freezing to death on a mountain pass. The CT would be a good way to both get a taste of thu-hiking and sharpen your backcountry skills (as would the PCT, for that matter). You stand a better chance of successfully thru-hiking the CDT if you've already experienced one of the "easier" long hikes. (Quotation marks added because successfully completing even the shortest long trail is not easy by any reasonable standard!) But if you're determined to jump straight into the deep end by hiking the CDT first, go ahead. It's your hike.

[bamboo bob]

Being lazy, the CDT remains on my list but I had though I might do the CT first. One CDT question I have is about exaggeration. Before I ever did the AT, a read a lot about mice and bears, and banjo playing rednecks. It turned out if you did things right the mice were only a nuisance and that bears were mainly seen running away. And I love Rednecks with or without banjos. Before I did the PCT the talk was about Ice Axes (and self arrest), water scarcity, and bear canisters. The snow was easily handled with microspikes even though I practiced self arrest on the hill behind my house, there were many many water caches ( being a good doobie I didn't rely on them), and I found the canister didn't nearly hold an adequate amount of food but was good for keeping rangers away. So what am I supposed to think about the CDT? I have sort of been waiting for some one to complete a good set of maps.

[Mags]

So what am I supposed to think about the CDT? I have sort of been waiting for some one to complete a good set of maps.

The JLEY maps are excellent and used by most thru-hikers. The Bear Creek maps are professional grade and work extremely well for showing the 'official' CDT corridor.

Both sets of maps (depending on the hike you want to take) will work quite well.

The CDT is very doable for any experienced backpacker who knows who to read a map, use a compass, is willing to do their own thing, can manage water and supplies and does not expect a 'paint by numbers' hike.

The CDT rewards those who want something a little more raw and less defined.

I would not call it dangerous by any means (overall), but it is only going to be enjoyed by those who want to embrace that the CDT for what it i is rather than what they want it to be.

Damn..I miss the long trails.

If you can't fit the CDT in, the CT is excellent way to experience Western LD hiking without some of the challenges of the CDT. Since the CT has been routed more on the Divide in the San Juans, it is quite stunning. The photo I posted earlier from Colorado is on the CT/CDT in the San Juans...

[BrianLe]

"So what am I supposed to think about the CDT?"

In the context of your experience, Bob, definitely do-able, but somewhat harder than the other two, particularly as a thru-hike, and I'd expect it to take a bit longer. And be a lot lonelier experience (for better or for worse) unless you start with one or more AT or PCT hiker friends who manage to stay on trail with you.

Part of the issue in "what am I supposed to think about it" comes from the variance between different years. I hiked the PCT in 2008 and it was a *relatively* low snow year, so that I mailed my ice axe home partway in the Sierras. I know that the experience that someone else had in hiking in a high snow year is quite a bit different in there. Ditto the CDT, and even more so in that there are more route variations --- one doesn't think of it as "blue blazing", rather just which is the route that makes most sense for whatever reason for me, here and now --- and that becomes "your" CDT. But it can make comparing experiences with others a bit less crisp.

[fiddlehead]

I think my biggest worry, going into the CDT thru-hike, was getting lost.
I spent a lot of time and money getting the right maps.
And joined a group of friends who I had hiked with before and all had a lot of experience.

That said, We hit our first snow in the Gila and were following our friends footprints when we saw them going the wrong way.
We studied the maps for a while and took the right instead of the left, and didn't see them again for about a week when we heard they were in town.
Two of them were quitting. Going home.

These were hardcore hikers on the AT and PCT!
Two others quit later as they said the miles were more than they felt comfortable doing.

2 of us made it.

Got lost aprox once a day. Many times more.
Forded hundreds of streams and rivers.
Hiked in snow a lot and learned to glissade very well.

Saw 7 or 8 other thru-hikers that year.
Half of them were going SOBO so, we passed each other in WY.

My first trip on the CDT was before Jonathon Ley maps, which I believe make things a lot easier.
Especially with a GPS. (The old fashioned way was expensive for mapping and many maps were a different scale, so, you couldn't get used to looking at the map and easily judging distances)

Also, I believe there are many more than 7-10 thru-hikers completing it in one year now, so you might be able to have some companionship.
But, don't count on it.

But, all in all, it's still my favorite trail. (Pyrenees HRP a close 2nd)

The 3 people who probably helped me the most were: Namie (Nean on WB), Jim Wolfe for his excellent guides and map lists, and Eric Ryback for his amazing solo journey (and book) when he was still a teenager (mostly alone, decades before it became popular).

Thanks to everyone who helped show me the way.

[djcoin]

Back to one of my earlier questions, whats the average of rain on the CDT compared to the AT? I happen to like rain, it's the equivalent to me of what a sunny day is to most and could be a deciding factor on which trail I want to go on.

[moongoddess]

The AT gets more rain on average than the CDT. When it does rain on the CDT, it's often a short but violent thunderstorm (rather than the steady all-day rain that's common on the AT).

[Sly]

The AT gets more rain on average than the CDT. When it does rain on the CDT, it's often a short but violent thunderstorm (rather than the steady all-day rain that's common on the AT).

Also, since it's at higher altitudes, it's a cold rain and a concern for hypothermia.

[BrianLe]

In addition to rain, mentally prepare for infrequent brutal hailstorms. I remember just standing with head bent down like an animal in the field, just sort of "taking it". But per comments above, typically doesn't last too long. I do recall wishing a couple of times that I wore the sort of hat that leaves some gap between hat fabric and top of head --- those hailstones bouncing off my bald head hurt!

Overall I would say less rain than on the AT, especially when factoring New Mexico in there, but indeed a lot of time the rain on the AT is warm. No warm rain on the CDT.
And in addition to the hail, you can get other precip variations. I think I had at least a couple of what I call "postal" hiking days --- if you recall the old post office motto, "neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail ...". I call it a postal day when I hike through all of those on the same day.