My CDT hike was in 2007, even farther in the past and a different era. Smart phones existed, but not on the trail. I didn't even carry a cell phone. There was a great resource for maps, Jonathan Ley, who published the "CDT ROM," a take-off on CD/ROM, for those who don't remember CDs. Prior to that, collecting maps was a months-long process. There was even a route named for him, as in "I took the official route/the Wolf route/the Ley route." (Jim Wolf was another great resource for a route, but the maps weren't really in enough detail for hiking. They were pocket-sized guidebooks with good directions NOBO and SOBO. Jim Wolf has since retired and turned over his stuff to the CDTC, I hear.) Printing the Ley maps took days and lots of ink but they sure were worth it. That CD was state-of-the art and unique back then.
A quick check shows Ley maps are still a thing and are still free, maybe dated with 2016 as a last version, on Avenzamaps.com. Thanks again, Jonathan.
Ditto Mags' guide.
I don't know anyone who stuck to the official route. Most took a combination of the above and often made their own. That was the attraction--each hike was unique.
I also hiked NM in late April in near-perfect weather. I remember a Trail Angel in Pie Town. There was a resident in Benchmark, MT, and a lodge at Togwotee Pass WY that helped with resupply boxes. Generally helpful friendly people all along the way as others have noted. The most memorable was an impromptu welcome celebration along the side of the road on tribal land in NM. That may have been my favorite moment, but overall hiking favorites were the South San Juan and Weminuche Wildernesses and Cirque of the Towers in the Winds, as noted above.
I'd hiked the PCT a few years earlier with an 18 mpd average. I was able to up that to 20+ mpd on the CDT with more experience and fewer resupply problems (I switched to stoveless for the CDT with a generally lighter pack). I hiked the AT a year later in 106 days, for a 20 mpd average--I was able to apply my CDT hiking style to the AT with good results. The AT seemed pretty easy to me at the time, more fun and social than the Western trails.
Post-PCT, the water situation didn't seem extreme, but way less organized with zero caches and yes, plenty of gross cattle tanks. Ley's maps documented water status fairly well with notes. A couple of times I found electric well pumps at empty cattle tanks, and with a background in industrial controls I was able to turn them on temporarily for fresh well water. There were plenty of wind-driven pumps and I was lucky to find a few pumping fresh water in good wind. Much of my hike in NM was following a line between cattle tank wells.
I hiked in long trousers the whole way (sun, insect, and veg protection--lots of bushwhacking) and carried minimal rain gear (homemade silnylon anorak and trousers, 7 oz total). My Tarptent Contrail provided perfect shelter.
A serious respect for maps and route finding was critical at the time, when GPSs weren't even common. I suspect it can be the same now, especially if there's ever a battery issue.