8 Reasons the CDT Is Better Than the AT and PCT

All three of the Triple Crown trails (Appalachian Trail, Continental Divide Trail, and Pacific Crest Trail) are incredible in their own ways. The Appalachian Trail has its rolling green tunnels. The Pacific Crest Trail has its Instagram-worthy vistas. But the Continental Divide Trail? It has heart, soul, and an untamed spirit that make it the best long-distance trail of the three.

The first (or last!) blaze of the trail, just a few miles north of the Mexican border.

Is that subjective? Obviously. Am I still right? Again, obviously.

Don’t believe me? Let’s break it down.

1. Tiny Community, Tight-knit Community

In 2024, the Continental Divide Trail Coalition reported 160 thru-hikers completed the CDT: 83 NOBOs, 50 SOBOs, and 27 Flip-Floppers. In contrast, 1,201 hikers finished the Appalachian Trail and 643 completed the Pacific Crest Trail in 2023. While these numbers are likely slightly under-reported, the CDT’s community remains much smaller than the other trails.

The CDT’s narrower weather window means most hikers start within two to three weeks of each other, so you quickly get to know nearly everyone on your route. The “bubble” on the CDT can be as small as five hikers, fostering deep bonds due to the intimate, often repeated encounters. Hikers are more likely to encounter the same people multiple times at a water source, a campsite, or in town.

The shared experience of navigating the challenging terrain and unpredictable weather further strengthens these bonds, making the CDT’s community unique compared to the larger, often more transient groups found on the AT and PCT.

I hiked most of the trail with most of these people! I never would’ve expected to make it to Canada with the crew I found in New Mexico.

And, of course, the gossip opportunities are a lot of fun when everyone knows everyone.

2. The Best Views

The CDT delivers some of the most stunning vistas in the country. The San Juans, with their jagged peaks, striations of snow, and wildflower-filled meadows, offer alpine beauty at its best. The Wind River Range’s crystal-clear lakes and towering granite spires create a sense of grandeur that’s hard to match.

Somewhere near James Peak between Breckenridge and Grand Lake.

Then there’s Glacier National Park, offering unforgettable views of glaciers, emerald lakes, and mountains composed of rainbow rocks. The scale of the mountains and the sharp ridgelines are a reminder of nature’s raw beauty, making every step on this trail an immersive experience.

Even the road walks are often framed by stunning mesas and rock formations. The conditions on the CDT can be brutal, for sure, but you are almost never lacking for a good view.

What, no takers? I wonder why.

3. Less Crowded, More Wild

The CDT’s remoteness creates an unmatched wilderness experience. Unlike the crowded AT and PCT, the CDT allows you to experience the backcountry with solitude. Entire stretches between towns often pass without another soul in sight, offering rare moments of quiet in nature.

This isolation demands true self-reliance. Every decision, such as finding water, choosing campsites, and navigating rugged terrain, requires thoughtful planning and resilience. It’s challenging, unpredictable, and far from easy — but that’s the magic of it all!

My favorite “campsite” on the trail, on a ridgeline somewhere in Idaho.

Adding to its untamed appeal, the CDT is refreshingly free of the red tape and commercialization that define the AT and PCT. No single thru-hike permit, no competitive lotteries, and far fewer bureaucratic hurdles. While national parks like Glacier, Yellowstone, and Rocky Mountain require permits, they’re simpler to secure than those required on the highly regulated PCT.

Even the National Parks weren’t crowded. We only saw one or two people through all of Yellowstone until we got to Old Faithful.

The lack of commercial infrastructure means fewer established shelters, marked campsites, and hiker-oriented trail towns. You won’t find gear shops on every corner or a network of trail angels waiting to assist. What you will find is an authentic, self-sufficient backcountry adventure.

4. Skill-Building

The CDT’s unique challenges teach you to develop a wide range of technical skills, ones that you won’t find in abundance on the AT or PCT. With its unpredictable weather, you’ll quickly master how to read the sky and anticipate storms, making weather forecasting an essential gained skill.

Mr. Miyagi from the Karate Kid has the best advice for situations like this: No be there.

Snow travel is another key skill you’ll develop on the CDT, especially at higher elevations. You’ll learn to navigate snow-covered passes, using trekking poles for balance and weight distribution, and begin to understand how snow behaves. On icy slopes, mastering self-arrest techniques and using an ice axe becomes critical to safety.

We got pretty good at knowing when we had to pull out our ice axes vs. when we could just foot ski down a hill.

Route finding is also crucial, as the CDT is less marked than other trails. You’ll refine your skills in map reading and navigating unmarked sections, building confidence in your ability to create your own path when necessary. By the end, you’ll find yourself far more prepared to handle challenging situations thrown at you by the wilderness. 

5. Choose Your Own Adventure

On the CDT, to an extent, the trail is what you make it. Numerous alternate trails and crazy side quests near the redline offer you a level of flexibility and adventure that you just won’t find on the AT or PCT. Almost no one on the CDT embarks on the exact same journey; you’d be hard-pressed to find people who chose the exact same path as you the entire way between Mexico and Canada.

The beautiful Cirque of the Towers, off the redline of the CDT, is a really wonderful and worthwhile alternate.

From the river crossings of the Gila and the ridgeline climbs of the Argentine Spine to the jagged peaks of the Cirque of the Towers and the breathtaking Teton Range, there are countless incredible experiences just off the redline. Unlike the other two trails of the Triple Crown, CDT thru-hikers are expected and encouraged to customize their journey, allowing you to truly build the adventure most meaningful to you.

6. Completely Unforgettable Wildlife

Picture yourself watching herds of elk galloping across a Colorado alpine meadows, spotting a moose and her calf wading through a lake in the Wind River Range, or coming face to face with a family of mountain goats in southern Idaho. You might glimpse a bighorn sheep scaling impossibly steep cliffs or hear the eerie howls of wolves and coyotes in the distance. All of this (and more!) I experienced during my time on the CDT.

Hello, friends!

The CDT offers some of the most unique wildlife encounters you’ll find on any long-distance trail. Its route through remote and diverse ecosystems means you’re likely to cross paths with creatures you won’t see on the AT or PCT.

Grizzly bears roam the trail north of Gunsight Pass in Wyoming, while black bears are common throughout the entirety of the CDT. The trail also teems with smaller, fascinating creatures like marmots, pikas, and the eccentric grouse.

I loved this moose so dearly, but he hated me to his very core and kept bluff-charging me.

Perhaps due to the CDT’s uncrowded nature, encounters with these animals are surprisingly common. While I could’ve done without encounters with critters like scorpions and rattlesnakes, the almost-daily, awe-inspiring interactions with other wildlife made me love the trail even more.

7. The Stargazing Goes Hard

If you think the CDT’s views are amazing during the day, wait until you see the night sky. With so much of the trail in remote, unpopulated areas, the stargazing is out of this world — literally. There’s very little light pollution along the entirety of the trail, so the stars feel so close you could reach out and grab them.

The stars from just outside Creede in the San Juan Mountains.

I may not have been the biggest fan of the desert sections of the CDT, but the sight of the Milky Way stretching across the sky every night certainly made the experience better. I had several nights of bad sleep simply because I didn’t want to close my eyes and miss any of the shooting stars.

8. The Trail Angels

When it comes to trail magic, the CDT has its own brand of generosity. Sure, you might not get the classic “trail magic” moments you find on the AT, where a random stranger sets up a table of snacks by the side of the trail. But what the CDT lacks in food handouts, it more than makes up for in sheer kindness from locals who go out of their way to help.

Felicia, in Lordsburg, took us in for the afternoon, fed us, and let us use her shower and washing machine after a particularly brutal stretch of trail.

I’ve lost count of how many times someone picked up my restaurant tab without a second thought or invited me into their home to crash for the night. In some towns, I was handed cash just to help cover a meal or supplies. These aren’t one-off moments either.

The smaller number of CDT hikers seems to make the locals more invested in the trail experience. They genuinely want to take care of you — whether it’s offering you a ride to town, letting you stay in their guest room, or leaving snacks in the post office for you to find.

Hal and B picked us up in Grand Lake, Colorado, and we spent an incredibly memorable 4th of July with them and their donkey, Clarence.

The kindness from trail angels on the CDT isn’t flashy, but it’s real. It’s a reminder that, even out in the middle of nowhere, there are people who’ll do anything to help make your journey just a little bit easier. To this day, there are certain trail angels from my CDT experience that I can’t think about without tearing up a little bit. I went into the CDT expecting little to no trail magic and came out overwhelmed by the sheer level of generosity shown to me by complete strangers.

Hal, pictured here, was the 10th person to thru-hike the Pacific Crest Trail. We had a great time hearing his stories and comparing his gear from 1974 to our ultralight setups.

In Conclusion

Obviously, all trails have their own aspects that make them uniquely wonderful. These are the eight ways in which I think the CDT excels compared to the other two, and which will likely always make this my favorite long-distance trail.

Ending the trail in Glacier was such a fitting end to such a beautiful and awe-inspiring trail.

If you disagree with me, that’s fine. We’re all wrong sometimes.