New Games with New Rules: Days 7-9 on the CDT
Thru hiking is a game where you make your own rules. The game is governed by a certain set of laws, most of them natural. Wind, fire, flooding, rain,...
Bones in the Chihuahuan Desert
The constant blanketing of bodies and bones across the desert floor– more than a little disconcerting– do little to make me feel welcome in the harsh, high desert of New...
Monument to Lordsburg
Rise and Shine The alarm clock sounds at 5 AM, and we have one hour and 15 minutes to get ready pack our bags and get to the CDTC shuttle....
Pause
We interrupt your regularly scheduled trail update to bring you this important message. Lonely trail on a mesa. I'm temporarily off-trail. I came home. It was a difficult decision, but...
Getting to Lordsburg for the CDT
The adventure starts the moment you leave your house with a heavy pack and nervous energy for the journey ahead. The Continental Divide Trail (CDT) starts in the southwestern corner...
Fear mongering and turning back on the CDT – Update #1
Having already done two long trails, particularly the PCT in a high snow year has taught me to not listen to the fear mongering. Tales of upcoming tricky sections spread...
Out of the Frying Pan, Up to the Pines: CDT Days 2-8
Our first week and change on the CDT took us from the dusty Bootheel to the Burro Mountains, the desert’s answer to the Adirondacks. What a joy to be out...
Nighthiking Spooks and Drinking Poop: Days 4-6 on the CDT
If you think your town is small, you should come test your theory against Lordsburg, New Mexico. Besides McDonalds and a few dingy motels occupied my truckers and hikers, there...
Don’t Make These Mistakes in the Chihuahuan Desert Like I Did
The first few days if a thru-hike are an absolute whirlwind. Finally, all the preparation and anticipation are culminating to this moment: the start of an epic journey across the...
The Worst Section on the CDT
Throughout all my preparation for the Continental Divide Trail, I’d been constantly warned about the first 84 miles from the Mexican border to Lordsburg, New Mexico. Not only is the...