I’m going to be trying something new out this time around and suggest a song at the beginning of my blog posts, that hopefully you will listen to while reading. I am not sure if I am better at telling jokes or suggesting music, so be warned and don’t judge too hard.
Check out “Things Happen” by the Dawes. This is probably one of the happiest/sad songs I know which is how I feel about closing out my time in DC and starting a new journey.
What is the Continental Divide Trail?
-Its kind of a trail, and its kind of an idea of a trail. The actual Continental Divide is 3,100 miles long and my goal is to try and stay as close to the physical continental divide as possible (kind of). It is a lot more loose than the AT where you are seen as a cheater if you don’t pass by every white blaze and the PCT where you mostly follow the same path unless there is a really cool feature off trail. The CDT technically has 3 starting spots, even though most people start at only one, and has 2 ending spots depending on whether you can actually get into Canada. Parts of the trail are going to be well marked especially in Colorado where it will follow parts of the Colorado Trail, but a lot of it is a choose your own adventure hike, which I am not used to. Its going to take some time to get use to the fact that I can do whatever I want. My only real goal is to connect my footsteps. I have no idea how many miles I will actually hike, some hikers can do it in as little as 2,400 miles if they follow the path of least resistance and some do it closer to 3,100 miles.
Why are you hiking another trail?
-Good question. I don’t know why. It just felt right. I hiked the AT and PCT back to back and didn’t have the same insightful experience on the PCT that I had on the AT since I had really not lived much of a life in-between the trails. With 3 years since my last thru-hike and a lot of life lived, I feel like I have a lot to reflect on and it was time to move on from DC and I should take advantage of a gap in my responsibilities.
I heard you are doing more than the CDT this year, what does your time off look like?
-I’m heading out to do a section of the Camino de Santiago with my dad for three weeks in Spain. I am then flying back to Cincy to pick up my gear and heading out to the CDT. If I happen to beat the snow I am going to knock out a section on the PCT in the High Sierras and check out all of the golden aspen, assuming I survive all of this, I am then going on a rock climbing trip to wind down my wanderlust. I blame Diana, who I have known since my days at the Mountaineering Club in Cincinnati, for this plan as most of it was orchestrated while drinking beers together.
So you left a dream job to be a homeless bum?
-Yeah, I never claimed to be smart. I worked at Port City for about 2.5 years and had so much fun with some of the most solid human beings I have ever met. We made world class beer because it was a world class team. It was a motley crew who were extremely dedicated to their craft and knew how to have a good time doing it. Leaving them and DC was not an easy decision. In the end I want to end up closer to the mountains which DC is not exactly near and live in a place where getting home in an hour isn’t considered quick. I did not realize how many friends I had in DC until I had to say goodbye to all of them. The city is full of solid people who I got to climb, hike, do yoga with and of course sip a few brews with, I am already looking forward to visiting with everyone when I finish.
You’re going to be a triple-crowner if you finish the CDT right?
-I guess, I kind of hate that word. I might be reading to much into it, but when I hear it or it is brought up it seems that people are suggesting that the title is the reason for the journey and I kind of despise that. To me, all it means is I don’t have a lot of responsibility, I don’t mind being dirty and I really like pooping outside.
How did you prepare for this trail?
-Well I ate a lot of chips and beer my last few months in DC to gain weight so that was really awesome. I lose a lot of weight when I hike and I actually got too in-shape before my departure so I tried to pack some pounds back on (I realize this sounds absurd). I did a lot more research for this trail than the other ones and I think it necessitates it. I don’t want to do so much research that nothing is a surprise and I know what to expect around every corner, but I also don’t want to get myself into situations that a little bit of planning could have kept me out of. I only read blogs of hikers that I have hiked with and want to give a shout out to Honey Buns, Knock and Cheesebeard who gave me a lot of solid advice about the trail.
What about the Grizzly bears?
-Wait, there are going to be Grizzlies on this trail? Hmmmm, this wasn’t thought out very well.