This trail has been the most challenging logistical adventure we have ever been on and I’m happy to say that our first “finish” on the trail is complete. -we have three parts on this trail. Part one = the northern terminus in Waterton Village, Canada. Part two = finishing the … Continue reading
What a trip! Time and miles are flying by, here are some highlights: -Since our trail angels Zippers and Amy showered us with amazing food and kindness in Helena we have been back hiking with Tatu Joe and Raisins(Shin), the two guys we started with. They got ahead on the … Continue reading
It’s been nearly 6 weeks since I stepped back on the trail after a week off where I quit the trail for good (sort of). In that time, we’ve covered over 1,200 miles from Steamboat Springs, CO to Helena, MT. We’ve crouched down near the top of a mountain during … Continue reading
Weighing in at almost 1,000 miles of the 3,018 total trail miles, Montana is one big state. We’ve been pleasantly surprised by the state of Montana and after spending three weeks here, we still have almost two weeks left. Lucky for us, hundreds of miles of new tread have been … Continue reading
Is it Idaho or Montana? Which state are we in? Where the hell are we? These are thoughts I have been having daily while in the vast, desolate, high mountain landscapes of the CDT that have dominated much of our hiking since leaving Wyoming last week. Did you know that much of the … Continue reading
It’s that time again, when we go comparing trails. Now that we’ve at least walked in all the states along the CDT, I would say it’s fair for us to give a little insight to the uniqueness of this trail by comparing it to others. I will probably miss some … Continue reading
We actually ran into someone from normal home life while walking the CDT last week. I’m not referring to our AT friend Zippers that totally hooked us up while we were in Yellowstone but someone we used to run with back in the Vancouver days. Amazingly, our friend Alex Asai … Continue reading
While we’ve hiked in bear country before, it’s always been black bear country, and at the time that seemed scary enough. Now that we are in grizzly bear territory black bears seem more like pesky critters compared to the grizz. They’re the talk of the trail amongst hikers and definitely a … Continue reading
Oh my gosh, we got the hookup in Yellowstone National Park. For those familiar with Julie’s AT book, we met up with Zippers and her friend Amy last night right next to the big geyser Old Faithful. And they arrived with a veritable feast! We have been playing tag over … Continue reading
After the craziness of the Great Divide Basin it was on to a section of trail rumored to be one of the best on the entire trail, and it did not disappoint. Shortly after South Pass City we entered a section of Wyoming known as the Winds – it actually … Continue reading
My brother’s email said, “Welcome to Wyoming! I remember when I was little I always wanted to live there until we drove through it once on a road trip. I recall there being a lot of random fences – possibly wind blocks?” And with that we came down from the … Continue reading
We have been severely lacking in posts lately and it’s part laziness, part technology. For the entire state of Wyoming, we had a cell signal 3 times and went from the southern border to the northern one without any real town stops. In the middle of that cell tower-less stretch, … Continue reading
We’re nearly half way through the trail and need to give thanks. First, family, thank you for the constant support. With this, we feel as if we can take on any challenge. Mom, thanks for being our super resupplier and Rocket Cop and Jess, thanks for taking over the duty … Continue reading
I’ve heard the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Ehem, I think I may fit that definition. This may sound crazy, and it possibly is, but I’m getting back on the trail at Steamboat Springs. Yes, I’ve missed the last … Continue reading
While the switch to solo hiking has certainly been a huge challenge of its own, the actual hiking from my first week alone is well worth mentioning. To start, within 30 minutes of waking alone I was hailed on. Big hail, the kind that hurts the head and neck. I … Continue reading
Life on the trail alone is so different. These past three days without Julie have felt almost as if a piece of me has been missing. For perspective, we have walked over 6000 miles together. We know each other so well and our hiking and camping routines can happen without … Continue reading
This is a story of victory. It is a sad story yet has a happy ending. This is the story of my last day on the CDT and my reasons for quitting the trail. I have struggled with thru-hikes in the past, wavering in motivation to stay on the trail, … Continue reading
If you have been following our adventures for even a short time, you know by now that we get a lot of help from friends, family, and strangers. That was the case when we entered the town of Chama, NM on Day 30 and discovered that we weren’t leaving town … Continue reading
We first saw the huge smoke plumes a day or two before Chama, huge, mushroom cloud-like plumes coming up over a nearby ridge. The optimist in me wanted to believe it was just a strange cloud but we both knew it was likely the fires we’d been hearing about, we … Continue reading
This story is a bit old but still memorable. Our last full day before Chama and the fire fiasco was filled with huge herds of animals. While we’ve seen plenty of animals this day was unique and special. First were the elk, probably a herd of at least 100! And … Continue reading
We bushwhacked twice in two days, the type where we are literally getting stuck in thick brush getting claustrophobic from being held in place by ridiculously overgrown plants. Were we on trail? Was there a trail? We weren’t sure but we knew something had to change. Even on our fourth thru hike … Continue reading
After nearly 640 miles, we saw our first flowing water source on the trail and it was even in New Mexico. About 9 miles out from Cuba, we almost couldn’t believe our eyes or our ears as we saw the rushing water. It was beautiful. We also found ourselves gaining … Continue reading
Cuba was definitely our first really good, legit trail town stop of the trip, and we loved it. Not that our other town stops weren’t good (Quemado hospitality was tops Tom and April!), but Cuba felt like trail town time for us.After a short day of 18, we were in town … Continue reading
After 24 days on the trail, I have had enough wildlife experiences to last the entire trail. It’s not that I don’t like wildlife, but I have a huge fear of anything or anyone I cannot accurately communicate with. I can’t say to the mama bear, “Don’t worry mama bear, … Continue reading
We’re back in the wilderness, in between Grants and Cuba, and we’re both a little tired, both a little worn down. Nothing special, just miles and some monotony catching up with us. We’re three weeks in and the day to day of the trail life is really real now, the good … Continue reading
After our refreshingly awesome stay in Quemado followed by our caching of water with Tom on Sunday morning we were on the trail again, except what came next was our longest road walk ever, 41 miles, primarily paved with a little bit of gravel at the beginning. We had our first … Continue reading
The morning into Quemado started at 3:30am. We had 13 miles to walk, 8 to hitch to town, and a 10:30am post office closing time. After getting to the road to town at 8am, we stuck out our thumbs and watched at least 20 cars pass. A hitch didn’t look … Continue reading
The Black Range of NM on the CDT, the first real deviation we had from the normal CDT hiker (as if there are many of those to begin with), and our next big challenge on this year’s hike. The low-down: longer route, more remote route, less traveled route, and part of … Continue reading
Woke up on wrong side of the tent. Lost a contact lens (later found) and in my worried search I disobeyed my urge to poop. I didn’t get out in time, got a little in my nice Pategonia pants, and then managed to then pee on the pants while squatting … Continue reading
We knew going into the hike that one of our most difficult hitches would be to the town of Winston, NM. It was a 24 mile trip into a tiny town and the trail did not cross a well traveled road. What we didn’t know was just how interesting the … Continue reading
We are totally in bear country and the bear poop that litters the trail highway is getting to be ridiculously big and way too frequent. While we didn’t see any bears today, we definitely know they’re nearby and by the size of their loads, they must be the biggest black … Continue reading
We’re 195 miles into the CDT and over the past 180 miles we’ve seen zero hikers on the trail. In fact, we haven’t seen anyone on the trail period. No bikers, other campers, etc. No one. Yet this morning we saw two black bears within one hour! Thankfully they both ran … Continue reading
After a rough start, today, day 5 was a gem. Here are some thoughts from the past couple days. Lourdsburg experience: Our first town stop yesterday was short and sweet. We had a short list and the Family Dollar store fit the bill. More sunscreen, Gatorade mix, and neosporin. They … Continue reading
We are around 90 miles into the CDT and we have been worked. I’m writing from my tent so I am going to be brief. We have done big miles so far partially because it is our thing but also out of necessity. It is brutally hot out here. Not … Continue reading
Our plane to the Continental Divide Trail takes off tomorrow morning and thus kicks off our next big adventure, a thru hike of the 3018 mile CDT. This trip has been on the radar for years and after much preparation we’re excited that the adventure has finally arrived. The trail … Continue reading
What do we eat while living in the mountains for over three months at a time? How do we do the vegan thing while living the trail life? These and more, answered in this final edition of our “Trail Geek Eyes Only” series of CDT trail preparations. As discussed in … Continue reading
While Matt’s race report is titled, “I Didn’t Walk,” my race report speaks of another victory, perhaps not as admirable as running a fast time in addition to running the entire course, but just as important in races such as ultramarathons. To sum up this past weekend’s Ice Age 50 … Continue reading
My biggest accomplishment at the Ice Age 50 mile race this past weekend was that I ran the entire 50 mile race without walking. There are other aspects of the race that I’m happy about as well, but in my progression as an ultra runner, this feat of continuing to … Continue reading
A whole new world! That is how we can describe CDT prep relative to all our other hikes when it comes to maps and technology, maps from necessity and technology from personal objectives. Both are new realms for us when it comes to hiking, both areas have required lots of … Continue reading
We’re strolling into this dusty little town after some time in the mountains. We pick up our box of dehydrated food from the post office, we pack up our backpacks, and then town hunger strikes. We look to our left, we look to our right – that’s about all the … Continue reading
Another major planning item for our 2013 CDT thru hike has been planning our resupply strategy. We have decided to send ourselves food for the entire trail so we are not reliant on stores along the way for obtaining food. First, we want to make sure we’re eating reasonably healthy … Continue reading
This is it, my last few weeks of training prior to switching from running to walking. With our upcoming 100+ day hike of the CDT on the horizon, I have only one more race on 5/11 in Wisconsin to prepare for. After the WI race, I simply want to stay … Continue reading
Since we’ll be hiking the CDT this summer, I won’t be running or racing again until the Fall, which is fine by me. I’m looking forward to the break in running and hoping that the strength my legs get from hiking will be helpful for running later. Monday-Wednesday, 5/20-5/22 40 … Continue reading
After seven combined thru hikes between the two of us, and countless hours of trail talks about what we would do differently each time, we are now organized and hopefully better prepared. In our little “For Trail Geek Eyes Only” series, we’ll be covering the important CDT planning topics that … Continue reading
Along with some adventure books, I’ve also been reading some popular non-fiction as well and all three of my most recent reads have a tall order in common: tell a convincing, scientifically backed story that is readable for normal people – like me. They each succeed in varying degrees. In … Continue reading
Sometimes, despite great plans and dreaming, things don’t work out the way I envision them. Sometimes it’s out of my control and other times I quickly realize I could have done better to achieve what I set out to do. Either way, it’s time to write down this failure and … Continue reading
After working with Julie to self publish her two books, Between a Rock and a White Blaze and The Trail Life: How I Loved it, Hated it, and Learned from it, I finally dove in and checked up on some of the competition. Also, after paying seemingly ever-increasing Kindle prices … Continue reading
Looking back on our recent month in Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia, and the stories we’ve shared along the way, there are a few key points that continually rise to the surface. So here it is, the cream of our SE Asia travels: Activity based travel is currently our favorite … Continue reading
Three weeks into our journey here in Thailand, we started getting antsy. We’d been to the big city of Bangkok to sightsee, to the northern region near Chiang Mai to learn how to cook thai food, to the beaches of Koh Tao to earn our scuba certifications, and we were … Continue reading
While here in Thailand, we’ve realized that we like to be active participants of the local culture and highlights rather than passive viewers. The cooking school was a perfect fit for us because it allowed us to both learn and practice an important piece of thai culture. This explains how … Continue reading
