Day 060 - Continental Divide Trail - Bobtail Creek to Berthoud Pass

Day: 060

Date: Friday, 05 July 2024

Start:  Bobtail Creek

Finish:  Berthoud Pass (but staying in Winter Park)

Daily Kilometres:  28.3

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1758.4

Weather:  Cold early, then cool and sunny with a strong cold wind above the treeline.

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Pop tarts/Muesli

  Lunch:  Snacks

  Dinner:  Burger & fries, thick shakes.

Aches:  Dave - the usual niggles; Julie - sore ribs after slipping on a rock crossing a small creek and falling onto another rock and partially into the creek.  The situation was not helped by Dave rushing to help her and slipping on the same rock and falling on top of her, pack and all.

Highlight:  Nothing in particular.

Lowlight:  The first few hours hiking were tough.  It was very cold, with ice on the puddles and frost on the undergrowth.  Our boots/shoes and socks were still wet from yesterday's ford and we had to ford another freezing creek (calf deep) soon after starting.  We both had frozen hands and feet and the trail was often hard to discern, further dampening our mood.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We were hiking by 6am on a very cold morning and the first few hours, as we followed Bobtail Creek downstream, were very cold and it was pretty miserable (see above).

After about 90 minutes, and still very cold, we reached a forest road that we followed steeply switch-backing uphill, climbing 2000’ in 3 miles (5km) to Jones Pass (12460’) where we rejoined the official CDT.  We stopped there for a breakfast break sheltering from the cold wind and next to a snowbank.  Suddenly we heard a swishing sound and a young guy snowboarded past us on the snow, followed by another.  They must have driven up the forest road on the other side of the snowbank, which blocked the road, to get to their snow.  They must have been keen.

We were now well above the treeline and followed a ridge in the bitterly cold and strong wind into the Vasquez Peak Wilderness.  The views were just awesome, surrounded by snowy peaks and mountain ranges, not to mention the wildflower-carpeted meadows we were crossing.  We reached our highest point so far, 12738’, along the way, and had to negotiate some small snowfields.

Although we dropped back down into the forest around lunchtime, high above the Henderson Mine (molybdenum) which we could hear, we climbed back above the treeline after lunch,  After crossing Stanley Mountain (12499’), we stayed high in the strong wind, sometimes being literally blown off the track.  And it was cold!

Eventually we began to descend and reached Berthoud Gap and Hwy 40 around 4:30pm.  We began hitching and soon got a lift from a chatty local down to Winter Park and our motel.

We checked in with the friendly proprietor, showered and then Julie went and bought some takeout for dinner.

Day 059 - Continental Divide Trail - Dillon to Bobtail Creek

Day: 059

Date: Thursday, 04 July 2024

Start:  Dillon

Finish:  Bobtail Creek

Daily Kilometres:  28.8

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1730.1

Weather:  Cool to mild and sunny.

Accommodation:  Tent

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Motel Continental breakfast.

  Lunch:  Turkey & cheese subs

  Dinner:  Snacks

Aches:  Dave - the usual niggles; Julie - nothing reported.

Highlight:  Nothing in particular.

Lowlight:  Dave woke to the distressing news that one of his best friends, dating from nearly 50 years ago, was in palliative care in a London hospital with end-stage cancer.  It tinged the day with great sadness.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We had a slow start to the day and it was 8am before we left our motel to begin hiking.  We have now joined the Silverthorne Cut-Off Alternate and the climb out of town was steep.

Initially, we followed the Ptarmigan Peak trail, which was obviously a popular local trail, and we met a lot of day hikers, some dressed in Americana garb given it was July 4th.

Our path diverged from theirs after three hours on the shoulder of Ptarmigan Peak at around 11900’ and above the treeline, and we made our way towards Ptarmigan Pass with truly spectacular views in many directions.  The trail was now more of a “route” than a trail as we crossed the high wildflower-bespeckled moorland looking for the cairns that marked the way.  In places it was difficult to work out where we were supposed to go and that cost some time.

Once through Ptarmigan Pass (11781’), the trail continued to be difficult to follow and the descent to the Williams Fork Creek was also rocky and slow.  Immediately after fording the creek, we began a long climb to back above the treeline through pine forest on slow trail, made even slower by many blown down trees that took time and energy to climb over or go around.  By now it was becoming obvious that we weren't going to get as far today as originally hoped.

Once above the treeline again, we had a whole new range of spectacular alpine mountain views and many photos were taken.  We stayed above the treeline for the rest of the afternoon following faint trail and cairns along a ridge line, dodging snow in places, generally around 12000’.  It was often hard to work out the route and we made several navigational errors that cost a lot of time and energy when we were ready for the day to be over.

Eventually, around 6:30pm, we crested out last pass for the day and began a long descent.  At 8pm, we found a tent site amongst some trees and close to a stream and called it a day.  Given the late hour, and knowing we will be in a town tomorrow night, we just had snacks for dinner and went to bed without our usual wash.

Day 058 - Continental Divide Trail - Officers Gulch to Dillon

Day: 058

Date: Wednesday, 03 July 2024

Start:  Officers Gulch 

Finish:  Dillon

Daily Kilometres:  17.3

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1701.3

Weather:  Cold and clear early, then sunny and warm.

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Breakfast burritos

  Lunch:  Nachos/Toasted chicken ranch sub

  Dinner:  Hamburgers & fries, cheesecake & icecream.

Aches:  Nothing reported.

Highlight:  Having an unplanned (two days ago) easy day of low kilometres and relatively flat interesting and scenic walking.  (We only became aware of an “alternate” route following bike paths two days ago that saved time and effort.)

Lowlight:  Nothing in particular.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We both had a fairly sleepless night.  The nearby I-70 freeway was very busy all night, especially with 18-wheelers using their engine brakes down the hill.  Consequently, we were both ready to go when the alarm went off and were hiking by 6am.

It was a very cold morning with an icy breeze and the bike path we continued to follow was in the shade of the high surrounding mountains for the first hour.  However, the cold also kept bike path users in bed and we had the path to ourselves.  The mountain gorge scenery, with the rushing Tenmile Creek beside us, kept us interested and the time passed quickly.

By 7:30am we were walking down the main street of the attractive little town of Frisco.  Early risers were hitting the cafes and city workers were preparing for a 4th of July parade tomorrow morning.  American flags were everywhere.

On the other side of town we stopped in at a Taco Belle for breakfast before joining another bike path that followed the western shore of the beautiful Dillon Reservoir, alive with boaters and backed by partly snow-covered mountains.  It was now warm and sunny and the path was very busy with cyclists and walkers.  Being a holiday week, no doubt many of them were vacationers.  It was good to see so many people out enjoying themselves.

After crossing the reservoir wall, we descended into the busy little town of Dillon where we had booked a motel room.  Even though it was only 11:30am, and check-in time was 4pm, we tried our luck, presenting as two tired hikers badly in need of a shower, and the friendly receptionist found us a room.  We were very happy.

After showers and some handwashing of clothes, we went to a nearby cafe for lunch and then did a small amount of shopping.  Given it's only two days to our next town, we didn't need much.

Back at the motel we had a quiet afternoon before getting take-out dinner and having an early night.

Day 057 - Continental Divide Trail - Jones Gulch to Officers Gulch.

Day: 057

Date: Tuesday, 02 July 2024

Start:  Jones Gulch 

Finish:  Officers Gulch

Daily Kilometres:  37.0

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1684.0

Weather:  Cold and foggy early, clearing to a cool/mild and mostly sunny day.

Accommodation:  Tent

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Pop tarts/Muesli

  Lunch:  Snacks

  Dinner:  Egg salad sandwich/ Chicken salad sandwich, chips.

Aches:  Dave - the usual niggles; Julie - nothing reported.

Highlight:  After a long climb in fog through soggy meadows and damp forest, the fog dissipated and the sun appeared just as we emerged above the treeline for the last couple of kilometres to Kokymo Pass (12024’).  We then had eight kilometres of beautiful views in many directions as we crossed two more high points, Elk Ridge (12281’) and Searle Pass (12045’), without dropping below 11900’.  It was superb walking.

Lowlight:  Nothing in particular.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

A mighty thunderstorm interrupted our sleep in the small hours with vividly bright lightning and thunder which shook the ground beneath our sleeping bags.  We were glad we were camped at a relatively low altitude (9700’) and deep in the forest.

By the time we woke at 5am, the rain had stopped and the tent was relatively dry.  We were hiking by soon after 6am on a cold dank overcast morning, first along a forest road, but then through very wet undergrowth before we began our foggy climb to Kokymo Pass.  We stopped for a breakfast break at the alpine treeline and the fog kindly disappeared for the last part of our ascent.  We then stayed well above the treeline for 8km, enjoying expansive crystal-clear views.

The early afternoon comprised a gradual descent through pretty pine forest and alongside Guller Creek before we reached the back of the Copper Mountain ski resort.  We then descended through the ski fields into the busy village and made our way to a gas station where we bought drinks and an icecream plus sandwiches and chips for dinner.

We saw a lot of hikers during the day, most hiking some, or all, of the Colorado Trail.  We even saw a couple of fully-loaded mountain bikers doing the same trail.  That would be a tough gig!  

Our most memorable encounter was with a hiker we had got to know on the Appalachian Trail last year.  Julie was quick to recognize him and we had a good chat.

At Copper Mountain, we chose to leave the CDT and follow the Vail-Frisco Recreation Path as an alternate we had read about in our navigation app.  The path follows Tenmile Creek downstream through a spectacular gorge which, unfortunately, is also the route of the noisy Interstate 70 Highway.

We chose this route because it saves us some time tomorrow and is relatively flat.  We will rejoin the CDT in a couple of days.  The CDT is known as a make-your-own adventure trail, with many alternate route opportunities.  Our goal is to walk a continuous path from Mexico to Canada, using the official CDT most of the way (nobody hikes the exact CDT the whole way), but to use alternates where it makes sense for safety or time-saving reasons.  Dave's original schedule had us reaching the Canadian border at Chief Mountain in mid-October, but we know that border crossing closes for the winter on 30 September, so we would like to get there by then.  So far we have made up about ten days on the schedule, but need to make up about another week if possible.

After following the recreation path for about an hour from Copper Mountain, we found a spot to camp between the creek and the highway at 6pm, where we think we will not be easily seen.  With the highway so close, it's going to be a noisy night.

Day 056 - Continental Divide Trail - Bald Eagle Mountain to Jones Gulch

Day: 056

Date: Monday, 01 July 2024

Start:  Bald Eagle Mountain

Finish:  Jones Gulch

Daily Kilometres:  34.3

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1647.0

Weather:  Cold and rainy morning, warmer and partly cloudy in the afternoon.

Accommodation:  Tent

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Pop tarts/ Muesli 

  Lunch:  Snacks

  Dinner:  Rehydrated meals 

Aches:  Dave - the usual niggles and a sore back; Julie - nothing reported.

Highlight:  Nothing in particular.

Lowlight:  It rained a lot overnight and started raining again while we were packing up this morning, meaning that everything got a bit damp and the tent was quite wet.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

The alarm went off at 5am, but it was raining quite steadily so we gave ourselves an extra 30 minutes sleep in the hope the rain would stop.  It had stopped by the time we emerged from our tent at 6am, but started again soon afterwards and it was miserable packing up.

When we started hiking at 6:30am, the trail was wet and boggy and the vegetation also wet.  Disappointingly, the trail was not as easy as yesterday, with lots of rocks, and our progress was slow.  It was hard to be enthusiastic in the miserable conditions, and it stayed that way for most of the morning as we passed through pine forest in the Holy Cross Wilderness and climbed over two passes at around 11500’, the second of which had some snow to negotiate, but nothing dangerous.  The views continued to be spectacular with some very rugged peaks near the trail, and a number of alpine ponds.

The weather cleared up a bit in the afternoon, with occasional sun, but also the occasional light shower, and our mood lifted a little.  We met quite a few overnight hikers today, most also complaining about the morning’s weather, and a couple of trail-runners.

Late in the day, we took a short roadwalk alternate that went past an old service station where someone maintained a cupboard with drinks and snacks for passing hikers and cyclists, and we had our last break for the day, grateful for the generosity.

Around 6:30pm, we found a very nice campsite by the trail and managed to dry out the tent while we had dinner by the light of the setting sun.  As per usual, it seems, not long after we went to bed a thunderstorm came through accompanied by heavy rain.  Looks like a wet tent again in the morning.

Day 055 - Continental Divide Trail - Twin Lakes to Bald Eagle Mountain

Day: 055

Date: Sunday, 30 June 2024

Start:  Twin Lakes

Finish:  Bald Eagle Mountain

Daily Kilometres:  28.4

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1612.7

Weather:  Warm and sunny in the morning, partly cloudy with a thunderstorm and occasional showers in the afternoon and evening.

Accommodation:  Tent

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Omelettes, hash browns & toast

  Lunch:  Meat & cheese subs

  Dinner:  Rehydrated meals.

Aches:  Dave - the usual niggles; Julie - nothing reported.

Highlight: Nothing in particular.

Lowlight:  Hordes of mosquitoes at our evening campsite.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

After breakfast at a diner in Leadville, Fraser and Annalisse (Dave's nephew and his partner) drove us back to Twin Lakes and joined us for the first 7km or so of the day's hiking.  Although mostly uphill, it was generally along nice trail through pleasant pine forest with a few views as we chatted amongst ourselves.

After saying our goodbyes to Fraser and Annalisse, who were going to jog back to their car and then return home to Denver, we continued northwards on the CDT.

Most of our day was spent on undulating and well-maintained trail through pine, and occasionally aspen, forest between l0000’ and 11300’.  Sometimes there were views to the east where, later in the day, we could see Leadville, where we had stayed last night.

Being a Sunday, there were quite a few trail-runners and day-hikers along the trail, but we also had long stretches to ourselves.

Around 6:45pm we stopped in a clearing by a stream and set up camp.  The mosquitoes were horrendous and we finished our chores and meal as quickly as we could so we could get in the tent.  Our timing was good, because 15 minutes later a thunderstorm came through with very heavy rain.

We passed 1000 miles today.

Day 054 - Granite Mountain to Twin Lakes

Day: 054

Date: Saturday, 29 June 2024

Start:  Granite Mountain 

Finish:  Twin Lakes (but staying in Leadville)

Daily Kilometres:  26.6

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1584.3

Weather:  Cold early then warm and mostly sunny later.

Accommodation:  Rental apartment

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Pop tarts 

  Lunch:  Snacka

  Dinner:  Pork steaks, macaroni cheese & salad, apple crumble & icecream.

Aches:  Dave - very tired and the usual niggles; Julie - nothing reported.

Highlight:  Reaching the top of Hope Pass (12532’) after a tortuously steep ascent of 2500’ in 4km.  Along the way we saw many trail runners and learned that the trail over this pass is part of the famous Leadville 100 Mile trail race which is on in a few weeks.  Reaching the top was not only an accomplishment.  We had fantastic views over the Collegiate Peaks and, in the other direction, down to Twin Lakes.

Lowlight:  Julie lost her sunglasses somewhere along the trail today.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

It rained lightly a lot overnight, but it had cleared by daylight and we packed up a reasonably dry tent and were on our way by 6:10am.  The first couple of hours were beautiful hiking as we followed Clear Creek downstream through the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness.  Lovely quiet conifer forest, meadows and marshes and the rushing creek to our right, backed by towering rocky partially snow-covered mountains.

After about three hours we turned away from Clear Creek and began the steep ascent to Hope Pass (see above).  Dave found it very tough and there were plenty of short breaks to catch breath.  We continued to see trail runners along with day hikers.

At the top of the Pass we spent a few minutes admiring the view before beginning a not-quite-so-steep, but long descent to a trailhead followed by a 3km road walk into the hamlet of Twin Lakes where, arriving around 3:30pm, we met Dave's nephew, Fraser, and his partner, Annalisse, who had driven 2.5 hours from Denver, where they live, to meet us.  They then drove us to an apartment we had rented for the night in Leadville.  It was great to catch up with them and we appreciated the dinner they cooked for us, along with interesting conversations about their lives in the US and our hike.