I find myself feeling elated at the beauty and the light in the open woods where I can see off into the distance, and becoming irritable and sad in the woods that are overcrowded with thin trees and undergrowth.
Tag: Long Distance Hiking
AT Fall Color Hike: Katahdin & Baxter State Park
The ground is saturated, sometimes water running down the trail. It’s steamy, so humid. The forest slowly gives way to large granite boulders. High steps, scrambling, and a bit of hand over hand, until the mountain comes into view.
Hayduke – Willis Creek to Buckskin Gulch
After the Paria, we had a long road walk, following Willis Creek to higher elevations, with views of the Bryce … More
Hayduke – Burr Trail Rd to Hole in the Rock Rd
Reaching Burr Trail Road was a significant milestone for me. It’s hardly a quarter of the total distance of the … More
Hayduke – Poison Spring Canyon to Burr Trail Rd
It’s amazing the healing that can take place with two days of self-care and rest. Before Hanksville, my cracking chafing … More
Hayduke – Hite to Poison Spring Canyon
One thing that’s different for me on this route, is the long breaks, border-lining on neros, we’re taking on trail. … More
Hayduke – Needles to Hite
We left Needles Outpost with a plan for an alternate route of an alternate route, to avoid camping in Canyonlands. … More
Hayduke – Moab to Needles
It was a long drive across southern Utah. We set eleven food caches, every resupply between Moab to past the … More
HAYDUKE TRAIL Spring 2020
It’s official! I’ll be thru-hiking the Hayduke this spring! The Hayduke is an ~800 mile backcountry route that travels through six national park. Arches, Canyonlands, Capital Reef, Bryce Canyon, Grand Canyon, and Zion National Park. It also travels through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, in addition to several National Forests.
CDT 27: The Final Push
‘East Glacier, MT to Waterton, Canada’ I thought my last blog post for our final section was going to be … More
CDT 26: To Taste a Wild Blueberry
‘Benchmark to East Glacier’ We left Benchmark without a cloud in the sky. It was warm and our packs were … More
CDT 25: Vitamin J
‘Lincoln to Benchmark’ Ok, we’re tired. People ask us about the trail and our minds turn into a complete fog. … More
CDT 24: Knowing the Goodness of the Human Soul
‘Darby to Lincoln’ I turned off the news when I was seventeen years old, too much badness killing my soul—and … More
CDT 23: Blue Skies and Rainy Days with Friends
‘Leadore to Darby’ Arriving in Leadore, we chose to stay at the Leadore Inn. The New Owner, Sam, was very … More
CDT 22: Finding the Middle: Thinking About Quitting & Worrying about Finishing
There comes a point in the hike when we all start feeling the lows, the rush, the push, the fear … More
The Redheaded Nomad 