HIGHLIGHTS
-Miles traveled: 20.6
-Elevation gain/loss (in feet): 3,700/2900
-Item learned: Tassel-eared squirrels exist in Colorado; They are a frequent sighting in the first segments of the CT.
-Wildlife seen: 1 rattlesnake; 1 blue jay; many tassel-eared squirrels Oh big-horned sheep!
-Human Encounters: Brad (from OH; walking because he’s been cancer-free for over 5 years!)
-Low: all blisters; hole in my store
-Stop: Soak my feet in the South Platte River
TRAIL DIARY
I started at 7am in Waterton Canyon, after saying goodbye to Rocky and Reid. About halfway up the canyon, a female cyclist stopped to encourage me and ask if I planned to complete the entire Colorado Trail. My answer to this question is “That’s the goal, if the body allows it!” My first stop was at Bear Creek, very shallow; I packed 1 liter of dirty water from there, in case I needed more before reaching the South Platte River. (At the time, I didn’t know how many miles per liter I needed. Turns out my average is 1 liter for every 6 to 7 miles driven. further drink at least a liter of freshly filtered water every time I stop to filter).
I paused to take a photo with the northern terminus of the Colorado Trail!
The first 6 miles through Waterton Canyon are a well-maintained hiking and biking trail.
After leaving Waterton Canyon, the CT starts to look more like the Colorado hiking trails I’m used to.
An old trail marker assures me I’m on the right path.
At 1:30 pm, I arrived at the South Platte River (end of segment 1). For an hour and a half, I took a break in the shade of some small trees, drank 2 liters of water, filtered more, and soaked my feet, which were already blistered despite the extensive Leukotape spot treatments I started the hike with.
A foot bath in the cold South Platte River; Unfortunately, Leukotape wasn’t doing much to prevent blisters.
A block of cheese for lunch hit the spot!
At the river, I met my first CT hiking friend named Brad. We talk about where we come from, our motivations for traveling the CT, our backpacks, etc. Brad’s motivation is amazing: he has been cancer-free for over 5 years and wanted to celebrate by tackling this trail. How inspiring!
Hoping that the heat of the day had passed, I headed to Section 2 around 3pm. I knew the first part of this section was a burn scar, so the shadow would be minimal. Unfortunately, I didn’t time it right and ended up walking around this place during the hottest part of the day. I also carried food for 6 days and 5L of water; It was exhausting. My backpack was so heavy that it made me lose weight and I ended up falling once.
Walking across the segment 2 burn scar at the time of greatest heat; It’s not my brightest decision.
I covered about 4.5 miles in section 2 and called it a day. Unfortunately, I found a hole in the floor of my tent, which may have happened during my test walk; I repaired it with Gear Aid Tape. We’ll see if it holds up.
Day 1 camp
Brad also called it a day when he saw where I camped, so we camped together. It was nice not to have to spend the first night completely alone. I had dinner at Mountain House and went to bed at 8 p.m.
Today I hiked 20.6 miles (the longest mileage day for me, so far) with an incredibly heavy backpack: 6 days worth of food and, at one point, 5 liters of water. I really want to hydrate and not carry so much water tomorrow.
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