The cliffside houses at mile 0.7.
Snow from that big early-September storm lingered down to around 8000 feet.
Gudy's rest, at mile 17.4
The pack had only been moving for a half hour when it came to Gudy's Rest, but even still it needed a good long nap in the sun.
A tired hiker's shadow -- like Anubis with a hunchback and possibly a severe nutritional deficiency.
The pond/spring and wildlife watering trough at mile 16.9. The water's a little green and muddy.
After slogging through Taylor Lake valley, traversing the wet ruin left by ATVs where they've milled the trail into thick red paste, this segment is almost easy. The sliprock traverse isn't bad, certainly not when compared with other talus slopes you've handled by now. There were a dozen or so felled trees -- some perhaps newly fallen, but others were worn smooth and had been there for some time -- which would make biking this segment rather difficult, but otherwise the trail was smooth and clear.
Coming down off a long trail is a strange sensation. I found nostalgia rising at odd moments -- the realization that this was the last time I'd pass 10,000 feet, for example, or the last time I'd wash my socks with Colorado Trail river sand. There was a lingering kind of peace, the kind that comes with plenty of uninterrupted time in your own head, along with a determination to do something, anything, that didn't involve more darned walking. I swore a number of times that I'd had it with this hiking business -- a resolution which lasted about three weeks. And at the same time, part of me was planning what I'd need to pick up in town, in order to turn around and hit the trail again.
The CT foundation is coming out with a new guidebook this year, by the way. You should get it -- really. Whether you're an accomplished ultralighter or you've just been thinking about trying a long trail for a while, the CT is an amazing experience. It offers more remoteness and solitude than other famous trails, and passes through world-class terrain with incredible views, yet it's still an obtainable hike for a rank newbie like me. And, of course, the company and human encounters you will have on the trail are fantastic -- thanks to all the brave and bold hikers out there who offered encouragement or advice or a mud-streaked smile in a rainstorm. Wouldn't have made it without you.
Happy trails! I'll be seeing you outside. ;)
The waterfall at around mile 5.4
The guidebook falsely claims that, starting around mile 8.4, the trail follows an old road. Does this look like an old road to you? The actual road doesn't start until mile 11.2.
The middle of the three 'gates', now mainly broken.
Near the very end of the trail, the track is very lovely and very well-used, winding through thick young forests.
Made it!
It's obligatory to grin like an idiot and have your picture taken with this sign, by the way.
Suggested updates to the databook:
0.0
There's a large FS posting board now; the CT starts near it. You should be heading for the saddle to the ESE, *not* the prominant notch to the SE.
0.7
Take care to follow the CT to the left, here. The straight-ahead trail/road heads up to some interesting, but probably unsafe, old houses perched on a cliffside.
1.1
The talus slope here, 'The Sliprock', isn't so bad -- not compared with the other slopes you'll have crossed on this treck. The path is rather narrow, though -- just take your time.
2.4
This road (FS171) is probably the first flat place you've seen for two miles. Dry meadow camping is possible after you cross the road, a little further down the trail. Past this point, there were a dozen or so fallen trees across the trail, some quite old, requiring climbing or scrambling. Biking would be difficult.
4.0
Beware! Like the river Styx, this stream may cause forgetfulness! I think I left my camelbak here.
7.1
There are two nice campsites, just before the bridge here. Burn-able wood is rare, though, unless you're willing to use willow branches.
8-10
A very scenic, rather flat section of the trail, which meanders along at about 9000 feet. There was a great campsite up here at 8.4 (with camp furniture and firewood) and I found water running in three places near the beginning, middle, and end of this flat-ish couple of miles.
8.4
The 'old road' mentioned in the databook cannot be discerned, until you get to the place the trail tops out, at ~mile 11.2.
11.5
I could find neither water nor the promised campsite. But then, I didn't look very hard for either. The 'rocky trail' warning in the guidebook no longer really applies.
12-14
The trail/old road heads mainly down, passing several good campsites along the way. The terrain grows visibly dryer, with more scrub oak and sage.
14.4
The first of the three gates is chained permanently open, and is located just at the end of a talus field.
14.6
Left (uphill) at marked intersection.
14.8
THERE IS NO GATE HERE. Probably a databook misprint....
15.6
...because there is a gate here, just as you enter a stand of aspens. It is quite broken-down, however.
15.8
The last gate is just past the aspens. The actual gate part has been torn off and left nearby; there is no fence.
16.5
Begin to pass through tall copses of pines, scattered across the next mile.
16.9
There's a pond and trough here. The water isn't very clean, though -- see pic above.
17.2
After Gudy's rest, the trail heads down. The route past here is marked and fairly easy to follow. It's quite pretty, but without any real surprises. You'll probably have lots of company -- bikers, small children, morning walkers, etc. Camping past this point would be very difficult (probably very illegal, too,) but you can easily head left off the CT in this area, and find reasonably flat spots out of sight of the trail.
21.5
Congrats! Remember to take a picture!
The elevation profile for this segment is roughly correct, however, the area between mile 8.3 and 11.2 seemed much flatter than indicated on the elevation profile. This may have been because of my temperamental altimeter, or a minor reroute.
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