000 Anneliese’s Continental Divide Trail Pages Page Six - Today’s Date is 7 June 2002

My CDT Hike 2002

June 5, 2002 - Ski Resorts Galore 00 Campy got up early but I chose to stay in bed 'til almost 6:30 AM. We packed the truck again. This time it was just Campy and me. We left the house about 9 AM and headed north on Route 25 to 470 west and then connected with 70 west. According to the guide book we would take Exit 205 and then travel 6 miles south on US 9 to the Gold Hill trailhead for the 13.1-mile hike to Copper Mountain. Instead I opted to drive back on 9 to the Dillon Ranger Station north of I-70 in Silverthorne and hike from there via the bikepath along Dam- and Summit Roads to the Gold Hill trailhead. The friendly volunteer at the ranger station had given me a free area map and I left the parking lot at 12:30 PM. The hike was relatively pleasant and the many mountain bikers were very courteous. The temperature at a local bank showed 67 degrees and it was a lovely sunny day. I'm not sure of the mileage I hiked but my guess is approximately 12 miles. Campy was getting worried as I didn't make it to the truck 'til 5 PM. We opted to have dinner at the Dam Brewpub and had a very pleasant meal with a pint of beer. We are (as I write this) spending the night in a Forest Service campground at Dillon Reservoir. The place is pretty empty and very peaceful.

June 6 - White Poodle in the Snow 00 We arrived at the Gold Hill trailhead off Rte 9 at 7:30 AM. The temperature (measured on my little thermometer-tag) was 32 degrees, but the sun was out and it promised to be another beautiul day. Campy took the usual photo of me before my departure. The trail went steadily uphill with a view of Grays and Torrey at a clearing. At one point a waist-high poodle appeared in front of me. Shortly thereafter her owner came toward me assuring me her dog was harmless. We exchanged pleasantries and I learned that they have lived in the area since the 60s. The trail was routed through lodgepole forest and some of the trees had been logged. As I continued my upward climb, patches of snow began to appear. The higher I got the bigger the patches got. Eventually, before a saddle, I was post-holing for a good distance. Even after crossing the first saddle there were numerous snowbanks to cross. The views now were pretty spectacular. There was Dillon Reservoir and Breckenridge, surrounded by the magical world of the Colorado mountains. As I crossed the next saddle the wind picked up and I stopped at a large cairn to put on a fleece hat and jacket. Now the trail started a lengthy downward traverse over tundra. Finally, a steep trail led again to forest. At a trail junction I saw a hiker study the map and guidebook. He turned out to be a Colorado Trail hiker named Matt. We chatted shortly but since I was already overdue to meet with Campy I continued my downhill trott. Finally, at 3:30 PM, I was at Campy's truck and the end of Segment 19 - eight hours to do 13.1 miles. I then hiked the 1 1/2 miles through Copper Mountain Ski Resort to find the trail for tomorrow's hike before ending my hiking day. We thern drove south on 91 and found a campsite on a steep hillside road. Campy fixed a nice dinner and I am really stuffed as this is being written; it's cold already and I think I might go to bed early.

June 7 - David and Genevieve from Australia 00 After a good night's sleep and breakfast Campy drove me back to Copper Mountain Resort to continue my southward trek on the CDT. At mile 1.5 I saw three people next to a truck and a backpack. I stopped to find out if they were CDT hikers and indeed they were. Segment 20 was their starting point and they were from Australia. Their names were David and "Gen" (for Genevieve) and they planned to hike to Cumbres Pass. I proceeded hiking knowing fully well that we would see each other again. We ended up hiking together for a good part of the day. The trail started out with a gradual climb along a melodic creek and, just like yesterday, snow patches began to appear as we gained elevation. Quite experienced now, we knew when to walk around these barriers and when to cross them cautiously. Before Searle Pass we had to cross a snowfield in a gully and we sank to the crotch in the snow. There was a picturesque hut visible from the trail and I hope the photo turns out. At Searle Pass we broke for lunch and a marmot came close to check us out. The scenery was spectacular and a long traverse to Kokomo Pass (12,022 feet) followed. It was a day of jackets on and off. Laboring uphill requires a lot of energy and warms the body and then at the top it is windy and one gets chilled quickly. As we came down off the pass David spotted a lovely campsite. We were right at the edge of timberline. It was a Million Dollar view at that location. David and Gen made camp and I wasn't sure but thought I should push on a few more miles. At 4:30 PM I decided to go on. In the meantime we had met a CDTA trail crew that was going to build trail on a lower segment of this section. There were about eight of them from all over the U.S. We also met two Colorado Trail hikers who had followed our tracks all day. They too had started the day before at Gold Hill Trailhead. I hiked down to Camp Hale and probably hiked about 16 miles today. I camped right next to the trail hidden by some small pine trees.

June 8 - Tennessee Pass (10,224 ft) 00 Up early as usual and I was hiking by 6:30 AM. I had shorts on and during the first 45 minutes my legs were freezing. A robin perched on the top of a Colorado Trail sign bid me a good day! It was another Colorado blue-sky day. The trail was level for a bit and then climbed most of the way to the crossing of Hwy 24. I arrived at the trail crossing parking lot at 8:30 AM, having taken a break earlier at a bench made of two logs which were cut in half - it was dated "1992". There also was a post indicating that this segment was maintained by former FBI/NASA employees. Yesterday I saw a plaque on a slab of rock beside the trail coming down from Kokomo Pass which was in the memory of a trail worker. At 12:30 PM Campy pulled up at the Tennessee Pass area and I was very glad to see him. He had cooked up chicken and vegetables and I eagerly devouted a good bit of it.l Now I had to re-pack and while doing so David and Jen showed up. It's now almost 8:30 PM as I write this and I'm in my sleeping bag in my REI Clipper tent on top of the world. After a steep climb I reached this beautiful saddle with a pond and a lake and good camping in the bordering alpine fir forest at 11,480 feet. From my tent I have not only a view of the pond but a massive cirque with a sizeable cornice along the entire ridge line. The buttercups which are in full bloom in lower elevations are past their prime here. Instead, heather is starting to bloom. The birds are chirping and singing and darkness is beginning to fall. I hiked 14.7 miles today.

June 9 - Lost in the Wilderness 00 I got up early and saw the first rays of sun touch the ridgeline. There was a faint red hue east. I was ready to hike at 6:00 AM to meet Campy at Turquoise Lake parking lot by 8 AM. Little did I know what was in store for me today! After a little bit of downhill the trail started climbing up and up and up to 11,865 feet. Again there were patches of snow covering the trail and one very large snowbank near the top of the ridge. I now followed a descent to a temporary exit of the Holy Cross Wilderness at a road. Then quickly the trail ducked back into wilderness. At these two junctions was the very first wooden US Forest Service CDT sign along with a similar wooden Colorado Trail marker. Continuing merrily along the trail I noted a nice lake on my left. But now, suddenly amongst boulders the trail seemed to have disappeared. I crossed a huge boulder field precariously along the lake, and I seemed to pick up the trail thereafter but only to have it disappear again. I came to what I thought might be the outlet of Galen Lake, and again picked up the trail. I even saw footprints in the snow, but then there was another dead end. There were remnants of what appeared to be a former log home, but no trail markers. I decided to backtrack, having consulted my trusty Trails Illustrated topo map, and I even bushwhacked a number of times in the direction where the trail should be. I told myself to stay calm and I kept wandering through the forest, sometimes stumbling onto moose droppings and animal trails. At one point I even saw a post in the middle of a marshy meadow, but still no trail. So I decided to head southeast, and believe it or not, I stumbled onto an old road. Now I felt a little better and I just followed the road until there were powerlines which are mentioned in the trail guide. The road came out to a paved road which had to be the road around Turquoise Lake. The only problem was, I didn't know where on that road I was. The first car that came along I flagged down, and determined I was heading away from the trailhead. So I did a "180" and trotted off in the other direction. The next car coming my direction I flagged down and asked for a ride to the trailhead. I explained that someone had been waiting there for me since 8 AM. It turned out to be a long drive, but after five minutes I saw Campy's truck going the opposite way - it was just too late to flag him down, so I just got a ride to the trailhead. The people who gave me the ride were from Colorado Springs and, along with their two young daughters, were planning on a dayhike to Timberline Lake. I took my stuff out of their car, thanked them for the ride, and - Halleluja - Campy pulled up! All's well that ends well! I was delighted to see him. Earlier, I truly had visions of having a search party look for me and have my Colorado rescue pass pay for itself. I do hope I don't have to make use or get the benefit of having purchased it at any time in the future. We drove into Leadville and had a good lunch at a restaurant in town. Afterwards we drove back to the lake and got a campsite at Baby Doe Campground. In spite of most sites being reserved, we had a fairly decent one with a distant view of the lake. The bathrooms even have flush toilets and running water, which I took advantage of. Life is good and I am so lucky in so many ways. Thank you God for looking after me.

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