By: MARGA KELLOGG
Paul Longton will take the first step next week in a 3,100-mile journey that, when finished, will put him in company as rare as the air he’ll breathe along the way.Longton will be hiking the remote Continental Divide Trail, which stretches from the U.S.-Canada border in Montana through Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico. Across the 750-mile section in Colorado, the trail averages over 11,000 feet in elevation, with the highest point being Grays Peak at 14,270 feet.
The trek is attempted by only about 50 people a year — and finished by about half that many, said Josh Shusko, with the Continental Trail Divide Alliance, a nonprofit group formed in 1995 to assist federal land agencies in completing and maintaining the trail.
Longton, 58, said he aims to finish the hike by the end of October. The trail is particularly grueling because only 63 percent of it is complete, forcing hikers to pick their way through some remote and difficult terrain."The challenge of route-finding and more isolation" is part of the draw, said Longton, who works as an architect in Oceanside."Stepping back 150 years, (into) herds of wild horses, Mexican gray wolves — that’s a strong lure," he said. "The country’s more rugged and it’s harder to actually complete the hike."Longton and partner Nancy Imbertson will start the hike with Washington resident Derek Jackman, whom they met while hiking the 2,600-mile Pacific Crest Trail in 2004.Imbertson will return home when the trio reaches South Pass City, Wyo., 1,172 miles into the journey. Longton and Jackman will continue on from there.Horses and wolves aren’t the only wildlife in the remote wilderness along the trail, which ranges in ecosystems from tundra to desert."That’s grizzly country," Longton said of Montana and Wyoming, adding that he’ll be packing pepper spray in case of an attack.On Monday — the week before their June 21 departure — Longton and Imbertson were busy organizing "resupply" boxes, navigational equipment, ice axes and all manner of survival equipment in their Oceanside garage.Oatmeal is a staple, said Imbertson, 42, who works for a construction company in Encinitas.The first step in packing for the trip, she said, was to go to Costco and buy about $1,000 in bulk food.She and Longton then stuffed more than a dozen file boxes filled with things such as shrink-wrapped dried noodles, precooked bacon, vitamins and energy bars, which will be shipped ahead to various post offices along the route where the hikers can pick them up.Other supplies will be carried along the way, including six days’ worth of food, a couple of cooking pans, a small sterno can, clothes, a tent and sleeping bags. Each hiker will carry a pack weighing about 35 pounds.Imbertson, who is called Izzy on the trail, said she’s looking forward most to "getting started." Longton, known on the trail as Buzz, said he is excited about the physical challenge."You’re hiking at a calorie deficit," he said, adding that he expects to average between 25 and 30 miles a day and burn about 4,000 calories daily.The couple run and have hiked in the Torrey Pines area to prepare themselves. Longton says he runsÝabout five miles, four to five days a week."It’s wonderful to be in that kind of shape," Longton said. "I was in the infantry in Vietnam and no way was I in as good a shape then as I was at 55 doing the PCT (Pacific Crest Trail)."Imbertson said it takes about two weeks to leave the world behind. Completing the entire trail will take about 7 million steps."No wonder the shoes wear out," added Longton, who has packed six pairs for the trip. He hikes in New Balance 2001 running shoes and said he will likely go through five pairs."I tried various other trail shoes and after about 300 miles, they’re junk," he said.Longton and Imbertson said they decided to try long-distance hiking after a 2002 trip that took them through 110 miles of Yosemite back country."We thought, ‘We can do this,’" Longton said."The westward movement has always fascinated me," he continued. "The Oregon Trail, they weren’t able to mail themselves any boxes, there were threats. The sense of that continuous trail captures my imagination."And Longton said this trip won’t be his last — he intends to hike the Appalachian Trail and finish what hikers call the "triple crown.""The reality is, at 58 it takes a toll on the body. If you space them out every few years, chances are good and the Appalachian is probably the easiest of the three, the movie ‘Deliverance’ notwithstanding," he said with a laugh.
The trek is attempted by only about 50 people a year — and finished by about half that many, said Josh Shusko, with the Continental Trail Divide Alliance, a nonprofit group formed in 1995 to assist federal land agencies in completing and maintaining the trail.
Longton, 58, said he aims to finish the hike by the end of October. The trail is particularly grueling because only 63 percent of it is complete, forcing hikers to pick their way through some remote and difficult terrain."The challenge of route-finding and more isolation" is part of the draw, said Longton, who works as an architect in Oceanside."Stepping back 150 years, (into) herds of wild horses, Mexican gray wolves — that’s a strong lure," he said. "The country’s more rugged and it’s harder to actually complete the hike."Longton and partner Nancy Imbertson will start the hike with Washington resident Derek Jackman, whom they met while hiking the 2,600-mile Pacific Crest Trail in 2004.Imbertson will return home when the trio reaches South Pass City, Wyo., 1,172 miles into the journey. Longton and Jackman will continue on from there.Horses and wolves aren’t the only wildlife in the remote wilderness along the trail, which ranges in ecosystems from tundra to desert."That’s grizzly country," Longton said of Montana and Wyoming, adding that he’ll be packing pepper spray in case of an attack.On Monday — the week before their June 21 departure — Longton and Imbertson were busy organizing "resupply" boxes, navigational equipment, ice axes and all manner of survival equipment in their Oceanside garage.Oatmeal is a staple, said Imbertson, 42, who works for a construction company in Encinitas.The first step in packing for the trip, she said, was to go to Costco and buy about $1,000 in bulk food.She and Longton then stuffed more than a dozen file boxes filled with things such as shrink-wrapped dried noodles, precooked bacon, vitamins and energy bars, which will be shipped ahead to various post offices along the route where the hikers can pick them up.Other supplies will be carried along the way, including six days’ worth of food, a couple of cooking pans, a small sterno can, clothes, a tent and sleeping bags. Each hiker will carry a pack weighing about 35 pounds.Imbertson, who is called Izzy on the trail, said she’s looking forward most to "getting started." Longton, known on the trail as Buzz, said he is excited about the physical challenge."You’re hiking at a calorie deficit," he said, adding that he expects to average between 25 and 30 miles a day and burn about 4,000 calories daily.The couple run and have hiked in the Torrey Pines area to prepare themselves. Longton says he runsÝabout five miles, four to five days a week."It’s wonderful to be in that kind of shape," Longton said. "I was in the infantry in Vietnam and no way was I in as good a shape then as I was at 55 doing the PCT (Pacific Crest Trail)."Imbertson said it takes about two weeks to leave the world behind. Completing the entire trail will take about 7 million steps."No wonder the shoes wear out," added Longton, who has packed six pairs for the trip. He hikes in New Balance 2001 running shoes and said he will likely go through five pairs."I tried various other trail shoes and after about 300 miles, they’re junk," he said.Longton and Imbertson said they decided to try long-distance hiking after a 2002 trip that took them through 110 miles of Yosemite back country."We thought, ‘We can do this,’" Longton said."The westward movement has always fascinated me," he continued. "The Oregon Trail, they weren’t able to mail themselves any boxes, there were threats. The sense of that continuous trail captures my imagination."And Longton said this trip won’t be his last — he intends to hike the Appalachian Trail and finish what hikers call the "triple crown.""The reality is, at 58 it takes a toll on the body. If you space them out every few years, chances are good and the Appalachian is probably the easiest of the three, the movie ‘Deliverance’ notwithstanding," he said with a laugh.
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