The Continental Divide goes north from Grand Lake, Colorado, through Rocky Mountain National Park and then arcs back south through the Never Summer Range. An earlier post explains the Park Service suggested route. From Grand Lake the trail climbs northwest gaining the Divide again at Bowen Pass.
By the time I reached the Pass, the wind was trying to knock me over. The trail was strung out along a border between Routt and Arapaho National Forests. The views at 12,000 feet were magnificent!
The second morning was spent following rock cairns straight up to the top of Parkview Mtn. where I could see most of Colorado. On the top was a Forest Service Communications building manned by a marmot. (Someone forgot to shut the door.) I wanted to shortcut a big dogleg around Troublesome Pass but decided to stay on the CDT and see where it led me. It led into Trouble! Unfortunately, I found two Troublesome passes (as if one were not bad enough). The first was designated by Arapaho NF. I knew it wasn’t the location I was looking for, so I bushwhacked west about a mile along the Divide until I came to the pass described in my Colorado CDT guidebook. It was late afternoon and, again, the wind was trying to rip me apart. I put my rain jacket on as a windbreaker, put my head into the wind and trudged on. It was quite late before I found a flat spot to camp, high along the Rabbit Ears Range.
To reach Rabbit Ears Pass the following day, I was up with the first light. During much of the trip, I was up with the sun and down with the sun. It provided the warmth and light I needed to travel, and forced me to rest when often I could have continued hiking.
The morning’s dim beginning was ferocious with wind. I was trying to follow the CDT guidebook, which I have to read backwards because it goes north to south. I was trying to enjoy the panoramic vistas around me and keep from getting knocked over by the wind. I disturbed a herd of over 50 elk that were bedded down along the Divide. They groaned in disgust and ran from me into a drainage to the south. I should have followed them. Instead, I made a wrong turn that cost me an extra ten miles. I didn’t want to stay on the Divide because of property rights issues in the Rabbit Ears Pass area. Usually, I don’t let that stop me, but in this case I had heard that the Forest Service was negotiating with the owner for trail access. So I decided to be good and go around. I would regret this later. Wilderness boundaries are fluid. Compromising common sense for political purpose only creates added controversy. I ended up coming off the Divide too early, in the wrong drainage and trespassing across the Buffalo Creek Ranch.
I was walking through a forest service campground near Rabbit Ears Pass in the rain searching for my family. I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was trail magic again. The tap was from Dawn Weller. She asked me if I would like to join her family in their pop-up camper for dinner. I explained that I was looking for my wife and daughter and had been on the trail for several days and smelled very bad. She said, "If you don’t find them, you’re welcome to join us." As it turned out, I didn’t find them and returned to a warm, dry welcome— pork steak, red peppers, green beans, potatoes and red wine. These folks adopted me on a rainy night in the mountains, and it is hard to explain how wonderful that feels. You have to imagine how wet and smelly I was after days of hiking hard in very rugged terrain. Trail Magic is one of the most rewarding feelings that you gain from long distance hiking.
Excerpt from "Crossing the Divide, A Family Adventure Along the Continental Divide--MALLERYBOOKS.COM
By the time I reached the Pass, the wind was trying to knock me over. The trail was strung out along a border between Routt and Arapaho National Forests. The views at 12,000 feet were magnificent!
The second morning was spent following rock cairns straight up to the top of Parkview Mtn. where I could see most of Colorado. On the top was a Forest Service Communications building manned by a marmot. (Someone forgot to shut the door.) I wanted to shortcut a big dogleg around Troublesome Pass but decided to stay on the CDT and see where it led me. It led into Trouble! Unfortunately, I found two Troublesome passes (as if one were not bad enough). The first was designated by Arapaho NF. I knew it wasn’t the location I was looking for, so I bushwhacked west about a mile along the Divide until I came to the pass described in my Colorado CDT guidebook. It was late afternoon and, again, the wind was trying to rip me apart. I put my rain jacket on as a windbreaker, put my head into the wind and trudged on. It was quite late before I found a flat spot to camp, high along the Rabbit Ears Range.
To reach Rabbit Ears Pass the following day, I was up with the first light. During much of the trip, I was up with the sun and down with the sun. It provided the warmth and light I needed to travel, and forced me to rest when often I could have continued hiking.
The morning’s dim beginning was ferocious with wind. I was trying to follow the CDT guidebook, which I have to read backwards because it goes north to south. I was trying to enjoy the panoramic vistas around me and keep from getting knocked over by the wind. I disturbed a herd of over 50 elk that were bedded down along the Divide. They groaned in disgust and ran from me into a drainage to the south. I should have followed them. Instead, I made a wrong turn that cost me an extra ten miles. I didn’t want to stay on the Divide because of property rights issues in the Rabbit Ears Pass area. Usually, I don’t let that stop me, but in this case I had heard that the Forest Service was negotiating with the owner for trail access. So I decided to be good and go around. I would regret this later. Wilderness boundaries are fluid. Compromising common sense for political purpose only creates added controversy. I ended up coming off the Divide too early, in the wrong drainage and trespassing across the Buffalo Creek Ranch.
I was walking through a forest service campground near Rabbit Ears Pass in the rain searching for my family. I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was trail magic again. The tap was from Dawn Weller. She asked me if I would like to join her family in their pop-up camper for dinner. I explained that I was looking for my wife and daughter and had been on the trail for several days and smelled very bad. She said, "If you don’t find them, you’re welcome to join us." As it turned out, I didn’t find them and returned to a warm, dry welcome— pork steak, red peppers, green beans, potatoes and red wine. These folks adopted me on a rainy night in the mountains, and it is hard to explain how wonderful that feels. You have to imagine how wet and smelly I was after days of hiking hard in very rugged terrain. Trail Magic is one of the most rewarding feelings that you gain from long distance hiking.
Excerpt from "Crossing the Divide, A Family Adventure Along the Continental Divide--MALLERYBOOKS.COM
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