I do most of my hiking alone. But Dan, a long time friend and colleague has long been interested in hiking and now that his kids are out of the nest, has more time to do it. We took a short trip on the CT from Bailey to Copper Mountain in September of 2017, and that whetted his appetite for more.
I was glad to oblige, and we set aside the end of June and beginning of July 2018 for a bit longer stretch – Copper Mountain to Monarch Pass, roughly 150 miles. Having hiked both the original CT route, now known as Collegiate East, and the newer one that sticks with the CDT and known as Collegiate West, I much prefer the latter. It’s mostly at or above timberline, making for some excellent tundra walks with outstanding views. Of course there is more climbing involved, and greater exposure to bad weather, but that’s OK.
In any event the weather was mostly good, the views marred only by smoke plumes from the Weston Pass fire, but fortunately we were upwind and suffered little exposure from smoke.
It was a great trip with a fine companion over one of the most scenic stretches of trail in the US. Some might argue that the John Muir Trail is more scenic, but really this is a matter of taste – Sierra granite vs Collegiate tundra. I like them both, and it’s not like one really has to choose.