Bubbles CDT Day 1 (March 19, 2018)

Day one of the CDT!!

Today we hiked 13 miles. Not bad for the first day out here. We were really excited to get on trail and it felt crazy to be out here! A lot of the trail was on an old washout. We had to hike on golf ball and baseball size rocks which made my ankles tender and I got a lot of blisters. Even though my feet are hurting, it feels awesome and surreal to be out hiking again.

For those that don’t know, the CDT is one of the “Big Three” long trails in America. The Southern Terminus is in New Mexico where it continues north for 770 miles to Colorado. After hiking through Colorado for 800 miles (including the highest part on the CDT at 14,270 foot elevation at Grays Peak) we will move into Wyoming for 550 miles which includes hiking through Yellowstone National park. The next part of the trail travels through both Montana and Idaho. We will hike about 180 miles in Idaho and around 800 miles in Montana. The Northern terminus of the trail is in Glacier Park, Montana.

Miles Hiked: 13
Total Miles Hiked: 13

Bubbles on the CDT!

First of many steps on the CDT!

Bubbles: Travels to get to the CDT (March 8 to March 19)

Our travels to get to the CDT started in Akron, Ohio. We rented a car and drove out west to Denver, Colorado. We have a good friend who lives there. Not only could we visit but we were also able to spend the week getting used to the higher elevation.

 

Kansas City

We made it to Colorado!

Had to stop at Red Rocks in Colorado

During our stay in Colorado we went to a ski resort and went snowshoeing at around 9,000 feet. Snowshoeing is when you use special shoes which distribute your weight over a larger surface area so that you don’t sink to the bottom of soft snow.

Getting used to the higher elevation

We also went to Loveland Pass which is around 11,900 feet in elevation. We were able to hike there. The views were beautiful and it afforded us the opportunity to see how our bodies would react to hiking at such a high elevation. We are both excited to get back to Colorado!

Loveland Pass, Colorado

Hiking on the Continental Divide

Next, our friend dropped us at the Greyhound station on Saturday and we took a 20 hour bus ride from Denver to Lordsburg, New Mexico. We stopped in El Paso which was really interesting because there was a lot of Border Patrol. This was our first experience with the Border Patrol.

On the bus to Lordsburg, NM!

When we got to Lordsburg we settled into our hotel room for the night before our adventure began.

Bubbles arriving at the hotel

We can see the mountains from our hotel

The next morning we were picked up at 6:30 in the morning by our shuttle through the CDTC (Continental Divide Trail Coalition). My shuttle driver’s name was Leslie and Sprout's was Jeff. The ride was, to say the least, crazy! The road to get to Crazy Cook Monument, the southern terminus of the CDT, was so desolate it’s on an unnamed road! The ride was mayhem. While riding along I realized I was clenching my teeth and holding on tight because the roads are completely uneven and bumpy. I was actually nervous for the car!

Packing our gear into our shuttle cars!

Stopped to fill up water boxes

One of our shuttle cars!

We were dropped off at Crazy Cook Monument and began our adventure around 11:00 a.m.!

Southernmost Point
Crazy Cook Monument

Bubbles: Why we are hiking the CDT

We are hiking the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) because of the amazing experience we had on the Appalachian Trail (AT). When we finished the AT we immediately knew that we wanted to hike another long trail. If we had had the funds we would have left the next day for another long trail after finishing the AT! We knew before we could do that we would have to put in a lot of time and work to save the money to hike this trial.

Next, we had to decide on which long trail to hike. The “Big Three” (or Triple Crown of U.S. long trails) are the Appalachian Trail (AT - about 2,190 miles), Pacific Crest Trail (PCT - about 2,650 miles), and Continental Divide Trail (CDT - about 3,100 miles - but this varies greatly). Both the AT and the PCT are hiked more often than the CDT. For example, in 2016 (when we completed the AT) there were 1110 thru hikers who completed the AT, 719 thru hikers who completed the PCT, and 51 thru hikers who completed the CDT. All of these numbers are the official numbers of each conservancy and there are more people who didn’t volunteer register their thru hike.

I decided to hike on the CDT because I wanted to not be around big crowds of people. The AT has a lot of people on it (not just the thru hikers above but millions of people section hike the AT every year!)

Another reason I want to hike the CDT is because although the AT was a real physical challenge for me, it was frustrating because of people constantly (not everyday but a lot of time) asking questions about my size and body type. They would ask me if I was actually thru hiking the trail and it was offensive sometimes. Eventually, it just made me laugh but it obviously struck a chord. There is a person on Instagram, named Jenny, who follows Unlikely Hikers. Unlikely Hikers are people of size, different ethnicities, different backgrounds, LGBTQ people, or anyone who is generally considered someone who wouldn’t be a hiker.

When this started to happen to me I was embarrassed to be an Unlikely Hiker, which is just silly. It’s just how the outside world perceives you.  Anyone can do whatever they want to accomplish if they set those goals and follow through. It doesn’t matter what your size is and you definitely don’t have to be a certain size to go out for a walk in the woods! I’m living my dreams and I am blessed.

Sprout's response to why he wants to hike the CDT:

AT thru hiker information found from:  (http://www.appalachiantrail.org/home/community/2000-milers)

PCT thru hiker information found from:  (https://www.pcta.org/discover-the-trail/thru-hiking-long-distance-hiking/2600-miler-list/)

CDT thru hiker information found from:  (http://continentaldividetrail.org/cdtc-official-list-of-cdt-thru-hikers/)

Finish and Fires

Bubbles and Sprout summited Springer Mountain on November 19, finishing their 2198.7 mile hike on the Appalachian Trail.  Between the last blog that was received (November 5th) and their summit there was a fire on the trail.  The pictures below are from that time.

Getting ready to summit with Poppa Lip

Bubbles and Sprout sitting on the rock.  Nice photobomb Flying Dutchman!

Before and after pictures of Smudgy Cheeks, Kathleen, Bubbles, and Sprout
March 27 to November 20

Smoke on the trail

Fire at night

Fires at night

That is not clouds, it's smoke.

Smoke on the trail

Nantahala Outdoor Center

Sprout Day 223 (Saturday, November 5, 2016)

We woke up early but it was so cold and hard to get out of the sleeping bag! It was also really quiet at the shelter where we were staying. It's quiet tonight too, unless you're close to the shelter because there are a lot of weekend people staying there.

This is Icewater Spring Shelter and it's three miles from Newfound Gap. We hiked 19.8 miles today and it was a beautiful walk all day. I've been so happy to be in the Smoky Mountains. It's been nothing but great. We're lucky because a lot of the leaves have fallen and we can sneak views in every so often. Plus, there's some great views along the way.

We were going to leave early today but the sun started to come up and it was too beautiful to just leave. We sat and finished our breakfast and drank coffee. A couple we met at the 501 Shelter in Pennsylvania got ahold of Bubbles today and offered to pick us up tomorrow at Newfound Gap and drive us into Gatlinburg for a resupply. They live in Georgia and offered to drive up and meet us in the morning around 9:00. That helps us out so much because we were going to have to hitch to town and it's a 13 mile hitch. I can't wait to see them again. It's been a long time. I remember them saying they would get ahold of us when we were down here and do some trail magic!

It's cold again tonight but no snow. I can't wait to get into Gatlinburg tomorrow. I remember the last time I was here was when I was younger with my Uncle Matt and Aunt Abby. I'm sure back then I would have never guessed I would be walking all the way here someday! It'll be cool to see the town again and experience it now on my hike.

Day: 223
Miles hiked: 19.8
Total Miles hiked on the trail: 1984.4
Baby Bear: 1
Bald Eagle: 1
Bear: 1
Bluegill: 2
Butterflies: 8
Chickens: 1
Chipmunks: 3
Cows: 24

Crawfish: 1
Deer: 21
Donkeys: 2
Groundhog: 1
Grouse: 1
Horses: 17
Hummingbird: 1
Inchworm: 1
Really Big Dog: 1
Mice: 2
Moose: 2
Nest of bugs: 2
Newts: 2
Owl: 1
Peacock: 1
Rabbit: 1
Red Squirrel: 1
Skunk: 1
Snail: 1
Snake: 3
Squirrels: 12
Toads:
Trout: 2
Turkeys: 4
Turtles: 107
Vultures: 6
Woodpecker: 1

Sprout Day 221 (Friday, November 3, 2016)

Last night, when we were sleeping, all of us thought we might of heard a bear outside of our tents. Bubbles, Whiskers, Toad, and I are still hiking together. There was definitely something out there walking around and crunching on apples or nuts. It wasn't a squirrel, it was a lot bigger.   Regardless, nothing happened other than hearing something rustling around right outside the tent.

Not too long after we left camp this morning dogs started barking real close in the area and not too long after that we heard two gunshots echo close by.

We hiked 20.3 miles and we're staying at Standing Bear Hostel. We set our tent up outside along with Toad but Whiskers got a bunk inside. It's supposed to rain tonight but I'm not too worried about it. As soon as we got here we set up camp and got a pizza from the hostel. They have a small resupply store but we have plenty of food. They sell frozen pizza and drinks and after a long day of hiking both of those sounded fantastic. Splat, another hiker we've been hiking around the past few days was here and some other section hikers. Two of the section hikers were from Akron and Massillon area. It's a small world and we couldn’t believe we saw someone from back home tonight.

We are basically camping at the base of the climb up to the Smoky Mountains and it’s unbelievable. All day I was getting a little view here and there of the climb that waits for us in the morning. It looks a little intimidating but I know we will we be fine. There's nothing the trail can throw at us at this point that we can't handle and I'm actually excited to get into the Smokies. We're probably going to see a lot more bears since there's no hunting in the Smoky Mountains. I'm going to be sure to hang my food bag a little higher and a little further out for the next week.

We got up early and got out of camp around 6:30. It felt good to get up, get breakfast on, and get packed and ready before the sun came up. It was nice making cowboy coffee today too. It hit the spot before we had to start hiking for the day. When I make cowboy coffee it reminds me of being a kid and spending time at Nanny and Papaw’s house. Nanny would always make coffee in the morning for Papaw using a French press, or something similar, and make it on the stove. It would make the whole house smell more like coffee than a regular coffee pot would. When I get the water boiling, and dump the grounds in, a huge steam full of the smell of coffee hits me right in the face. It always reminds me of being younger and spending time at their house.

We crossed over Max Patch today. It was awesome to be there. I remember watching videos back home last winter of other thru hikers hiking over this section. It's a huge bald area right before the Smoky Mountains. The views are some of the finest on the Appalachian Trail. It was a little cloudy, and the wind was blowing, but it was a beautiful 360 degree view.

We're only about 51 miles from being a 2000 miler and it's just overwhelming to think about! I'm really proud of how far we've made it and couldn't imagine being here with anyone else other than my best friend, Bubbles. It's great how well we help each other out and help each other accomplish so much while being out here.

Tomorrow our plan is to wake up early and make some breakfast and get moving. The problem is it's already 1:00 a.m. and I need to get to sleep so I can get up early and not be so tired. If it's raining hard in the morning we might sleep a little longer to see if it passes. It's going to be a tough climb tomorrow but I'm just happy we start first thing and get it over with! We got to take a shower today here at Standing Bear and I'm ready to get back on the grind tomorrow. We're just trying to finish  strong! 

Day: 221
Miles hiked: 25.7
Total Miles hiked on the trail: 1953.9
Baby Bear: 1
Bald Eagle: 1
Bear: 1
Bluegill: 2
Butterflies: 8
Chickens: 15
Chipmunks: 3
Cows: 24
Crawfish: 1
Deer: 21
Donkeys: 2
Groundhog: 1
Grouse: 1
Horses: 17
Hummingbird: 1
Inchworm: 1
Really Big Dog: 1
Mice: 2
Moose: 2
Nest of bugs: 2
Newts: 2
Owl: 1
Peacock: 1
Rabbit: 1
Red Squirrel: 1
Skunk: 1
Snail: 1
Snake: 3
Squirrels: 12
Toads:
Trout: 2
Turkeys: 4
Turtles: 107
Vultures: 6
Woodpecker: 1

Sprout Day 219-220 (Tuesday & Wednesday, November 1-2, 2016)

We hiked a little over 13 miles to get in to Hot Springs. It was a tough hike because it was hot and humid and the terrain was rough. Coming down into town was really rocky. It's crazy because the weather is unseasonably hot right now but it can change at anytime. One day it's hot and the next it's cold. We've heard from northbound hikers that there was snow in the Smokies last week.

We hiked out of Hot Springs today and went another 13 miles. We are staying at Walnut Mountain Shelter. We're staying up the hill from the shelter and can see the Smokies from here! It's amazing to see what we're about to climb. The climb into the smokies is ridiculous.

Hot Springs was a great trail town. As soon as we walked into town we stopped by the local pub, I think the name was Spring Creek Tavern, for burgers and a drink. It was really good. We had to go next door to the Outfitters to get our permit for the Smokies. You have to get online, pay $20, and print off a piece of paper and carry it with you to the Smokies. After that we went down to the Laughing Heart Hostel and paid $10 to tent outside. Then, we picked up our resupply package.

There's a really good local market that makes good subs so we each got a sub, ate half, and packed the other half out today for lunch. We were planning on leaving Laughing Heart early today but we forgot we had to send stuff home and had to wait on the post office to open. They didn't open until 9:00 a.m. After the post office one thing lead to another and we didn't get out of town until around 11:00.

It was a tough climb out of Hot Springs and the heat didn't help. Since it's November we saw a bunch of bear hunters out today with their dogs. We were sitting at the top of the first climb, eating the other half of that sub, and saw a dog walking down trail. He had a couple GPS collars on so we knew it was someone's hunting dog. Not too long after that we heard a bunch of dogs barking and howling and knew they were on a bear. About an hour later we saw two hunters walking up the trail and I stopped to talk to them for a minute. They said they've killed 7 bears in the past 2 days and that they'll get at least 45 this year. They're only allowed one bear per hunter but they hunt in big groups and everyone helps each other out. They said the dogs have been on two bears today. We will see a lot of bears in the smokies because they're protected there. No hunting in the Smokies. I bet all the bears around here are making a run for the Smoky Mountains!

Water has been so dry lately so we had Poppa Lip send us some Aquamira drops for when there's just stagnant water. If there's not too much flow, and the water looks nasty, I'd rather filter and chemically treat it. Plus there are two hikers about a day in front of us who had the norovirus. It doesn’t matter what filter you have it - won't filter out noro. It has to be chemically treated it too. I don't want either of us to get sick this late in the hike. We have to finish strong and to do that we need to be healthy.

Day: 219-220
Miles hiked: 25.7
Total Miles hiked on the trail: 1933.9
Baby Bear: 1
Bald Eagle: 1
Bear: 1
Bluegill: 2
Butterflies: 8
Chickens: 15
Chipmunks: 3
Cows: 24
Crawfish: 1
Deer: 21
Donkeys: 2
Groundhog: 1
Grouse: 1
Horses: 17
Hummingbird: 1
Inchworm: 1
Really Big Dog: 1
Mice: 2
Moose: 2
Nest of bugs: 2
Newts: 2
Owl: 1
Peacock: 1
Rabbit: 1
Red Squirrel: 1
Skunk: 1
Snail: 1
Snake: 3
Squirrels: 12
Toads:
Trout: 2
Turkeys: 4
Turtles: 107
Vultures: 6
Woodpecker: 1