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We are currently on another long distance hike, and the third leg of our "triple crown", the Continental Divide Trail (the "CDT"). Come along with us if you can - if not in person then by following our grand adventure via our "posts from the trail".  Check out our Flickr Photos, which we'll update periodically, and see it through our eyes!

Our Credo...

"Success: To laugh often and much, to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children, to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends, to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded!" ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Journal July 27 How Hunchback Pass got it’s name

The skies cleared over night but left a heavy dew. The inside of the tent was covered with a layer of ice and there was frost on the food bags left outside. Our drinking tubes froze shut and socks which were wet become stiff. It was cold, such is July in Colorado camped at 12,000 feet.

The morning walk was a cold bath, walking through willows wet from the heavy dew. The water ladens branches and leaves were just waiting for a passing hiker to wash. Turn your head, don’t forget to get behind the ears. Completely wet from waist down.

We climb gradually to Nebo Pass, the most dramatic pass on the hike so far, a reward worth the effort. Tall, steep peaks soared above a vally so deep it’s depths were hiden from view. In the foreground a small lake sat in a high basin just below the pass reflecting clouds and mirroring the nearby ridges.

it was an awe inspiring place and the morning’s clear skies were starting to cloud up so we took an early lunch. Spreading everything out we managed to dry gear and clothes as clouded shade alternated with bright sun.

After lunch we quickly dropped 1,000 feet before the trail turned to go back up another vally. We climbed back up 1,000 feet to Hunchback pass. I am convinced that Hunchback Pass got it’s name because climbing the step trail makes one lean so far forward to keep from falling that by the time you rech the top your back becomes hunched over and it’s hard to stand upright. The trail in this section is old, so old that it was built before the invention of the switchback.

The drop and climb between Nebo and Hunchback passes, like other parts of the CDT, could have benefitted from another invention, the water bar. Serious erosion is the result of runaway trails and when this condition, erosion, meets “steep” the result is a trail choked with rocks and too difficult to walk so another path parallel to the first one is pioneered creating unecessary scars on the landscape.

The afternoons thunderstorms geared up with heavy rain, thunder and lightning. We got only a few droplets, but were concerned about the upcoming walk across a broad plateau high above timberine, very exposed and with no good options for nearby shelter which defined the divide for several miles.

So we chose the old Colorado trail route, down the Bear creek jeep road. It didn’t have broad panoramas but did offer some nice views.

We made camp a short ways up Pole Creek.

17 miles

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Clicking on any of these photos will take you to that specific photo on our Flickr Stream, where you can view these and many, many more photos from our latest adventure....or use this shortcut to all photos.....we hope you enjoy them!

People Shots

CDT20101_NMWCWMCDT2010_TheTrailCDT2010_NMWC-1Carrot After a Trail BathCarrot Stream Crossing #3,768Carrot on the Trail stillCarrot takes a Trail BathCarrot Stream Crossing #5.875Carrot on the TrailCliff Dwelling SignCarrot takes a PhotoCarrot Stream Crossing # 2,115

Scenic Shots

CDT2010-valleyCDT2010_yellowflowersCarrot on the Trail 3ScenicPotty BreakScenicCliff Dwelling Stream Vast DesertPrickly Pear 2Prickly PearPlateau at Sunset

Flora & Fauna

CDT2010_treesCDT2010_yellowflowersCDT2010-purpleflowersAngry MarmotFlora 3FloraBeaverButterfly 2FloraButterfly