I’ve been writing some CDT planning resources over at The Trek recently. If you’re planning an upcoming CDT thru or section hike, check out the following posts I authored to help you with the planning process: How to get to …
Category: Trail Logs

Tahoe Rim Trail: Day 8
Day 8: 6 Miles We both slept well for our last night on the trail, and took the time for some hot coffee while we enjoyed the sunrise over Aloha Lake. As we left the Desolation Wilderness and got …

Tahoe Rim Trail: Day 7
Day 7: 20 Miles Today was another great day. We slept in a little bit, knowing we didn’t have to walk as many miles today. We entered the Desolation Wilderness and spent the day walking from lake to lake. We …

Tahoe Rim Trail: Day 6
Day 6: 25 Miles What a great day we had today. Last night was warmer than the previous nights we’ve had on trail, so the warm(ish) morning and thought of hot coffee and breakfast got us up early and into …

Tahoe Rim Trail: Day 5
Day 5: 28 Miles It was a freezing night and a frosty morning today. Still, it was a beautiful day today. We had warm weather and lovely views all day. The trail was crowded again with bikers and day hikers, …

Tahoe Rim Trail: Day 4
Day 4: 24 Miles We finally got some sun! It was a cold and clear night last night, and a cold and clear day today. We both had a little extra pep in our step with the nice weather today. …

Tahoe Rim Trail: Day 3
Day 3: 25 Miles We got a taste of everything today. Sun, sleet, wind, rain, hail, and finally some cloudy cool weather. It changed from one thing to the next seemingly every five minutes. Ironically, we are in a long …

Tahoe Rim Trail: Day 2
Day 2: 24 Miles Today was mostly cold, very windy, and, in the afternoon, wet. For most of the morning we climbed, so the cold wasn’t so bad. We stopped for lunch in the sun near a lake, but the …

Tahoe Rim Trail: Day 1
Day 1: 18 Miles Yesterday, as we drove in to Tahoe, it started snowing. We were glad not to be on the trail in that weather, and glad no more was in the forecast. Still, it was a chilly morning …

Our Upcoming Adventure on the Tahoe Rim Trail
The largest freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada, Lake Tahoe is one of three pristine lakes in the US. The Tahoe Rim Trail meanders in a wide loop around Lake Tahoe for about 165 miles. While it circles the lake, …

Mount Jefferson Wilderness on the PCT
Last week, Paul and I flew up to Redmond, Oregon, to hike through the Mount Jefferson Wilderness on the Pacific Crest Trail. When we hiked in 2017, a fire closed a 35-mile segment of trail, and we’ve been thinking about …

Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim in the Grand Canyon
Six years ago, Paul and I went to the Grand Canyon. It was our honeymoon, and only our second time backpacking together. We had many lessons to learn. Our packs were too heavy, Paul got heat exhaustion, and it took …

Gear Review: Gossamer Gear Kumo 36
Most ultralight backpacks are very minimal: main compartment, 3 external pockets, maybe a hip belt. The Gossamer Gear Kumo 36, on the other hand, packs in many features of a traditional pack, while still keeping total pack weight under 2 …

My CDT Mail Drop Recommendations
Contrary to what you may have heard, resupply on the CDT isn’t that different to or much more difficult than the PCT. Many of the alternates (and virtually all of New Mexico) even allow for on-trail resupply.

CDT Bird List
One of my favorite pieces of gear is my monocular. Not only does it allow me to identify a lot more birds than I otherwise would, it is also great for looking at all variety of wildlife. On the CDT …