~ After two and a half weeks off trail  ~

Days 36 to 52.

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Tomorrow, I will return to Wolf Creek Pass after two and a half weeks away from the CDT.  After post-holing in deep snow between Cumbres Pass and Wolf Creek Pass, I decided to wait for some more snow to melt before continuing my hike. Tomorrow, I’ll start walking north again.

I won’t go into a ton of detail about my time away from the trail. But to summarize the highlights, I:

• Visited a fish hatchery and a train museum in Durango, CO
• Spectated a bicycle race
• Flew to Reno, NV and back
• Went trail running on the Pacific Crest Trail (and found more snow)
• Day hiked South Peak, a small mountain just northwest of Reno
• Learned how to bake cinnamon rolls
• Read/listened to three books/audiobooks
• Spent a lot of time in a hot tub
• Picked cherries
• Took more showers than I’ve taken in the last 800 miles combined
• Took 18 consecutive zero days – by far the most I’ve ever taken mid-thru-hike

It’s unusual to take such a long break in the middle of a thru-hike. In a way, I feel as if I’m starting a new trek now rather than continuing the same one. As if I’m doing two long section hikes this season rather than one thru-hike. This probably sounds demoralizing. But it feels oddly freeing too.

When I got off the trail two and a half weeks ago, people told me that it would be difficult to get back on the trail. Some people even questioned if I’d get back on at all – suggesting that “taking a break” was a way to quietly quit my hike. I confidently told these people they were wrong.

Well, I can tell you now from experience: after two and a half weeks off trail, the urge to just stay off trail was shockingly strong!

Honestly, much of the CDT so far has felt like pushing through one set of adverse conditions after another. From long road walks, cow poop, and gross water sources to experiencing every possible form of frozen precipitation, deep post-holing, frozen shoes, shivering through sub-freezing nights, and 50-MPH winds. And of course, days of isolation and resulting loneliness.

But more than providing an escape from the discomforts of thru-hiking, my weeks off trail reminded me of the summer I’m missing out on by being on trail. The garden I won’t grow. The evening trail runs I won’t go for. The weekend mornings I won’t spend baking. The lazy afternoons I won’t squander reading by the pool. And the people I won’t spend time with.

Before I started this hike, I debated whether I wanted to thru-hike it or break it up into two or three large section hikes, to complete over multiple hiking seasons. I briefly entertained this possibility again. But ultimately, I chose to get back on the trail.

I still have great hopes for the CDT. I’m determined to find a way to enjoy this trail, even when it is difficult. Throughout this hike, I’ve found myself reminding myself that I didn’t pick the CDT because it’s easy. Even so, I am hopeful there are many good things ahead on this trek.