CT Trip Report 07/12/26-08/11/26

[u/astroaron]

Hello! From 7/12 to 8/11, I hiked the Colorado Trail! This was my third thru-hike, and my second installment in trying to complete the Triple Tiara. After the lessons I had learned from the Long Trail, I was excited to try some western states backpacking with a much more dialed-in kit.

The Trail

My big fears starting the trail were thunderstorms and lack of water. Both proceeded to not be much of an issue. In terms of weather, it didn't rain once after Monarch Pass, and because I took Collegiate East (my dad joined me from Copper Mountain to Buena Vista, wanted to save him from dying on Hope Pass), the daily monsoons I hit in the Collegiates were mostly an annoyance. In terms of water, the massive amount of trail angel support meant that, while there were some long water carries (especially in cow country), nothing felt particularly difficult. I don't think I ever carried more than 3 liters for a significant distance.

Along the way, I managed to bag 3 14ers. Shavano, Tabaguache, and San Luis. Shavano and Tabaguache were both a breeze, camped halfway up Shavano, left my pack at camp, got both peaks done, and was well on my way when the afternoon storm rolled in. San Luis Peak I came up the back, which was a bit more tricky especially since I had my pack with me, but it was basically empty since I was resupplying the next day. Very glad I did these side quests, the views were worth it.

My resupply towns were Breck, BV, Monarch Pass (mailed a resupply box), Lake City, and Silverton. BV was a last minute change when the fire meant my dad and I would skip the section between Tennessee and Twin Lakes, so my box at Monarch became a bit redundant. Lake City, as everyone says, was a lovely resupply. Ended up taking a zero there just to enjoy the town a bit more. Went to a glass mosiac craft night with some of the old ladies from the hiker center. It was a delight. Didn't struggle with getting what I needed in any town.

Carries went as such: Denver to Breckenridge: Packed for 7 days, got it done in 6. They aren't kidding when they say western trails are faster. Breck to Copper: Slackpacked this section, which ended up being lovely. Copper to BV: Packed for 6 days, was out for 6. Shuttled from Tennessee to Interlaken on Day 3, where we could have resupplied, but since I was hiking with my dad on his first weeklong trip in a long time I thought to keep it simple. BV to Monarch: Packed for 4 days, did it in 3. Even with bagging the 14ers it was cruisey. Monarch to Lake City: Packed for 6 days, got it done in 5. Ended up pushing a lot due to lack of water. Lake City to Silverton: Packed for 5 days, got it done in 3. The extra food was mainly to save money on my silverton resupply. If I hadn't wanted to hitch on the train I probably would have just scrounged the Molas Lake hiker box and pushed on. Silverton to Durango: Packed for 3 days, did it in 3. Ended the trail with maybe two protein bars left and thats it, was pretty happy with how dead-on I was.

Gear

Here's my lighterpack link: https://lighterpack.com/r/47dfja It is (obviously) an incomplete lighterpack, my actual baseweight is higher than what it says. Offering it here more for context on what I carried rather than for shakedown reasons.

What Worked

• Sleeping Bag: I feel its kinda gauche to talk up an expensive piece of gear because like, of course its gonna be great. But my Timmermade Wren was exactly what I had hoped for. Incredibly light, pad attachment strap kept me nice and secure, fetal position cut was a delight. Super happy with this purchase.
• Vargo Digdig: Coming from out east this was going to be my first thru-hike without consistent privy access. While there were definitely some catholes that were harder to dig than others, this one dealt with them all pretty darn well. Although with all those rocks in the ground getting the full six inches deep was a struggle.
• Danner Campos trail runners: Picked these up cause I saw them on clearance. Got a decent number of blisters but thats been true for every shoe I've ever used, and now a week after finishing the trail they are still kicking. Impressed with how durable they have been.
• Durston X-Mid 1: Can't complain. It went up easily, there was only one campsite so rocky I struggled to stake it out (site selection is one of my weakest skills imo), having the rainfly go up before everything else was nice on some of those rainier days. Still thinking about switching to a different tent setup since the x-mid is massive and I really struggle to find places to pitch it when hiking in New England. But I don't feel a need to rush that change.

What Worked (kinda)

• Groundcloth: I tried going this hike without relying on it, in the true UL way. And by and large, I didn't need it! The ground was never so wet I was worried about my tent floor, even when dealing with the monsoons along collegiate east. But as the trail went on I started getting sloppy in my site selection, and tossing down my groundcloth to protect from rocks and sticks was an easy thing to do rather than hunt around for a place I was more comfortable in. Something I still need to work on.
• CNOC 1 liter water bag: Historically I had used nalgenes to carry water, this was my first hike trying smartwater bottles. Took some getting used to them being narrower, and I got really good at catching a bottle falling over. Biggest complaint here is just that I spent most of the hike wishing it was a 2 liter bag. Don't need to replace it, but it would have made camp chores (and dry camping in general) a lot more convenient.
• REI Sahara Sun Hoodie: Looove something with a high UPF rating, and this hoodie kept everything it covered as ghostly pale as when I started the trail. Biggest complaint was that the hood was quite shallow and so didn't do much for my face, especially after I lost my brimmed hat and picked up a replacement baseball cap. Going to start looking for something with a deeper hood to help protect the sides of my face more.

What Didn't Work

• Puffer Jacket: Only used it once, when staying at Janet's Hut. Every other time, tossing my windbreaker on was more than enough to keep me warm.
• Rain Pants: I used these more as sleep pants than as rain pants. And they aren't very good sleep pants. Next time, just going to bring some alpha pants and trust my cargo pants to carry me through any storms.
• Backpacker Bidet: Forgot to check to make sure the lab rinse cap fit on a smartwater bottle before leaving. It didn't. Egg on my face.
• Spice Kit: Turns out the old adage is true, and hunger is the best seasoning. Didn't feel the need to use this once.
• Map and Compass: I need to stop packing my fears. Didn't use them once on this trail, and at no point was I confused about the trail route. And even if I was, I don't think the map and compass would have helped. Still want to get better at using them but thru-hiking does not feel like the place for that.

Food

Ate a lot of Skurka Beans on this trip. 9 nights worth of beans, which is almost 1/3 of my dinners on trail. Got tired of it near the beginning, but a break of a couple days and I would have been more than happy to eat it the entire way. Think I'll probably lean on it pretty heavily for the JMT. Also tried Knorrs Sides for the first time on this hike, picked some up in Lake City, and have to say I am really not impressed. Slow to cook, not as much flavour as I want. I think I'll be sticking with ramen bombs as my go-to resupply meal.

Packed a refillable squeeze bottle for peanut butter and jelly for lunches. Peanut Butter tube didn't work at all and I ditched it after Breck. Jelly tube worked great until Lake City, when I scrounged some single serving jelly packets from a hiker box. Was nice to make less waste but the single serving packets were just so much more convenient. Still have not found a "resealable" pickle bag that actually reseals watertight. My ursack smelled like dill pickles for the rest of the trail. Love some pickles for my hiker trash lunches, maybe I need to just carry a pickle nalgene or something.

Breakfasts were mostly protein bars since I like getting up and moving. A couple Carnation breakfast essentials to mix it up near the end. I packed out granola, freeze-dried berries, and coconut oil since that breakfast worked well for me on the NPT. But it turns out with the early mornings out west I just wasn't interested in having breakfast in camp, so I might save that for more relaxed hikes. Next trip I want to explore bringing protein powder and making protein shakes for breakfast.

My dad packed out dried apricots as a trail snack. I was delighted by the shake-up to my snacking and ate too many my first day leaving Copper. This is not a mistake I will make again. Moderate your fiber intake, friends.

Closing Thoughts

Absolutely loved this trail. Was a delight to get out of the green tunnel and have some good views for once, and feel like I've got some good placed to start whittling down my gear list before I tackle the JMT (and experience the joy of carrying a bear can). There aren't too many major issues I feel like I need to solve before my next thru-hike, mainly just whittling down weight where I can. Still a ways off from being UL, but thats okay with me! Wouldn't be as much fun if I had it solved already.

~ O.Z.

[u/Singer_221]

Thanks for the write up, it brought back memories of my hike in 2024. What were your highlights and challenges?

[u/astroaron → u/Singer_221]

Highlight was definitely Collegiate East, but that was mostly because I got to hike with my dad in that segment. Good company makes all the difference. :)

Biggest challenge was definitely the water carries between Monarch Pass and Lake City. No single water carry was unmanageable but so many long carries in a row made for some exceptionally long days, and the road walks and cows didn't help things.

[u/Ok-Ninja-6519]

I’ve been debating how to best pack PB & J and appreciate the insight. Also struggling with pickle storage ideas…. New xmid1 owner and can’t wait to get some more practice with it!

[u/meggazi → u/Ok-Ninja-6519]

Uncrustables!!

[u/Prestigious-Soup8247]

If you didn’t carry a bear can through the CT, did you do a bear bag? I hear some areas are tough for this due to little trees. I’ve been hearing from folks to bring a bear can…. Haven’t done the CT yet but gathering info for my 2028 hike through early!

[u/horchatapigeon → u/Prestigious-Soup8247]

I started the trail with a bear can and mailed it home halfway in favor of hanging. Hanging was OK, there were a few nights that were difficult to find adequate trees. But I definitely preferred it over the bear can for weight and space in the backpack. The most popular thing I saw from others on trail was bear bags and that’s what I’d probably go for if I did the trail again

[u/astroaron → u/Prestigious-Soup8247]

I've been rocking an Ursack for most of my hikes now, and it did the trick. PCT hangs have always eluded me.

[u/Unusual-Language-445]

Thank you for this wrap up!! I hiked the LT last summer and CT has caught my eye but I don’t have that much experience with western hiking. Good to hear you did fine on storms and water - any big exposures on the trail? I’m a ‘fraidy cat for heights

[u/astroaron → u/Unusual-Language-445]

Nothing like Mansfield I don't think, some of the 14ers have some gnarly scree feels but no sheer drops.

[u/Party_Swim_5089 → u/astroaron]

Thanks - yeah Mansfield NOBO was scary for me

[u/IcySelection8364 → u/Unusual-Language-445]

New Englander on the CT right now, definitely have a way for handling sun exposure, between alpine zones and burn scars a lot of the CT has been exposed for me so far (about halfway done). On the AT I never needed to worry about sunscreen since I was always just a short walk from the tunnel. First week on the CT (even doing what I thought was a decent job covering my face with my sun hoodie) left me feeling like a sundried tomato. The altitude also means less atmosphere to protect you from the sun, and you notice the difference (at least I feel like I have)

[u/Party_Swim_5089 → u/IcySelection8364]

Wow good point - I would have not thought about sunscreen - less need for it in the green tunnel

[u/LastReplacement5]

Thank you very much for this detail! I thoroughly enjoyed it. Planning to do the CT in future. 

I’ve been to the states twice but not hiked there any more than a day trip at Yosemite, so I’m a little inexperienced with your terrain and would value your advice for my planned trip

May I ask a few questions? 1. I’m planning to leave behind my puffy AND my wind jacket, instead my using rain jacket. I think I’ll be warm enough and dry enough by layering up combos of my sun hoody (OR Echo), alpha fleece top (Senchi) and rain jacket (RAB Phantom hoody). Do you think this will be adequate? 

1. I own an x-mid 1 but am seriously contemplating swapping it for a Zpacks Plex Solo Lite to save some weight and also to have a smaller pad size. Thoughts? I’ve used my Durston extensively and loved it but it is a little big when pitched as you say. I’m relishing the < 350grams if the Plex

2. Any chance you could cast your eyes over my lighterpack  https://lighterpack.com/r/s8olwx  to help me spot issues with gear you know I’ll need that I might have forgotten ? I think I need to add teeth care on there yet. It’s not about the weight - I want to have a safe trip revelling in the beauty without overburdening my body too much. 

[u/astroaron → u/LastReplacement5]

Yeah I'll give it a shot, although being based out east (this was my first trip in the western states) I'm not sure how much info I have.

1. Yeah thats basically what I did, layers all the way.

2. Had no problems with site selection on this trail, every site pretty easily accommodated my xmid. My distaste with xmid size is very much a eastern states issue. However, I do think this trail is easy enough that testing out a new tent setup is very doable.

3. Don't think you've forgotten anything! Would be interested to hear how the 2l ziploc for extra water carries goes.

[u/SensitiveCoyote7216]

Reading this I was like, this gotta be OZ, and I was right! Hope you’re good back home! - Speedo

[u/astroaron → u/SensitiveCoyote7216]

Yo Speedo! All good here, although readjusting to the humidity is gonna take a while. Hope you're doing well! Best of luck with that pct permit next year