40 miles in 3 days. Epic views along a beautiful route. Freezing in my tent. Hiking with an injury isn’t fun. It’s hunting season, eek! This tri-canyon traverse was incredible. Continue reading Provo Canyon to Little Cottonwood Canyon, Great Western Trail
Summer Adventures
Injury recovery. Walking has never felt so liberating! Uinta Wilderness, Utah. Green River Lakes to Knapsack Col in the Wind River Range of Wyoming. Columbia Gorge to Mount Hood along the Pacific Crest Trail in Oregon.
Success, Failure and What’s Next…
After hearing the news that my hike on the Continental Divide Trail was over for the summer, I jumped on a plane to Australia and surprised my parents by arriving at their house unannounced. They were pretty shocked because I’d talked to them about 30 hours earlier from New Mexico and had told them I was headed back home to Salt Lake City. Ha!
Disappointment
The results of an MRI shows a stress fracture in the tibia of my left leg. I am SO disappointed!!! It’s a 4-6 week recovery before I can start exercising on it again. CDT 1 : Kate 0. I WILL BE BACK, to even the score, CDT. But probably not this year.
Days 13-16: Lordsburg to Silver City
A wonderful four days! From flat desert and cactus, to mountain peaks and pine forests, to a canyon and the first natural water source on the trail! I love the CDT, brutality and all!
Days 6-12: Shin Recovery in Lordsburg and a Trail Name
Extremely happy to report I’m headed back out on the trail! And… I have a trail name!
Continue reading Days 6-12: Shin Recovery in Lordsburg and a Trail Name
Days 1-5: Crazy Cook to Lordsburg… Almost!
The first 60 miles on the trail have been absolutely incredible! The Bootheel desert is at the same time hostile and welcoming. The landscape is really impressive and life on the trail so far has been wonderful, I love it! The assault on the body has been tough, in fact I’ve returned to Lordsburg 25 miles early with a shin splint where I’ll wait while I recover before getting back on the trail. Stories and photos below…
Starting Tomorrow!
Well, here I am! In my wildest dreams I couldn’t have imagined that I’d be sitting in a hotel room in southwestern New Mexico about to attempt to hike from the Mexican Border, through the USA, all the way to the Canadian border. Yet here I am! Here’s a quick update:
2 Weeks To Go! I am EXHAUSTED!
I am a planner, it’s what I do. But boy…. am I sick of planning! Gear planning, food planning, route and navigation planning…. not to mention 12 hour days at work trying to get things lined up for my time away, trying to get in some miles with my pack on, rehabbing my ankle, and all the things that come with dropping out of ordinary society for 5 months. I’m lucky if i’m getting 4-5 hours sleep a night during the week at the moment. At least a handful of times a day I find myself daydreaming about taking some nice big breathes of fresh air and taking my first steps from the Mexican border, and I know it will all be worth it. I CAN’T WAIT! With just a little over 2 weeks to go now, here’s some updates on what I’ve been up to with trip planning:
Gonna Find Me Some Pikas!
I’ve been looking for a cause I am really excited to support and help create awareness for while I’m on the CDT this summer. I just stumbled across the perfect fit…
When I hit the trail I’ll be doing so as a data collector for the Worldwide Pika Project. I’ll be collecting data on the Pika and its habitat that will be used by scientists in their studies on climate change.
2 Months to Go!
In 2 short months I’ll have started my journey on the Continental Divide Trail! Today’s walk will have been a whole lot of nothing… except maybe some rattle snakes and dead animal carcasses. I am so excited I can’t sit still, metaphorically speaking at least because that’s all I’m doing right now actually, with trying to get work wrapped up and getting my trip planning done. So here’s an update on how it’s all going…
Unattended in a Candy Shop!
It is seriously impossible to stay on track planning for this trip. I’ll give you an example: I sit down with a goal of spending an hour researching trail navigation.
East Fork Bear River, Uinta Wilderness
Mother Nature put on a private screening of her beauty for Guinness and I. We spent 3 incredible days discovering a new part of the High Uinta Wilderness.
7 Words, How it Started…
7 words, that’s where it started. 7 seemingly innocuous words.
“You should hike the Continental Divide Trail”
Granddaddy Basin, Uinta Wilderness
Guinness and I adventure a new basin in the Uinta Wilderness, Grandaddy Basin. We hiked about 8 or so miles a day, staying at Fern Lake the first night and Pine Island Lake the second. Truly beautiful wilderness. After passing Granddaddy Lake on the way in and out of the basin, we didn’t see another human in 2 days.
Ama Dablam, Nepal
Taking personal challenge to a whole new level.
In 2013 I spent 6 weeks in Nepal attempting to climb Ama Dablam, one of the most beautiful mountains in the world. A cyclone near India caused a 20 year storm and prevented a summit attempt. But climbing to Camp 2 at 20,000 ft was still an incredible experience and pushed me to new limits.
Khumbu and Gokyo Valley, Nepal
While in Nepal to climb Ama Dablam in 2013, I trekked around 3 valleys in the Sagarmatha National Park- Khumbu, Gokyo and Bhote Koshi. Highlights were frequent, including visiting Everest Base Camp and Kala Pattar, Gokyo Lakes and Renjo Pass. 2 Albums to view below.
Middle Basin, Uinta Wilderness
The adventures of Kate and Guinness continue on this quick 2 day backpacking trip.
Rock Creek Basin, Uinta Wilderness
Another fabulous Kate and Guinness adventures in a new drainage of the Uintas. The hike followed the Highline trail through pine forests and then climbed up and over Rocky Sea Pass at 11,300ft then dropped down into our home for 3 days, Rock Creek Basin. The basin was filled with stunning views of alpine cirques, glistening lakes, bubbling streams and pretty meadows. The fear factor over bears and mtn lions this time replaced by lightening.
4 Lakes Basin, Uinta Wilderness
3 days of solitude exploring the beautiful 4 Lakes Basin with Guinness. My first solo backpacking trip in the wilderness was a great experience… stunning scenery, pristine lakes and not another person in 3 days. I was pretty freaked out about bears and mountain lions, but it’s all a matter of mind over emotion, the reality of an encounter being very unlikely.
Cordillera Blanca, Peru
3 weeks in Peru’s majestic Cordillera Blanca mountains. 10 days in the Ishinca Valley summiting Ishinca (18,150 ft), Urus (17,783 ft) and Tocllaraju (19,800 ft). Then an attempt on Chopicalqui (20,850 ft) in the Huascaran National Park showed me that you don’t always get the opportunity to summit. What matters is that everyone that goes up, comes down… and that you have lots of fun along the way!
Imja Tse (Island Peak), Nepal
There are no words to describe how incredible it felt to be on my first mountaineering trip, standing on Island Peak’s 20,300 ft summit, looking around at Himalayan giants like Lhotse, Makalu and Ama Dablam. It was a very special day that I was lucky enough to share with my guide and friend Geljen.
Khumbu Valley, Nepal
3 inspiring weeks in the Himalayas trekking the Khumbu Valley en route to climb Imja Tse (Island Peak). The classic Khumbu experience: Lukla 9,200ft to Everest Base Camp 17,600ft and back. Massive peaks, beautiful Buddhist culture and the wonderfully addictive lifestyle of walking everyday.
Annapurna Circuit, Nepal
My first major solo trip, and what a great trip it was! 5 weeks in Nepal and 25 days on the trail trekking the Annapurna Circuit with side trips to Tilicho Lake and Annapurna Sanctuary. The Annapurna Range is north-west of Kathmandu and home to 3 of the world’s 8000+ meter peaks. Incredible!