7 Myths about the Continental Divide Trail

[Addie Bedford]

Companion forum thread to:

7 Myths about the Continental Divide Trail

[Jack H.]

Agreed

[David Chenault]

Awesome article Francis, makes it sound easy!

[Nick Gatel]

Two great articles in one day. Am I in heaven? 1 backpacker in 2,000 miles? This is my kind of trip.

Again, another excellent article that only gives the reader a flavor of of what is out there, and leaves us wanting… more, which can be found by ourselves.

Wonderful!!

[Philip]

Ok…now Addie is just teasing us by putting 3 of these out in one day.

Good stuff Francis.

[Jerry Adams]

I like the three different perspectives of these CDT articles

Thanks

What's this about 7s anyway???

[Addie Bedford]

I'm a sucker for a theme. Order, odd-numbered multiples, and great writing/photos make my heart beat faster!

These were really fun to work up. Thanks to all this week's authors!

[Ryan Linn]

Addie, you're torturing me!
Francis, very nice to hear about what not to listen to when I eventually get around to the CDT. I can't wait!

[Jack H.]

"1 backpacker in 2,000 miles? This is my kind of trip."

If you think about it another way, it's no backpackers in 2,000 miles.

[Nick Gatel]

"If you think about it another way, it's no backpackers in 2,000 miles."

Even better!!

[George Matthews]

Great article. Thanks.

[Ronald Strickland]

Many of my friends have hiked or are hiking the CDT. So I have wondered about the issues described in this article. Thank you for your many valuable insights.

[Tim Cheek]

I was in the San Juans the first week of June in 1977. If God had not ordained my legs to grow together at the waist I fear I'd still be sinking into that snow…

My sense is that there may be a window of opportunity depending on the snow fall and temperatures of a given year, but I would not say it is a myth.

[Warren Greer]

Neat stuff. Thanks for sharing with us.

[Mary D]

It's really wonderful to have three great CDT articles the same week! They are making me homesick! I keep remembering those Wyoming winters of my youth, though, so I will stick to going back in summer hiking season.

Francis' yo-yo bit only leaves me in awe. At my tortoise-like hiking speed (5-7 miles per day) it would take me several years to go one-way! However, I've always noticed that the scenery looks quite different when you're going the other direction! That not only keeps out-and-back trips from being boring, but also brings to mind that a good safety rule is to turn around and look back occasionally so that you know what to expect on the way out.

[Francis Tapon]

Tim, you make a fair point. I never said it would be easy! I just said it's a myth that you can't do go through Colorado in May. The fact is: you can do it.

Sure, you'll see more skiers and snowmobilers than hikers. And some days will truly test your patience. For example, one day my voice became hoarse because I was swearing so loudly after postholing for most of the day. I was swimming in snow. I probably did 1 mile every 2 hours.

Still, if you follow my get-up-at-4am-and-take-the-ridge advice, then you'll be able to do 20+ miles in a day even in May.

It ain't easy! But you can do it. :)

Thank you all for your comments!

Francis Tapon

[Richard D.]

I think these new articles on the CDT will help popularize the trail among potential thru-hikers and help people see that it actually is a realistic endeavor. The CDT deserves to grow to the stature of the PCT and AT.

Francis, you did fail to address my own personal fear about… Grizzlies:)

[peter vacco]

" The CDT deserves to grow to the stature of the PCT and AT. "

??????? wtf ?

---

sorry, just had to do that.

v.

[Richard D.]

I don't understand your reaction. I'm talking about public awareness, number of thru-hikers, degree of trail organization, etc. Obviously it lags far behind the AT and quite a bit behind the PCT. That's what I'm talking about by "stature."

[Jerry Adams]

I've backpacked in the Rocky Mountains a little, but now I'm fearful of Grizzlies.

I've heard they can attack humans.

I've encountered black bears in Oregon a couple times and they just ran away, so I'm not fearful of them.

Should I be fearful or is that an irrational fear?

[Bob Gross]

Both black bears and grizzly bears can be deadly to humans. However, it would be very unusual for a black bear to be that aggressive unless somebody were getting between a mother and cub or something equally stupid. Largely, black bears are very inquisitive, and they really want to steal your food. They know how much trouble humans can be if the humans start throwing rocks. To a great extent, if you can store your food properly, you've taken care of 90% of the problem.

Grizzly bears are another story. They are larger and much more unpredictable by nature. As long as they get enough to eat of their normal diet, they may avoid humans. When they get hungry, they will enter campgrounds, slice open tents to grab humans, etc. As outdoor humans, we have little control over grizzlies. If you are going to be operating in known grizzly country, your best bet is to carry bear spray. The second best bet is a bear flare, although some of the national parks prohibit those because of wildfire risk (e.g. Yellowstone).

One day when I was in Alaska last summer, I had 29 Alaskan coastal brown bears in front of me within 150 yards. Why wasn't I worried? Because the bears had a ready supply of salmon. All they wanted to do was to catch salmon, fight over salmon fishing territory with other bears, and make more baby bears.

So, fearing bears is not irrational. If that fear takes over and prevents you from doing your outdoor activities, then it is a little much. Go someplace where there is a large bear population and hang out for a while. Keep your bear spray handy on your belt. When I tromp around in Yellowstone or Glacier, I am carrying 30 pounds of stuff with me. A little extra weight for bear spray isn't going to hurt me.

–B.G.–

[Bradley Danyluk]

From what I've read, Grizzlies are actually less likely to engage in predatory stalking / attacks on humans than black bears. However, they are more likely to be territorial and protective of their kills and their young. I've heard so many stories of black bears going crazy from hunger (or whatever) and stalking humans. Grizzlies are apparently more predictable in this regard – they probably won't stalk you, but do your best to never, ever surprise one.
IMHO the biggest difference you need to think about is you stand a decent chance of fighting off a black bear if attacked. Not so much a grizz. You're supposed to just play dead, keep your backpack on so hopefully it takes the majority of his swats on your back. Once a grizz thinks you're no longer a threat they usually give up any attack and leave, rather than trying to eat you, even if hungry.
Thankfully there are way less of them out there, and they are more reclusive.

[peter vacco]

first of all, peter likes bears. from afar, i like them better even.
far is good.
it's always exciting to "meet" a bear close up.
had to spritz one in 2009. my error to start with, but i think he would have worked in too close anyway.

jerry : not to fear. "concern", ohh, very much yes. do the food storage thing, make noise, be very Aware of the wind, every other animal is. etc.
and consider the odds. like, what if you are up in the air the standard 429,000' on a ski lift and you start looking at the cable… now, you've already met the stoners.. i mean .. the "ski area maintenance people", and then you happenstance notice that the cable is not really all that new and shiny.
and, if it's Donner Ski Ranch, you know too that the cables jump of the rollers sometimes in the wind (the snowhippies throw a hook with a rope, and you descend down this thing .. and then they give you a tab for a Free cup of hot chocolate in the cafeteria)(i did not make this up ! )
so: you are "concerned", and vow Never Again to ski at a place that looks like they can't afford liability insurance.
but overall though, your odds of surviving another day of skiing are pretty good as far as the cable is concerned. skiing itself, if you have ever read the statistics … perhaps not such a great transaction injury risk wise. but actual real Death .. is rare.

same with griz. your odds are good. very good in reality.
a griz will most most often look (poor vision in the extreme), ponder (one needs to drop into "bear time" to let them get a good thinking over this situation), and then saunter off a 100 feet, look back over a shoulder and shuffle off.
any other bear actions are cause for pulling the can and yanking the safety.

on occasion a few of us get whacked while in a tent. but tarps .. ? NEVER !! (a joke)(maybe)
so that is a risk of being outside. i know for a fact that in a national park i am at more physical risk from the rangers (they're armed now) than the bears.
griz can and do tear up a campsite now and again. they just get piffed over people showing up, and rip everything to shreds. it's an early season thing. and it seems to be a glacier np thing too.
bob is right. go look at some bears. they are Magnificent ! and the more norther you get, the more cooler the bears are too.
once you watch them awhile, you won't want one for a rug.
mommy bears and cubs :
this is not the bonified instant total death sentence it's made out to be.
i know this. thrice !
scary, but no damage.
moms are mostly … "get off my lawn". in composure.
you leave, they are happy again.

the eskimo (yeah, i know, they're Inuit's now. but there's a boatload of inuit'y different tribes and eskimo covers the lot of them) word for brown bear is roughly "always runs away". it's true too. mostly.
the koyokuk indians hunted them with reliable success using what amounts to a very strong spear.
they are not indestructable. but they can cover ground like nothing you've ever seen. bears are smart as a golden retriever, which is quite clever.
—
do this :

when possible. let them pass and remain un-noticed.
make notice before they get within range.
don't run.
be patient.
yield distance on the diagonal to the upwind side.
you have a right to passage, as do they.
look big.
do not challenge (at first)
stand fast.
do NOT cower.

the 10.6oz bear can mounted on a packstrap is a HUGE confidence improver and should let one stand composed in the face of a griz.

cheers,

v.

[Anonymous]

"the 10.6oz bear can mounted on a packstrap is a HUGE confidence improver and should let one stand composed in the face of a griz"

That was my presumption when I evaluated whether or not to carry spray in certain situations. Then it occurred to me, being one who makes it a point to be aware of the wind, that by far the most likely situation where I might surprise a bear is when I was down wind and hiking toward him/her. The next thing that occurred to me was that firing off bear spray into the wind is not such a good idea. So I ended up doing what I always do, which is to practice avoidance in a multitude of ways, and saved myself 10.6 oz in the process. So far, so good…..

[Mike M]

I agree w/ Bob, fearing bears is not irrational, irrationally fearing bears is

I worked for threes years in the Bob Marshall and Great Bear Wildernesses, probably one of the highest concentration of grizzlies in the lower 48 and while I had numerous grizzly "encounters", none were bad. The one and only bad bear experience I did have, was w/ a black bear.

While the chances of using bear spray is most certainly very low, when I'm in grizzly country I'll take the 10 oz hit :)

Francis- thanks for the well written article and congrats on an awesome feat!

[Author]

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