[pct-l] back from the summer

[CWillett at pierce.ctc.edu (Chris Willett)]

Hi All, 


I am now in Lakewood, WA, after having a summer of fun and a few weeks of moving from Indiana.  For those of you who are new here or who might have forgotten, I hiked the PCT in 03.  This summer, I warmed up with a little jaunt on the AT, from Damascus, VA to Manchester Center, VT, a distance of around 1150 miles.  Sick and tired of the AT's lack of wilderness and scenery, I hopped off in late June and began the long journey to Calgary (yes, Canada), via Chicago and Logan, UT.  On July 9, I began hiking north from the US-Canadian border in Waterton NP, heading for Mount Robson, the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies.  This route is generally known as the Great Divide Trail, although this isn't a trail in the PCT or AT sense of the word.  There is no trail association, there really are no blazes.  I found exactly one sign that indicated that there was such a thing as the GDT, and that was in Jasper, where a big sign proclaimed that it was the Northern Terminus of the Great Divide Trail. Rather comical, really.  I am told there are some trail blazes along a 90K segment that I had to walk around due to being thrown out of the world's second largest coal mine (story some other time).  The GDT should really be thought of as a route.  I haven't hiked the CDT, but I suspect that there is far less trail development on the GDT than on the CDT.

It took me a month to reach Robson, a distance of about 650 miles.  I took 4 days off in that total.  There is a guidebook, but not much else in terms of resources.  I'll be happy to answer any questions about the GDT.  For those of you who have looked at the route, be aware that the official permitting process is far easier than you might suspect.  I should have a web page up about the trip sometime this fall, with information, journals, and pictures.

Suge 


---------------------------
Christopher Willett
cwillett@pierce.ctc.edu
Pierce College
9401 Farwest Drive SW.
Lakewood, WA. 98498-1999