CDT - Day 58 - Hope Pass
Last night, as I was drifting off to sleep, I heard a few hikers setting up camp nearby. The area where I camped was large enough to accommodate at least a dozen tents. When I woke up and got ready in the morning, I walked over to say hello. They were all hiking northbound, just like me.
They asked if I knew anything about the wildfire smoke, but I didn't have any information. I sent a quick message to my friend Kaila using my Garmin inReach, and she replied almost immediately with some helpful updates. Apparently, there was a wildfire about 100 miles away, and the smoke had drifted into our area. A little while later, I received another message about a second fire that was much closer—just east of Mt. Elbert. That one is a bit more concerning since we're all hiking in that direction. Hopefully, the rain that's forecast over the next couple of days helps keep it under control.
Today's hike was probably the most physically demanding day I've had on the CDT so far. The San Juans were difficult because of the snow and constant route-finding, but today was all about relentless climbing.
Right after leaving camp, I started the climb up Ann Pass, which was steep enough on its own. After crossing the pass, the trail descended for about 12 miles before reaching the real challenge: Hope Pass.
Hope Pass wastes no time. The first mile and a half is brutally steep, with very few switchbacks to ease the climb. I took a long break at the 1.5-mile mark before tackling the rest of the ascent. I'm pretty sure it was the steepest climb I've done anywhere on the CDT.
From the summit, it was a 3,000-foot descent to my campsite. By the end of the day, I had hiked 20 miles with about 4,500 feet of elevation gain. Most of that climbing came on some incredibly steep terrain.
It was an exhausting day, but making it over Hope Pass gave me a real sense of accomplishment. It's one of those climbs that reminds you what you're capable of.
Tomorrow should be a much easier day—about 10 miles into Twin Lakes for a resupply, a great meal, and maybe even a night indoors. Sleeping in a cabin instead of a smoky tent doesn't sound like a bad idea.