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[cdt-l] back from 2001 hike



Hey Jonathan...thanks for sharing your pictures with me and the others at Monte's house last week.  Too bad I couldn't stay longer.  I'm really looking forward to my trip next summer and will keep your name handy incase I have any  questions.  Good luck getting settled back into things.  Jen
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>From: Jonathan Ley 


>Reply-To: cdt-l@mailman.backcountry.net 

>To: cdt-l@mailman.backcountry.net 

>Subject: [cdt-l] back from 2001 hike 

>Date: Mon, 19 Nov 2001 10:21:50 -0800 (PST) 

> 

>Hi all, 

>Well, I finally made it. Let out a couple "wahoo's!" 

>and hung with the boys at Antelope Wells. I'm back on 

>the list. Are there any other 2001'ers out there? 

>(there are only a handfull anyway & a bunch of them 

>are still hiking). I hope to provide as much info as 

>I can to 2002 hikers (but I'm not going to subscribe 

>to that other list). If anyone out there has any 

>questions about anything, I'm pretty fresh off the 

>trail... I plan to post some unsolicitied advice/info 

>as well. A few tidbits: 

> 

>I started on June 15th & had no problems with existing 

>snowpack up north. The snow was about 60-70% of 

>normal. I only needed an ice-axe for about 20 yards 

>of crossing the Ahern Drift - chopped steps, etc. 

>That's a short distance, but there's really no way 

>around it & it would be very dangerous to cross in 

>early season without one. Of course, you could take 

>another (official) route through GNP and avoid the 

>drift altogether. 

> 

>I'd recommend using the CDTS/Jim Wolf guidebooks, 

>especially if you're headed south. There are a few 

>places where the other guidebooks WILL get you lost - 

>There simply isn't enough detail in them & the trail 

>is unmarked in those places. It would help to have a 

>good topo map for those bits, but the trail isn't 

>always on those either... 

> 

>I had pretty decent weather the whole way. Plenty of 

>thunderstorms in July/August, but they never lasted 

>long. I got lucky & had no lightning in the few places 

>in MT/ID where cover is miles away in any direction. 

>Got 8 inches of snow in No. Colorado on Sept 8th, but 

>it was a fluke somewhat & cleared. I just got out of 

>the San Juans before a nasty cold front came through 

>around Oct 10-12th (I think). I talked to someone a 

>week behind me & he had knee-deep snow there. yikes! 

> 

>In NM, I followed the CDTS route to Grants, then made 

>my own route to pie town (more details later), had no 

>problems hitching to reserve - plenty of traffic. The 

>trails in the northern Gila are not good. There is a 

>designated route along the divide (which I followed 

>for a little while), but it appears to be nothing more 

>than tree blazes - 0 tread & lots of nasty 

>bushwhacking & no water. I followed the Gila river 

>for longer than most do & it was a treat, although my 

>exact route would probably be impassable in the 

>spring. I had no problems with water in any of NM. 

>My water either came from towns/businesses/hunters or 

>stock tanks. The lack of surface water in the fall in 

>NM didn't matter. I hiked about 27-30 mpd in NM and 

>had a max capacity of 4 liters, although I rarely 

>needed it. Weather in NM was 60-75 & p/c skies 

>generally. Very pleasant for walking. 

> 

>-Jonathan 

>pct 99 

>cdt 01 <--- yeah! 

> 

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