Day 0- Preparation

I originally planned to thru hike the 323-mile trail in 2018 after I left my job to move to Colorado. That move has been put on hold and I don't have the ability to take off work for a whole month. I have now set a goal to section hike the whole trail before the end of the year. Every 4 weeks, I have 4 days off in a row and I plan on using those to backpack parts of the trail. 

I have a 4-day weekend July 20th through July 23rd. The forecast looks absolutely terrible- storms with "some of them severe" all 4 days. While I originally wanted to backpack 47 miles from the northern terminus to Clear Creek Lake, I think I'm going to just do one night. 24 miles from the northern terminus to Morehead. I am all for hiking in the rain, but I'm not experienced hiking in storms. Still, I want to know what its like. I'm about to set out for my first backpacking adventure in thunderstorms.


Preparing for a 1-nighter is something I've done hundreds of times so it didn't take me very long to pack. I definitely didn't want to carry a stove this time. There is a great chance I'll be trying to cook in the pouring rain anyway. I got an awesome new poncho that I'll probably be wearing the whole time. I got a gently (never) used SPOT 1st generation off of a flea market page. I think this device gives the solo hiker some peace of mind and is well worth the monthly fee. I am also bringing my waterproof pouch I use for kayaking. My phone still works through the plastic. 

With food and 3.5 liters of water, my pack weighed in at 27lbs.