Direction, Detours and Dates
Some facts and my opinions to go along with them...
Direction:
Seems like everyone is assuming we'll start in Denver. Why not Durango?
Detours:
I took a peek at the new (7th edition) CT guidebook. Elevation profiles have been updated! This should almost be mandatory reading for anyone attempting the trail as it has been rerouted in a several spots over the last 5 years. Also, the "official" detours are clearly defined in the book.
Might as well list 'em up so we can discuss. Starting from Denver we have:
1.) Mandatory Lost Creek Wilderness (LCW) Detour
a.) Ride out to Bailey, then up US-285 to Kenosha Pass. ~25mi
b.) Ride the Tarryall detour. 72 miles
c.) Hike 1st section of LCW (7ish miles), ride to Long Gulch, detour on FSR-56
2.) Optional Tenmile Range Detour
a.) Ride the Tenmile Bike Path
b.) Ride the actual CT
3.) Mandatory Holy Cross & Mt. Massive Wilderness Detour
a.) Ride from Wurtz Ditch Rd. to Leadville, then out to Halfmoon Creek TH
4.) Mandatory Collegiate Peaks Wilderness Detour
a.) Ride to Hwy. 24, left on CR-371 to Buena Vista. Out CR-306 to Avalanche TH
5.) Mandatory La Garita Wilderness (LGW) Detour
a.) Ride Rd. NN14 to KK14 over Los Pinos Pass to Hwy 149
b.) Ride to edge of LGW, hike 2.5 miles to Eddiesville TH, get lost trying to find Rd. NN14
6.) Optional Coney Summit Detour & Mandatory Weminuche Wilderness Detour
a.) Continue LGW Detour on Hwy 149, Ride over Cinnamon Pass to Silverton
b.) Ride the actual CT to Rio Grande Res. Rd, detour over Stony Pass to Silverton
c.) Ride the actual CT to Carson Saddle. Detour down Wager Gulch and over Cinnamon Pass to Silverton
Yup, that's a lot of friggin' detours. There are even more, so if you are adamant about adding another, let me know and I'll edit this post. I love nepbug's checkpoint + choose-your-own-adventure idea, but I think this
only makes sense for the LCW detour and
only if we outlaw going to Bailey. On all the other options, the detours would be
much faster!
In my opinion, if you're gonna hike at all, you might as well hike everything, so I vote for 'em all (detours, that is): 1a, 2a, 5a, 6a. Unfortunately, this makes the race probably only half on singletrack. But at ~500 miles, that's still a lot!
Dates:
If we can put off setting the date until next April, that would be perfect. Then, if the snowpack is low, (like this year, 2006) we can start in early/mid July. If it is a big spring snow season (like in 2005, especially in the San Juans), starting in early/mid July would make for a crappy race. If you have any doubts, check out some of the snow pics from my unsuccessful '05 attempt
here. I agree that the earlier we can start, the better, but when it comes down to it, I vote for less light and less snow - mid to late July. I also vote for the weekday start.
As for finish time predictions, having 1st hand knowledge of the abilities of several of the people posting here, I'll make a friendly wager of a beer or 3 that it goes in under 5 days! :eekster: Any takers?