Well I am back in Helena! It was a wild ride, the Hayduke Trail. Even if I complained a bit in my journal, I loved everyday out there. Even the days I was suffering from stomach problems, I could not ask for a better place to be sick, well... besides a bed with a toilet nearby! But really, it was a great trip. All in all, I walked about 750 miles. I missed nearly 90 miles, due to the stomach problems and bad weather near Tropic. I wore out 3 pairs of shoes, ripped holes in my hat, tent, shorts, rain jacket, and had a mouse chew through one of my stuff sacks.
To future Hayduke hikers: I would first of all recommend doing this trail with at least one other person, at least the first time. Its an extremely demanding trail, requiring you to constantly be thinking of where you are, where you are going, and how the hell you are going to get there. I could not have asked for a better hiking partner. d=rt helped me, I helped d=rt. We shared water, food, fuel, and its always nice to have someone to laugh with, or at. Given that I have hiked the trail once, I would be inclined to try it again solo. It would mean a lot of time completely alone, but it would be interesting.
I believe that we hit this trail at the perfect time. We never had to deal with too much snow. We also had plenty of water. We had a few cold nights and mornings, but nothing that we couldnt handle.
The Hayduke has its challenges to hike. The biggest challenge we saw was the permits. Arches, Canyonlands, Capital Reef, Escalante, Glen Canyon, Grand Canyon, Bryce, and Zion, all require permits to camp overnight. We honestly only took our Grand Canyon permit seriously. Most public areas do not have the funds to have folks out patrolling on a regular basis. We spent over $140 on permits for this trip, and I honestly think that I would probably poach the parks if I did the hike again. A $100 ticket wouldn't be terrible. Sticking to permits for 45 days would be terrible. I would even consider trying to packraft the Grand Canyon. It would be impossible to get a permit, but it would be an amazing addition to the trip.
East to west, west to east. Either way would work on this trip. Hitching across the Colorado River in Marble Gorge could pose a problem. Other than that, there are a few climbs that would be hard to find going Westbound, but it would be okay!
At any rate, here I am back in Helena. Jobless and homeless is not so bad after all! I will be going to Wyoming for an internship in June, right before me and Lauren will take off for the Pacific Crest Trail on June 14th. This year has already been something that I will never forget.
Its 70-80 degrees in Helena right now. I ran the Prickly Pear 30K today! I ran it slower than the last 2 years, but I also did not push myself too hard, and feel better than I did the last 2 years!
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