Best time to hike the CT

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#1

I have two weeks to hike this year. And thanks to Mags and a few other people, I have decided to hike the Colorado Trail this year, rather than the Long trail. I don’t have enough time to hike the entire trail this year, but hopefully, I will have a week or so in 2008 to finish it. My questions deals with, when is the best time to hike the CT? One restraint due to my job, is that I can not take off the last two weeks in August and the first week in September. My first choice is the first two weeks in July, and second choice is the third and forth weeks in September.

TRIHIKER

#2

I’ve done the CDT in Colorado at both seasons (June-July and September-October). It was more beautiful in the early summer, but there were also a lot more people on the trail.

July is the most beautiful time, when the grass is lush and green and the flowers abundant, but you still have snow streaking the peaks. There may be mosquitoes then, but this year they weren’t all that bad. We met a lot of CT hikers around the first of July. It is the beginning of thunderstorm season though. End of September can be snowy and very cold. The leaves are turning, so it’s beautiful, but it is the beginning of winter in the high country - the vegetation is brown and gray, aside from the bright colors of the willows and the aspen. You may have winter conditions or Indian summer. There’s no way to know.

Ginny

#3

I hiked in July and it was gorgeous… great weather. I don’t remember the bugs being bad. Sept is always a good bet though…less folks too like Ginny said.

yappy

#4

Yellow and golden aspens, clear, cool, crisp fall weather, no bugs.

Dust

#5

Unless the Rockies in Colorado get a lot of late snow, I would vote for July. September has way too high a chance of snow, sleet, ice, etc.

Since you only have 2 weeks, I recommend the southern part of the trail - it is much more scenic. The elevation has never effected me, but as my name suggests, I go slow.

Turtle Walking