Hiking For Mental Health
Finding myself in the Rocky Mountains
I don’t remember how or when I heard of the Colorado Trail, I had to be a short time after my and husband I moved out to Colorado. I just remember thinking “ I have to do that”. If you’ve never heard of the Colorado Trail before, its a 485 mile trail that crosses Colorado from Denver to Durango, it is considered “mile for mile the most beautiful trail in America”.
In April 2017 my horse died, I lost my best friend, getting out of bed was a struggle every day as was getting through work that year. I didn’t know what to do with myself, the hobby that I had poured my heart into for the last 20 years and creature that I had been tied to and devoted my time to for the last 15 years was gone and I had nothing to fill that void. Work had already been a struggle prior to that, I was burnt out and suffering from severe compassion fatigue, even a change in gears brought no excitement. That summer we decided to make the move to CO, I thought a change in scenery and the thought of new adventure, it did for a while. I was excited for the new adventure of moving across country and what types of things we would do out here besides the camping, skiing and hiking we planned on doing, the Colorado Trail was not even on my radar at that point.
6 months ago I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder/clinical depression, I’d been struggling with depression since I was 15 but things had never been this bad. My new job in Colorado was interesting every day and yet I still found a way to be unhappy. I had planned on starting the trail last summer but after a 14 mile overnight backpacking trip I realized I wasn’t ready. I was out of shape, terrified of staying in the middle of the woods at night by myself and did not have an actual plan in place. The trail was put on the back burner,I was devastated and disappointed in myself for not having my shit together.
After going back therapy and getting a career coach to figure out what the hell to do with my life, I figured out I really needed to find activities that were a challenge and scared the crap out of me, backpacking the CT was one that fit the bill. I had to use my brain; adapt to changes on the trail (weather, wild animals) and the nail biting thought of sleeping in the woods by myself in the dark. I got my butt into gear and really started to prepare, I got a map and planned out my stops, I got the CT book and read all about the different segments; water availability, mileage, good spots to stop and camp, and altitude changes. I started to train a little but I’ve always hated structured exercise, so instead I just went for it. I had been doing more hiking since last year and had started skiing and felt I was more physically prepared.
I went through all my gear and along with the CT guide book figured out what I all had to pack. I planned to do 2-3 segments over 2-3 days every month from May-September. At this rate it would take me about 3 years to complete all 485 miles. The planned start date was for the end of May with segments 3-4.
Curious about what I bring on a 2 night backpacking trip? See attached link for full list of my gear, clothing, first aid and food supplies as well as what I pack for my dog. Want to learn more about the Colorado Trail? Visit their website at https://coloradotrail.org/
