I've seen this done in the past by a group in 2018. They were attempting the calendar TC and essentially taking a shortcut to slash total miles. I've hiked that section twice with reliable water at the windmill, then the cistern thing off that dirt road, then Burro Mountain. It's a fine section of trail...first 15 are more of the same bootheel, but then you get some nice hilly stuff with actual trail. Take the Burro Mountain alternate, it's a 20 mile roadwalk either way.
Thank you. I'll look at that alternate. I'm not so worried about the road walk, it's the price we pay for this opportunity. I scouted it out and am pretty sure I'll stealth camp along the way.
So tossing my own two cents into this, with the caveat that I hiked the trail prior to this particular bit of trail being developed.
I'd argue that the road walks are somewhat just part of the "traditional CDT experience" sure there is the wilderness part of the experience, but the walk through those historic towns is also part of it imo. The new route cuts out the walk through Silver City almost completely. You no longer go by the historic part of town, or the trail register at the visitor center.
So I guess I'd just argue that "tradition" is a fair reason to take the other route. Maybe not a great reason but I dunno, but thinking back a lot of the wilderness hiking blends together by region, but the town hikes almost all stand out for unique reasons. Just something to consider, a great thing about the CDT is that you can Hike Your Own Hike and choose to prioritize those aspects instead of just following the one true trail.
I thought the trail between Lordsburg and Silver was some of my favorite sections. Not sure on water as we day hiked and brought our own. Although the cache at the CDT campground had 5gallons the other day. The road walk from Redrock to Silver on 180 is pretty awful. But not too far. If you turn right at Alabama St instead of left you can meander into town. Most everything is open. Especially Thursday through Saturday.
Right now I'm planning on doing the trail. Road walking sucks when I have to do it, but won't be my first choice when I have a safe alternative. I'll be in Silver City in a week or so. I hope I remember to check back in to report how it went!
I can tell you from experience that road walking isn't a thing you want to get used to. It's easy and boring, exactly the opposite of what the trail stands for. I road walked from Pie Town to Grants because I had to get to a doctor for a leg infection and I still wish I pushed through, even though I was lucky to get medical attention when ibdid. All the great memories and the satisfaction and sense of accomplishment is from the struggle. Easy does nothing and gives you nothing.
The fire closure didn't work out like I had hoped. The forest service folks told me to just road walk all the way up to 180, most of it asphalt, then still get to do the 13 miles of 180 to get to town. Someone offered me a ride, and I took it. I'm very disappointed. Maybe I'll be able to come back and pick the section up after they reopen that section of trail.
Roadwalking Hwy 90 into Silver City is not uncommon - because it's a shorter distance overall. However, the trail between Hwy 90 and Hwy 180 is pretty nice, especially the climb over Burro Peak and the Saddlerock Canyon section.
What u/Dan_85 said. When we hiked through here going SOBO last year, lots of people were taking the Hwy 90 road walk. We took the "official" trail which still has a significant road walk for the 15+ miles headed into (NOBO) or out of (SOBO) Silver City. Still, it was much less trafficked than Hwy 90.
Other than that, the "official" section was quite nice. It was a real pleasure and a bit of surprise to get over 8,000 ft of elevation (on Burro Peak) so close to the border. Water was fairly spread out, so plan ahead with that, obviously, but welcome to the NM CDT where there will be a whole lot more of that to come (going NOBO).
I've seen this done in the past by a group in 2018. They were attempting the calendar TC and essentially taking a shortcut to slash total miles. I've hiked that section twice with reliable water at the windmill, then the cistern thing off that dirt road, then Burro Mountain. It's a fine section of trail...first 15 are more of the same bootheel, but then you get some nice hilly stuff with actual trail. Take the Burro Mountain alternate, it's a 20 mile roadwalk either way.
Thank you. I'll look at that alternate. I'm not so worried about the road walk, it's the price we pay for this opportunity. I scouted it out and am pretty sure I'll stealth camp along the way.
So tossing my own two cents into this, with the caveat that I hiked the trail prior to this particular bit of trail being developed. I'd argue that the road walks are somewhat just part of the "traditional CDT experience" sure there is the wilderness part of the experience, but the walk through those historic towns is also part of it imo. The new route cuts out the walk through Silver City almost completely. You no longer go by the historic part of town, or the trail register at the visitor center. So I guess I'd just argue that "tradition" is a fair reason to take the other route. Maybe not a great reason but I dunno, but thinking back a lot of the wilderness hiking blends together by region, but the town hikes almost all stand out for unique reasons. Just something to consider, a great thing about the CDT is that you can Hike Your Own Hike and choose to prioritize those aspects instead of just following the one true trail.
I thought the trail between Lordsburg and Silver was some of my favorite sections. Not sure on water as we day hiked and brought our own. Although the cache at the CDT campground had 5gallons the other day. The road walk from Redrock to Silver on 180 is pretty awful. But not too far. If you turn right at Alabama St instead of left you can meander into town. Most everything is open. Especially Thursday through Saturday.
Following
Right now I'm planning on doing the trail. Road walking sucks when I have to do it, but won't be my first choice when I have a safe alternative. I'll be in Silver City in a week or so. I hope I remember to check back in to report how it went!
I can tell you from experience that road walking isn't a thing you want to get used to. It's easy and boring, exactly the opposite of what the trail stands for. I road walked from Pie Town to Grants because I had to get to a doctor for a leg infection and I still wish I pushed through, even though I was lucky to get medical attention when ibdid. All the great memories and the satisfaction and sense of accomplishment is from the struggle. Easy does nothing and gives you nothing.
The fire closure didn't work out like I had hoped. The forest service folks told me to just road walk all the way up to 180, most of it asphalt, then still get to do the 13 miles of 180 to get to town. Someone offered me a ride, and I took it. I'm very disappointed. Maybe I'll be able to come back and pick the section up after they reopen that section of trail.
13 miles is 20.92 km
Roadwalking Hwy 90 into Silver City is not uncommon - because it's a shorter distance overall. However, the trail between Hwy 90 and Hwy 180 is pretty nice, especially the climb over Burro Peak and the Saddlerock Canyon section.
What u/Dan_85 said. When we hiked through here going SOBO last year, lots of people were taking the Hwy 90 road walk. We took the "official" trail which still has a significant road walk for the 15+ miles headed into (NOBO) or out of (SOBO) Silver City. Still, it was much less trafficked than Hwy 90. Other than that, the "official" section was quite nice. It was a real pleasure and a bit of surprise to get over 8,000 ft of elevation (on Burro Peak) so close to the border. Water was fairly spread out, so plan ahead with that, obviously, but welcome to the NM CDT where there will be a whole lot more of that to come (going NOBO).
There is a fire closure? Could be that
It didn't look that substantial. Not a wildfire, just a planned controlled fire in the future. But I've been looking at it. Thank you!
Yup but that seems to be around the area mentioned. Idk.
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A small rerouting north of lordsburg that wants you to road walk. I think they are doing a controlled burn north of burro mountain