By Dan Carter

This piece is an excerpt from our December 2020 edition of Passages. If you are interested in reading more, the December Passages is currently available to members and will become available for non-members in April.

When the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) was designated by Congress in 1978, it was the longest National Scenic Trail in the country, stretching 3,100 miles from Mexico to Canada along remarkable vistas in New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana. This new pathway along the spine of the continent was not only the beginning of a significant conservation effort, but also an undertaking that would bring travelers to the heart of some of the country’s most treasured landscapes. In a viability study for the proposed CDT, the Department of the Interior describes the CDT experience as one where “users would wind their way through some of the most spectacular scenery in the United States and have an opportunity to enjoy a greater diversity of physical and natural qualities than found on any other extended trail.”

Realizing the full promise and potential of the CDT would require the completion of an uninterrupted trail. At the time of its inception, the trail was only partially complete and would require an extensive amount of trail building and route finding.

Since its founding in 2012, the Continental Divide Trail Coalition has continued this effort alongside the federal land management agencies, partners, other organizations, and volunteers. Completing the trail is and remains one of the core missions of our organization. However, creating a continuous tread involves not only clearing a trail but routing a path that places the CDT onto protected public lands. This process involves extensive research, planning, design and coordination with agencies and stakeholders to find appropriate routes for new tread. Today, approximately 94% of the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail is protected on public lands. (See more in our Atlas of the CDT.) This leaves 190 miles that still need to be relocated by moving the route off of motorized areas (like roadsides and Forest Service roads) and onto trails. New CDT trail will be constructed on protected public lands and right-of-way easements across private lands from willing landowners, eventually situating the trail completely within a protected corridor.

At the helm of the trail completion effort is Dan Carter, CDTC’s Trail and Lands Conservation Manager (TLCM). Dan was hired in October 2019 and has hit the trail running, picking up where previous efforts left off. The priority of the Trail and Lands Conservation Program has been to complete the CDT across the major trail gap areas including Muddy Pass near Steamboat Springs, Colorado; Cochetopa Hills west of Salida, Colorado; Mangas Valley outside of Silver City, New Mexico; a long road walk between Pie Town and Grants, New Mexico; through El Malpais National Monument and Conservation Area; and through the town of Cuba, New Mexico.

Trail routing is not only the assessment of where a trail could be physically constructed; it involves a collaborative process to ensure a trail is meeting the needs and expectations of a diverse group of community members, stakeholders, and land managers. It must also meet the objectives outlined in the National Trail Systems Act of 1978 and CDT Comprehensive Plan of 2009. To facilitate this type of dialogue and collaboration, the TLCM has coordinated agency partners, community members, and businesses to form working groups in all the major gap locations along the CDT. The working groups consist of representatives from the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and State agencies such as Colorado State Land Board, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, and the New Mexico State Land Office. The Step Into Cuba Alliance has played an active role in Cuba, and Freeport McMoRan is a committed industry partner in the Mangas Valley working group. Other interested partners such as Big Agnes, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, New Mexico Land Conservancy, Ancestral Lands Conservation Corps, and many community members have assisted in this work over the last year. Read on for summaries of two of the major gap projects in New Mexico and Colorado. 

​New Mexico

New Mexico has the most trail gaps of any of  the CDT states. The long, dry road walks in New Mexico have unfortunately become notorious among the thru-hiking community. There are three major gap areas where CDTC has been working: Mangas Valley (pictured above), Pie Town to Grants, and Cuba. 

PIE TOWN TO GRANTS: Pie Town, New Mexico, is known for its quirky name, delicious pies, and the Toaster House (home of the original CDT trail angel, Nita Lorande) and is a favorite stopover along the CDT. Heading into Pie Town and continuing north towards El Malpais National Monument, the town of Grants, and Tsoodził  (Mt. Taylor) entails traveling on 83 miles of road, making this the longest CDT trail gap. Two working groups were formed to approach this long stretch. One group is focused on the gaps around El Malpais National Monument and National Conservation Area south of Grants, whereas the other is focused on the gaps north and south of Pie Town.

The El Malpais working group identified two alternative routes that will not only reroute the CDT off of roads but provide a more direct route to water and the town of Grants. This route will also connect with other existing trails, including the current CDT route, providing more robust day-use options for locals and visitors alike. To address the high density of sensitive, archaeological resources in the El Malpais area, the TLCM has been working with the NPS Archaeologist to identify the optimal location for the trail. Most recently, the TLCM contacted the Ancestral Lands Conservation Corps to help with understanding the lands of the Acoma Pueblo and coordinate with past GIS work completed by a CDT Trail Apprentice Program alum. The Gateway Community of Grants, New Mexico; the Cibola National Forest; and Cibola Trails Alliance are improving the trail through the town of Grants and building reroutes around Tsoodził in the Cibola National Forest.

The TLCM and staff from the Cibola National Forest have begun scouting routes closer to Pie Town. This section will connect Pie Town to the Alamocita Creek parcel purchased through the Land and Water Conservation Fund through a partnership between the BLM and Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. CDTC and partners are currently researching access across the private land to the north of Alamocita Creek.

If you would like to read about the other trail gap projects in New Mexico, check out our most recent edition of Passages. 

Colorado

MUDDY PASS: The Muddy Pass Gap is the last major gap on the CDT in Colorado. This gap is 29 miles in length, with 14 miles traveling along the dangerous, narrow Colorado State Highway 14. Over the last year or so, the Muddy Pass project has gained the attention and support of local outdoor business Big Agnes, and former U.S. Senator Cory Gardner. The TLCM formed a working group consisting of USFS, BLM, Colorado State Land Board, and Colorado Parks and Wildlife staff. The group has revisited past proposed alignments and discussed current opportunities for closing this gap. This year, with wildfires, snow, and a pandemic to contend with, the field season for scouting the Muddy Pass area was limited. However, the TLCM spent eight days in the Muddy Pass area to look at the proposed alignments, explore other alternatives, meet with agency partners, and begin conversations with landowners and community members. After many miles of bushwhacking through the mountains and forest, navigating past moose, wading through streams, and dodging summer storms, the TLCM refined one of the proposed alignments. This route would move the trail off of USFS roads that are increasing in motorized use, and onto new sustainable single-track trails. Discussions with the working group and private landowners will continue through the winter to address sensitive wildlife, ranching, and private property concerns. In the summer of 2021, with a refined plan, the TLCM intends to continue listening to and building relationships with the local community, scouting possible alignments, and completing the Optimal Location Review (OLR) for Muddy Pass.

The past year has been both busy and productive, filled with many hours hiking throughout the CDT corridor, meeting with and coordinating working groups and partners, and learning about the history of the gap projects and the richness of the Continental Divide. In the coming year, we will build off this strong foundation and complete the Optimal Location Reviews for all the gaps areas, and finalize planning. We’ll utilize new funding from the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which was funded permanently by the passage of the Great American Outdoors Act last year, and restored to its original intent by Secretarial Order this month.

Dan Carter is the Trail and Lands Conservation Manager for CDTC. Dan has been hooked on the CDT since his very first time bushwhacking from his front door in Las Cruces, NM, to the mountains of the Black Range, when he became lost and slept only 5 minutes from the trail. Now a seasoned CDT hiker, Dan can be found exploring the trail near his home and throughout Southern NM.