Trail Days 2026 In Review: Experiencing the CDT Community at Its Best

“Zamboni” raises his hand the moment he finishes his pie, taking first place in the Trail Days 2026 Pie Eating Contest sponsored by Oboz. About a hundred people gathered around the table in Gough Park to cheer the nine competitors on. Photo: Alex Derr / CDTC.

This was my first Trail Days. After joining the Continental Divide Trail Coalition (CDTC) team last November, I’d been counting down to the 11th Annual Continental Divide Trail Days in Silver City, New Mexico from April 23 to 26. I’d seen the photos and heard the stories, but four days on the ground taught me something I couldn’t have learned any other way: the CDT community isn’t only defined by the Continental Divide Trail. It’s defined by the people who hike, support, and call the Continental Divide landscapes home.

By every measure, this was one of the best-attended Trail Days in years, and the weather cooperated beautifully. Over 200 people joined us at the Thursday Kickoff Party at Open Space Brewing and the Friday Night Fiesta at Little Toad Creek Distillery. Saturday’s Adventure Fest at Gough Park welcomed hundreds of visitors and more than 65 vendors. Even before the official kickoff, you could feel the excitement for the weekend taking shape. Our partners at Historic Silver City Waterworks hosted free camping for thru-hikers, and the campground was filled every single night.

The 2026 northbound class of Continental Divide Trail thru-hikers gathers in Gough Park on Saturday for the official class photo, joined by Smokey Bear and the Gila National Forest Fire Prevention Team. Photo: Alex Derr / CDTC.

If there’s one thread that ran through the weekend, it was the energy of this year’s northbound thru-hiker class.

Thursday night kicked things off with the first-ever Hiker Olympics at Open Space Brewing, organized by Alexa “Highlight” Tubbs, a 2019 thru-hiker alum, CDTC board member, and Open Space co-owner. About 20 thru-hikers competed in events designed to  celebrate the absurdities of trail life: 

• a water filter race using deliberately murky water (a nod to the questionable cattle tanks that fuel hikers across much of New Mexico), 
• a two-minute cathole digging competition that quickly became an unintentional Leave No Trace lesson when contestants discovered that site selection matters far more than effort, 
• a runway-style hitchhiker pose-off, 
• and a tent setup-and-teardown sprint (made more difficult by a steady breeze).

“Sprinter” and “Priest” both walked away with medals that night, but all participants left with some snacks and prizes to pack away as they begin their long hike north.

The Hiker Olympics cathole-digging competition at Open Space Brewing on Thursday night. Judges measured depth with a ruler and awarded bonus points for technique. Sprinter (right, in orange) was among the winners. CDTC Board member and Open Space co-owner Alexa “Highlight” Tubbs (left, with clipboard) organized the night’s events. Photo: Alex Derr / CDTC.

Saturday brought the Pie Eating Contest that was sponsored by Oboz and set up next to their booth in the center of Gough Park. About 100 people and nine competitors gathered around to cheer them on, with our Executive Director Teresa Martinez calling the action over the microphone. Zamboni took first place. His strategy, by his own account: “I just took my glasses off so I couldn’t see what was happening and went for it.” He walked away with a $250 Oboz gift card, perfect for a fresh pair of trail shoes. For a few minutes, everyone in Gough Park was rooting for the same nine people.

Friday afternoon’s headliner was Heather “Anish” Anderson: National Geographic Adventurer of the Year, three-time Triple Crown hiker, and author of Mud, Rocks, Blazes, Thirst, Farther, and Adventure Ready. We were honored to host a discussion of her newest book at the CDT Culture & Landscape Speaker Series.

Heather “Anish” Anderson speaks to a full house at Seedboat Collective during the CDT Culture & Landscape Speaker Series. Photo: Alex Derr / CDTC.

Anish walked us through her story from the very beginning, back when she started with zero backpacking experience and a dream. “The dream came first. The skills and the experience came after, in service of it,” Anish said. 

That reframing landed hard with me, and I imagine with a lot of people in the room who are dreaming about hikes they haven’t yet taken. We all start somewhere, and we all grow on the Trail.  

Heather was funny, deeply humble, and unflinchingly personal about the questions that have driven her. The line to get her book signed wound out the front door. Later that night at the Fiesta, I asked her what was next. Her answer: she’s planning to hike all three Triple Crown trails again, of course, but this time slowly, and in no particular rush. A fitting reply for a CDT legend!

If I had to pick one moment from the weekend that stood out most, it’s this one.

At the Friday Night Fiesta, we always close out our gear raffle with a homemade apple pie baked by Teresa, New Mexico-style with piñon and green chile. The pie is the closer, the grand finale, and the room knows it. This year, the very last name pulled belonged to Carol, a CDTC volunteer who’d spent all day helping run the Speaker Series, in addition to attending many previous stewardship projects. The whole party cheered when we saw her walking up to the front. Of all the people who could’ve won, few deserved it more.

And then, without missing a beat, Carol carried the pie back to her table and shared it with a group of international thru-hikers she’d been sitting with. She shared a slice of New Mexico with people she’d just met, from Germany, Sweden, and Poland, in her quiet, offhand way. 

That moment said everything about what Trail Days is. Generosity, repeatedly, in small forms. People show up, give their time, and pass their generosity along when something good comes their way.

The Friday Night Fiesta at Little Toad Creek Distillery, with The Zonora Band on stage. On the table at left, slices of Teresa’s homemade New Mexico-style apple pie sit ready for sharing, courtesy of CDTC volunteer Carol, who’d just won it in the gear raffle and immediately passed it around her table. Photo: Alex Derr / CDTC.

Sunday brought a different rhythm. Our partners at Oboz led a community hike out to the CDT at the Jacks Peak re-route, drawing 10 to 20 folks who got an early look at what’s on its way. They even got to test out some new prototype boots, thanks to our friends at Oboz.

I joined Silver City Museum Curator Javier Marrufo’s Historic Walking Tour with 25 to 30 thru-hikers, locals, and visitors. What made it special was that the tour wasn’t just about buildings; it was about Silver City’s social history, its struggles, and its triumphs. We climbed up to La Capilla, the recently rebuilt chapel that overlooks the town, and it felt like the right way to close out a weekend in this remarkable trail town.

Tour participants take in the view of Silver City from La Capilla, the recently rebuilt chapel above town, during Sunday morning’s Historic Walking Tour led by Silver City Museum Curator Javier Marrufo. Photo: Alex Derr / CDTC.

From there, I ran over to the Big Ditch, where our partners at Pick It Up–Toss No Mas were leading a Community Cleanup with Jaime, our CDTC Office Manager and Bookkeeper. The group filled four large garbage bags of litter in just 90 minutes. 

One of the Toss No Mas volunteers shared a fact that’s stuck with me ever since: if every person picked up just 150 pieces of litter a year, about one piece every other day, we would essentially solve the litter problem outdoors. Meaningful impact doesn’t always require grand gestures.

None of this happens without an extraordinary community of partners, sponsors, volunteers, and staff. 

Huge thanks to Oboz Footwear, Mountainsmith, Open Space Brewing, Little Toad Creek Distillery, the National Forest Foundation, Gossamer Gear, Morning Star Sports, Magnet Designs, Osprey Packs, Kodiak Cakes, Katabatic Gear, Whiskey Creek Zocalo, Silver City Daily Press, Pick It Up–Toss No Mas, and the New Mexico Outdoor Recreation Division. 

A special shoutout to Martha at the National Forest Foundation, who somehow managed to play guitar with the Silver City String Beans Thursday night, speak at our Speaker Series Friday morning, and run her booth all day Saturday.

CDTC Staff and volunteers with our partners at Pick It Up–Toss No Mas filled four large garbage bags during Sunday morning’s Community Cleanup at the Big Ditch. Their reminder: if every person picked up just 150 pieces of litter a year, we would essentially solve the problem. Photo: Alex Derr / CDTC.

Thanks too to the 15 to 20 volunteers who showed up to help with setup, raffles, and a hundred unglamorous tasks in between, and to Simon, our Gateway Community Ambassador in Silver City, who hung posters all over town in the lead-up. To my CDTC teammates: it was an honor to spend four days alongside you. And Becca, our Community Engagement Manager, deserves enormous credit for shepherding this event through six months of planning. None of it happens without her. 

Finally, to Silver City: you are a gem. The night before the Festival, I met a local over dinner who got excited when I told him I worked with CDTC. “Trail Days is one of my favorite weekends of the year” he told me, “Everybody around here makes a point of being part of it.”

That sentiment came up over and over, from strangers at coffee shops who recognized my CDTC hat to neighbors who stopped me on the street. Your warmth made this weekend what it was.

Photos from Trail Days 2026 are available on our Facebook page and Instagram. Tag your own with #TrailDays2026 and #ContinentalDivideTrailDays.