GDMBR, Tour Divide, or Tour Divide Max? The first 3 steps are fairly easy to check off your list. After completing the bikepacking triple crown, https://oneofsevenproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/rsz_2020_td_ds_sb_12_cover.jpg, http://oneofsevenproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/1of7-logo-lockup-grey-1132x212-300x56.png, https://oneofsevenproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Untitled-design-9.jpg, https://oneofsevenproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/alaska-mountains-haulroad-bikepacking.jpg, https://oneofsevenproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/transportation-flying-1.jpg, https://oneofsevenproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/tourdivide-resupply-oneofsevenproject.jpg, https://oneofsevenproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/tourdivide-classic-scenery-montana.jpg. Simply clicking on the links below with our affiliates supports the Project. The trail is 1,130 km (700 mi) long and ranges in elevation from 1,055 m (3,461 ft… A quick guide to getting the right bike to tackle the rough conditions of the GDMBR. A detailed look at what I used on the Tour Divide, what worked and what didn’t. Consider the following when testing your set up: Being that I’m also a Triple Crown thru-hiker I’m used to quality planning tools. Snow can be found or occur at anytime on the route. The Great Divide Trail (GDT) is a wilderness hiking trail in the Canadian Rockies. As mentioned earlier, this is where you do your homework. During that time you’ll run into every type of weather you can image. We all train differently, so I won’t pretend to tell you how you should. The Continental Divide Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail both stretch from Mexico to Canada, but the CDT offers up a far more diverse landscape than the PCT. This … In 2000, Dustin Lynx breathed new life in to the GDT by releasing his guidebook "Hiking Canada's Great Divide Trail". It is one of the most spectacular and challenging long‐distance trails on the planet. But by the mid-1980s, long after Parks Canada had abandoned the idea, provincial support waned, the Great Divide Trail Association faded from existence and the concept of the GDT nearly disappeared. Race or Tour? ... "The Great Pacific Divide Route is fast becoming one of the Great American routes. Each river system feeds into a distinct ocean basin, bay, or sea. Nearly 2,100 miles of the route is composed of county, Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and Canadian provincial unpaved roads. The Great Divide Trail association is asking folks who are hiking the trail to be self sufficient and avoid re-supplying in small towns that may not have the capacity to manage an outbreak; Alberta Provincial Parks are open for day use and camping (at 50% capacity). Try different ways and see which is the best. Highlights from the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route The GDT passes through five National Parks: Waterton Lakes, Banff, Kootenay, Yoho and Jasper; nine Provincial Parks: Akamina-Kishinena, Castle, Castle Wildland, Elk Lakes, Peter Lougheed, Height of the Rockies, Mount Assiniboine, Mount Robson and Kakwa; four wilderness areas: Beehive Natural Area, Kananaskis Country, White Goat Wilderness Area and Willmore Wilderness Area; and four forest districts: Bow/Crow, Cranbrook, Golden and Robson Valley.[4]. For most of us this is a once in a lifetime event. Checkout my post, Tour Divide Resupply Planner, where I give you everything you need to plan your own resupply/itinerary. It will also get you used to a loaded bike. Don’t think you can just slap your gear in your bags, check their tightness and go. Don't get lost on the GDMBR! The Great Divide Mountain Bike Route is a dirt route from Canada to Mexico. … ». Categories Great Divide Trail, The Hiking Life Blog Tags 12 Long Walks, Backpacking, Cam Honan, Great Divide Trail, Hiking In a Nutshell The Hiking Life is a compilation of tips and advice on trip planning, lightweight backpacking techniques, and improving your wilderness skill set. Ensure less tree hits with this t-shirt. How long does it take to hike the entire trail? The Great Divide Trail traverses the Continental Divide between Alberta and British Columbia as its unsigned route wanders the wilderness of the Canadian Rockies for more than 1100 km (680 mi). The CDT, alongside the Appalachian Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail make up the triple crown of hiking. Canada's Great Divide Trail For 30 years, some wide-eyed dreamers have been chiseling a 745-mile route through the Canadian Rockies. Cliff White was the project coordinator and used the data from the project as the basis of an undergraduate thesis. I found it mentally hard to ride into the night after already being on the bike for 16+ hours. I am human and might have missed something. The more work you do before hand and information you have available to you during the race, the better off you’ll be. It starts just over the border from Glacier National Park in Montana and continues up the Rocky Mountain Range through renowned areas such as Banff and Jasper. I show pros/cons, tips, things that didn’t work and did, and what  I would do differently next time. The remainder is 60 miles of singletrack trails and 950 miles of paved roads including close to 50 miles of paved bike paths. Back road riding all the way from Canada to the Mexican border. A well put together resupply and itinerary are key items, that can effect both the success and ease of your race/tour of the Divide. Outside of the National Parks, the route south of Palliser Pass was originally mapped in 1974 by six University of Calgary students with support from the Alberta Wilderness Association and the Federal Opportunities for Youth Program. After finishing the Bikepacking Triple Crown I realized bikepacking didn’t have quality planning tools available. Yes, as you would have to stay in designated campgrounds in the National and Provincial Parks you will pass, so it is recommended that you arrange for all park entry permits and campsite reservations in advance. Tour Divide challenges a fixed course annually called the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route.Not only is the Great Divide Route a true classic, its 'primary track' is pursued with consistency by TD athletes so that year to year, finish times may always be compared directly to the record books.. By 2004, a group known as the Friends of the Great Divide Trail[1] began to work on the GDT once again, dedicated to maintaining the original section of the GDT running through unprotected Alberta Crown Forest Reserve lands, from North Fork Pass to Fording River Pass, that was constructed in the 1970s and 80s. Thru-hiking is pretty much riding, eating, sleeping then repeating. Not the most interesting hike, but part of the OCDnature of thru hikers make us endure it. Chances are you won’t follow your itinerary once on the route but it still serves as a reminder of what your goal was/is. The Friends of Canadian Corridor (FoCC) have now seen the completion of their Pick My Project 1.8km track in the…. A safe estimate for hiking the Great Divide Trail is eight weeks. Some sections were unknown to the rangers we spoke with. In 1970, Jim Thorsell developed the first-ever GDT guide: the "Provisional Trail Guide and Map for the Proposed Great Divide Trail" and the national park service approved the project with the objective of completing the GDT by 1975. At present, the Great Divide Trail is about 75% singletrack, 10% wilderness route and 15% old roads and ATV trails. $20.00 + tax, Purchase SOBO here. This is Section F, the second northernmost section of it. Find the METRIC version here. Parks Canada indicated that several of the sections we were interested in (mainly around Jasper) have been permanently abandoned. Racing in the company of others (There’s no guarantee others will be racing near you). June 11, 2021, 8 am ???? The GDT (Great Divide Trail) is a long distance hike along the Continental Divide in Canada. Navigations skills are key, and having experience hiking long distances through rough terrain will do well to prepare you for the Great Divide Trail. Jackpine High Route. You have many options. Rather, I’ll give you some tips and tell you some of the things that made the TD hard for me. The process of planning a trip of this kind can be time consuming and stressful. The weather window for the Tour Divide (GDMBR) is from June to Mid-October. With a limited number of audio book and batteries … Northern terminus: Waterton Lake Highest Elevation:14,278 ft (Grays Peak CO) Lowest Elevation:4,200 ft The Continental Divide Trail (CDT) is a long-distance trail that runs from the Canadian border to the Mexican border. In depth look at what I would bring for gear and why, if I rode the Tour Divide again. Everything you need to plan a bikepacking trip on the Tour Divide. After completing the bikepacking triple crown, I decided to make this Tour Divide Planning Guide (GDMBR). Get out there and ride your bike loaded. (Banff, AB – YMCA), Starting with others (safety, chance to share knowledge). An untested set up will result in unneeded stress during your race/tour. Which Bike? $10.00 + tax, Purchase here. From Banff, Canada to Antelope Wells, New Mexico, The Great Divide Mountain Bike Route is the longest continuous off pavement bike trail in the world. The Data Sheet has the most info. The Great Divide is the major hydrological divide of North America. On April 22, I'll begin my third long trek, connecting the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) in the United States to Canada's Great Divide Trail (GDT) for a 3,800-mile traverse along the spine of the Rockies. Example: A and B, then B to C, and so on. [2] Since then, the volunteer-run GDTA has been active in conducting maintenance and trail building throughout the length of the Great Divide Trail. A continental divide is a naturally occurring boundary or ridge separating a continents river systems. Story and images by Jonathan & Roseann Hanson Picture a route two and a half thousand miles long, stretching from Mexico to Canada, traversing Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana, with elevations from 4,000 feet to a cloud-scraping 13,000 feet. Mary Jane Cox, Jenny Feick, Chris Hart, Dave Higgins, Cliff White, and Dave Zevick surveyed an estimated 4,800 km (3,000 mi) along the proposed GDT route outside of the National Parks. The Great Divide Trail is over 1,100km long. The Route. Trail Profile: The Great Divide Trail, 680 Miles Through the Canadian Rockies The very name “Great Divide Trail” is a bit of a misnomer, implying a walk on a cleared two-foot-wide strip of dirt. Depending on your pace you’ll be spending anywhere from two weeks or more on the Divide. Checkout the snowpack levels at the Snotel website to find out. 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