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I think part of the problem with cairns is that you have no idea what
they're there for, or which direction they point. Plus, the person who
built the cairn could well have been misdirected themselves, or had
some other agenda... In Colorado, nearly every hilltop or mountaintop
has a cairn on it... but that doesn't mean you need to hike there - if
anything they're just more confusing. <br>
<br>
That said, there are some places where the trail is neatly cairned,
parts of central NM and parts of MT come to mind... <br>
<br>
The bulk of the confusion currently on the trail is in southern NM. The
rest of the trail really isn't so bad. <br>
<br>
The best thing you can do to stay found is just that - stay found. You
ought to know where you are on the map at all times. Most people get
misdirected because they put their head down and hike 5 miles without
consulting their map. Then, it's too late... They don't know where they
are, and have a heck of a time figuring it out. I've done this
myself... Also, it really helps to know things like how to use a
compass properly to orient a map, how to use your GPS (if you have
one), how to interpret topography from a topographic map, etc. I'd
recommend this book:<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.amazon.com/Staying-Found-Complete-Compass-Handbook/dp/0898867851/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241724199&sr=8-1">http://www.amazon.com/Staying-Found-Complete-Compass-Handbook/dp/0898867851/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241724199&sr=8-1</a><br>
There are other good ones as well...<br>
<br>
Good luck out there to everyone!<br>
<br>
-Jonathan<br>
<br>
champ baum wrote:
<blockquote cite="mid:331462.40769.qm@web30001.mail.mud.yahoo.com"
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<div>i am planning on doing the CDT next year (saving cash
money now) and have been reading past and current journals and getting
as much info as i can.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>hey i hear that there are many trailjunctions that are
unmarked and can be confused because of the many dirt roads in some
areas....well my question is do hikers not build cairnes at some
junctions? 90% of the backpacking i do is in the southwest and there
may be many areas where the route is unmarked or difficult to find, but
in many places a thoughtful soul is kind enough to build a cairne. I
have been reading many complaints about the BLM or whomever not
maintaing and marking the trail, but this is also the appeal of the CDT
to most i think. So the ultimate question is why not build a cairne at
the junctions you (current and future backpackers) have to backtrack to
or think might be confusing to others. Although maybe not building them
may help the CDT keep its challenging appeal......</div>
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