I’ve had my route planned out for some time now. I’ve requestioned it about a thousand times and I still like it!

I’ll be hiking approximately 90 miles in the course of 6-7 days with my then 23 month old autistic son! That means carrying all the gear. It’s officially been decided my four legged, Riley, will be joining us too. He will love this adventure and knows these trails just as well as I do. Our last trip was just us two, now I get to share it with my son. 

  • Getting in some “practice” at Mt Sanitas.
  • Little Man’s version of practice. Showing off his hat we’ll be bringing with us.

The idea of taking a small, young, autistic child with me is daunting. But it’s also so exciting. The outdoors are his favorite and we’ll be getting away from the city and a lot of the things that set him off. More to come on planning with a special needs kid later.

For now the route. 

  • Riley will be so excited to go! This area will be a bit different after a couple logging projects in the area to help the forest be healthier.
  • Excited to make this summit with the little man. We tried to make it in a day hike last year and didn’t quite make it.

This is how I have it typed up…which looks kind of silly when you take it out of context.

Route

Payne Creek/Brookside 607
8 miles To Craig Creek 608
#1 camp 4 miles down Craig Creek day total 12

2 miles To Ben Tyler 606
5.5 miles To CO trail set 5
#2 camp 7 miles down CO Trail Seg 4/5 meet day total 15

8 miles Brookside McCurdy 2 miles to lost park
#3 camp 3 miles down Brookside day total 13

Take 607 3 miles to Bison
4 miles To Lake Park 639
7 miles To Hankins Pass 630
#4 camp near Hankins Pass day total 14 miles

4 miles To Goose Creek 612
9.5 miles to Wigwam trail 609
#5 camp near Wigwam merge day total 13.5

1 mile To rolling creek 663
6 miles To CO Trail
3 miles To Payne Creek 637
#6 camp or push to home day total 10

9 miles To 607 then 3 miles to home

Total approx 90 miles

This will to some extent be an outer loop of the wilderness area. I’m getting super excited as the day draws nearer.

Map needed for this trip. This time I’ll actually need both sides!