Alone: Braving the Colorado Trail amidst Wild Weather

My Colorado Trail Packing List:
Grayl Ti Stove
Black Diamond Headlamp
Black Diamond Trekking Poles
Black Diamond Rain Pants

With many life changes happening, I headed to the Colorado Trail to get some solo time on the trail. My goal was to hike 75 miles from Durango to Molas Pass, near Silverton, through the spectacular San Juan mountains. This video is a long one. So grab some tea and or popcorn and settle in. Shoutout to other YouTube creators I'm inspired by: @MartijnDoolaard @kraigadams and @HarmenHoek

#backpacking #colorado #relaxing #calm

[kraigadams]

lovely work brother. like the narration ha

[Adshelsom]

I reckon I’m gonna call it and say this is my favourite video you’ve ever made, I’d love to see more of this, great mix of shots, music, quiet scenes and talking, also I LOVED the night lapse shots 😍

[miketheglassguy]

I have watched over 50 colorado trail videos and not 1 has even came close to this! I am so amazed by how you put this together. You put in so much work for this and i can’t tell you how inspired I am after watching this. I had to show my wife and even she was so impressed and was more excited for me to hit the trail next year. This is a masterpiece sir thank you for sharing!!

[rhinoD]

Eric you set the bar for hiking videos. So well documented and edited. Thank you for a wonderful experience for those of us that have jobs that won’t let us leave.

[Kenbur]

Eric, thank you for this. I am at the age where this type of hiking is not something I can do anymore. I still get out for shorter trips, usually 1 or 2 days but my body has its limits now that it never had when I was younger. Having said that - the scenes, the excellent recording, the editing, and the final product are by far some of the best of the best I've enjoyed and watched here on YouTube, and bring back many memories from my younger days in Montana, Washington State, South Dakota, and even a few here in Minnesota. Again thank you.

[Chris-ehdu]

Hey Eric, this video really touched me and just grabbed my soul in ways other videos on YT just don't. Wanted to say what an amazing job you did with this video, I know it takes tons of time editing to make something like this. Really great stuff, hope to see more!

[seansmart]

The production quality of this video is absolutely amazing.

[Trailryder]

This is some of the best videography I've seen of the trail. Really brought back some memories. I hiked the trail North to South in 2018 at the age of 61. There were a lot of points in the trail in which I remember thinking how cool it would be to see where I'm at from the air. I totally understand the time and effort it takes to set up the camera, walk away, then turn around and go back and get the camera, do this several times a day and still try to put in the miles. Well Done!

[vancey]

You can see that tent stake rip out at 26:20 just by simply zipping the fly closed. This is why I dumped my x-mid... those 4 stakes just need to do too much. And the bear cannister on the CT is overkill. But man... the effort you put into the exhaustive footage and getting miles in is amazing for a solo trip. A really nice edit.

[Carmelo-lmgm]

This is the Fastest 47 minutes and 26 secs I’ve seen on YouTube. Didn’t want it to end 👏🏼

Currently prepping for the full thru hike of the CT in July and this video just dumped a bunch of gas right into that fire 🤩🫡

[joakorey]

Eric. Thank you for your generosity. I can think of you saying to yourself "I should be on my own, I shouldn't be taking so much video, I just want to walk and enjoy, I hate my tripod, my camera!!!" Nevertheless you did it, and thank to that, now all of us can actually feel what you felt out there. Truly amazing Eric. The best and most pure hiking video ever. THANK YOU

[HolisticHikes]

One of your BEST videos Eric! The setup of those shots during the impending storm came out very cool. Can totally sense the amount of effort these videos took. ❤

[NVIK]

This is so much better than many overhyped hiking channels.

[mikesmusicmeddlings]

Beautiful video, the music, scenery, the camerawork, everything!

[ChristyHikes]

Hard to put into words.. most every scene was wonderfully captured. Hiking over the passes during a violent storm took guts and willpower. The morning sun lit mountains, the shooting stars at night! The drone footage was amazing!

[nickday]

What a simply wonderful video. Thank you. Absolutely loved it. The style and content are nearly beyond compare on YouTube. 😊

[Jasiel.]

This, KraigAdams and old western movies: this is entertainment and television! ❤️

[SarahDoesSass]

Eric, sincere congratulations on the major changes and milestones that are coelescing in your life. Also, thank you for sharing your journey. You've created a career educating people in this space with grace and class. Allowing us this peek behind the curtain into the person that is Eric is inspriring and I feel will grow a more robust connection with an audience who already cares about Eric the man, even if we have never met you.

I very much resonate with the desire to go solo for the purpose of introspection. I recently did a 44 mile mini-thru-hike in 48 hours to try to accomplish something similar in a shorter time frame. I called it clarity through suffering in a beautiful place. I would hike with muscles failing and felt my mind process through many of the negative thoughts and stresses that I was wrestling with before I stepped foot on the trail. I dealt with some decisions that I was avoiding and let anxiety simply linger until fatigue washed it away. It seems trite, but even in that short period time, something in my brain reset.

I hope your time on trail was helpful to you. While it seems that all the changes you are undertaking are positive ones, I am sure there is no shortage of fear or uncertainty... Some rational, some not so much 😉 In any event, you have a fan base rooting for you and are genuinely happy for you.

Thank you for your generosity in your content, and I am looking forward to seeing solopreneur Eric thrive!

[milobookout]

This is probably your best representation of backpacking to date. I'm very happy to see you thriving as you start something new.

[kevinstarski]

You did great on this video, real chill, great choice of music (pay attention new youtubers) and congrats on getting married. Your wife is beautiful and seem like such a good sport.