New Thru-Hike: ‘Northern Colorado Trail’ Debuts This Season

BY WILL BRENDZA

After Kevin Silvernale finished thru-hiking the Pacific Crest Trail in 2016, he was hooked and started devising his own long-distance trail. The 34-year-old Colorado local went on to hike the Appalachian Trail in 2018, the Continental Divide Trail in 2021, and the Colorado Trail in 2022.

Then, in 2024, he became the first person to complete the Northern Colorado Trail (NOCO) — a new thru-hike he designed himself.

“I started plotting points on the map about a year and a half ago, and then last August, I went out and went for it,” he said.

Photo: Kevin Silvernale

The 299-mile (481km) route starts at the Dunraven Trailhead near Estes Park and ends at the Transfer Trailhead in Glenwood Springs, Colo.

“I knew Northern Colorado had a lot of gems in it, so I was really trying to sequence in as many of them as I could,” Silvernale said. “It’s very scenic. You’re up high on ridgelines for a lot of it. You’re in mountainous terrain. It’s rugged. It’s challenging. But you do get the alpine lakes and the scenic views and all the cool stuff that comes with that.”

Silvernale only established the route in 2024, but he fully expects thru-hikers to be out on the NOCO this summer. Since publishing the map and his website for the route, he’s received many inquiries and questions.

If you’re looking for a new thru-hike or just want to explore a new part of Colorado on foot, the NOCO passes through some of the most beautiful, unique, and remote parts of the state.

How to hike the ‘NOCO Trail’

Northern Colorado is one of Colorado’s most unvisited regions. While the I-70 corridor, the Arkansas River Valley, San Luis Valley, Roaring Fork Valley, and South Park see a lot of traffic through the spring, summer, and fall, northern Colorado gets far less attention.

However, the areas where the NOCO trail passes are exceptionally beautiful. The NOCO route starts on the eastern side of RMNP. You’ll need a day permit to enter the park (or an overnight permit if you plan on camping within it).

Photo: Kevin Silvernale

Once you exit the national park, you enter the Comanche Wilderness Area and descend toward Peterson Lake. Then, the trail turns north, passing through the Rawah Wilderness, and approaches the town of Walden. That’s the first opportunity to stop in a town, resupply, and rest if you have the time.

On approach to Walden, there are two alternate routes hikers can choose from to avoid private property.

From Walden, hikers move east into the Sawatch Range and then south toward Steamboat Springs and Yampah. If you need some hot springs rejuvenation (or just a hot meal), that’s your last opportunity to get it before embarking into the Flat Tops Wilderness. Hikers traverse the Devil’s Causeway and eventually descend south into Glenwood Springs to the terminus of the trail.]

Photo: Kevin Silvernale

All told, there are four trail sections: Dunraven TH to Walden (86 miles), Walden to Highway 40 (65 miles), Highway 40 to Yampah (56 miles), and Yampah to Glenwood Springs (91 miles).

“It took me 19 days with two days in town and a couple of short days just leaving or getting into town to resupply,” Silvernale said.

1,000+ waypoints: camping, water, and more

Along the NOCO route, there is ample dispersed camping, according to Silvernale. There are also state campsites where you can reserve a spot ahead of time. Depending on how you plan your thru-hike, there are a lot of options.

There are also sections that pass close to private land, so if you make an impromptu stop, be sure you’re allowed to camp.

Photo: Kevin Silvernale

Check the Trail Alerts and Updates webpage on the NOCO site for a full list of camping options, as well as water sources, trailheads and parking lots, trail intersections, town resupply waypoints, and scenic waypoints.

Silvernale has mapped out over 1,000 waypoints along the route. His site has datasheet updates and edit logs, alternate route maps, and other useful resources for thru-hikers.

Not easy

Mapping the NOCO route wasn’t easy, Silvernale said. In fact, it’s still an ongoing process as he works out the best way to avoid roads and private property. He’s doing community outreach to spread the stoke about this new trail. But he cautions hikers to be very careful.

“One of the big things I want to make sure people are aware of is the private property issue,” he said. Parts of the NOCO trail pass very close to property lines. Hikers could be tempted to trespass and shave some time and distance off the route.

Photo: Kevin Silvernale

“Just respect the ranchers and the community out in these areas,” he said. “They don’t necessarily know that hikers will be coming through.”

That’s been a hurdle. However, the hardest part about hiking the NOCO wasn’t avoiding ranches and private property, he said. It’s the general lack of information that really makes this a different experience from other, more established thru-hikes.

“All of the other [long distance] trails, you have a guidebook or thousands of other people reporting what’s going on on the trail, whether it be water sources or campsites or fire closures and all that stuff,” he said. By contrast, the NOCO doesn’t have nearly the same level of feedback.

Photo: Kevin Silvernale

Hopeful NOCO hikers won’t be flying quite as blind as Silvernale did last August. But there will still be a lot of unknowns they encounter. He encourages anyone who hikes it to relay information as much as possible. You can join the NOCO Facebook group for real-time updates, to ask questions, and plan your trek.

It’s been a lot of work establishing this route, Silvernale admitted. But it’s been worth the effort. Creating a brand new long-distance trail in the state he lives in is a very rewarding undertaking — especially for someone who finds such joy in thru-hiking. “I feel honored,” he said. “It’s been a way for me to give back to the [thru-hiking] community.”

This story first appeared on GearJunkie.