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Continental Divide Trail, USA

 

From April to October 2012, I travelled up the Southern Rocky Mountains (Mexican border) towards the north (Canadian border), taking the Continental Divide Trail, which is a 3,000-mile hiking and cycling route. I started off on foot, accompanied by my mule Céline, and then got into the saddle, travelling most of the way on a mule called Champ, alongside my pack mule, Frog. My colorful travels also briefly featured Kitty  the mule.

Following a two-month trek in 2009 through the Atlas Mountains in Morocco, I was keen to get hiking again, but this time round I wanted to cover a greater distance. I had been a fan of mules ever since I met Mimi in Morocco, and so I decided to set off accompanied by a pack mule. I chose the United States as my walking destination, drawn to its wide open spaces, where you can walk for 3,000 miles seeing hardly a road, and by the country’s long riding tradition, whose “Western” style appealed to me. It was wonderful to find myself in states like Wyoming, which I had dreamed of as a child, and discover its famous ranches, where horses are everyday workmates.