Justin Simoni, the Long Ranger, on Creating Ridge Routes and Hiking the Highest Hundred Peaks in Colorado

Backpacker Radio

In today's episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, we are joined by Justin Simoni aka the Long Ranger. In addition to established routes like the Tour Divide and Nolan’s 14, Justin also creates his own - he’s traversed the Sangre de Cristo Range, Mosquito and Tenmile Ranges, and from Milner to Berthoud Pass along the divide. And while summiting all of Colorado’s 14,000 ft peaks is an effort in itself, Justin summited the top 100 highest mountains in the state after biking to them from his home in Boulder. We talk about all of the nitty gritty details of taking on these ridgeline routes, why he lives car-free, a detailed measurement of how much weight and water he lost over the course of a grueling day hike, some of his current favorite gear, and more.

We wrap the show with an overview of some of the best loop hikes in the United States, what we would telepathically say to all 8 billion people on earth, and the triple crown of things on our bedside table.

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Interview with Justin Simoni aka the Long Ranger

• Justin’s Website
• Justin's Instagram
• Justin’s Youtube

Time stamps & Questions

00:04:50 - Reminders: Mark your calendar for our Brooklyn, NY meetup on September 16, support us on Patreon, check out Chaunce & Elise’s TCT hike on Youtube, and leave us a voicemail!

00:13:10 - Introducing Justin

00:14:10 - Tell us about your water loss experiment

00:19:15 - Have you done other similar studies?

00:20:25 - What was your food intake like during the experiment?

00:22:15 - What is your primary focus in your personal trinity of mountain arts?

00:24:20 - You don’t own a car?

00:26:00 - How did you originally get into the outdoors?

00:28:50 - How many times have you summitted Green Mountain?

00:31:50 - Tell us about the Milner to Berthoud Pass Traverse

00:34:25 - Is it stressful to do high consequence moves while trying to go quickly?

00:35:50 - How does this traverse compare to others that you’ve done?

00:37:40 - Did you notice an uptick in FKTs in 2020?

00:38:31 - What was the most challenging part of the Vanishing Point?

00:41:00 - What instrument do you play?

00:43:00 - What’s your camping setup?

00:43:30 - How do you avoid thunderstorms?

00:47:00 - What does spike your anxiety?

00:48:00 - How do you prevent making careless errors?

00:50:10 - The Mosquito/Ten Mile Range Traverse

00:53:03 - How many scouting trips did you do for the Vanishing Point project?

00:54:12 - Do you get bored while hiking?

00:56:00 - What do you do for work?

00:57:50 - What are your thoughts on sun hoodies?

01:00:25 - How did it feel to be the first person to complete the Vanishing Point project?

01:01:33 - What are the most significant ways you’ve changed after completing projects?

01:03:00 - Do you experience post trail depression?

01:04:30 - What do you do for water on your trips?

01:07:50 - Tell us about the Sangre de Cristo Range Traverse

01:11:15 - What was the technicality like on this traverse?

01:13:44 - How should someone get familiar with class 5 pitches with a heavy pack?

01:17:30 - Have you noticed any drop in fitness as you’ve aged?

01:19:36 - Nolan’s 14 description

01:21:35 - Discussion about sleep apnea and asthma

01:24:00 - Tell us about the Slowlans Traverse

01:27:40 - What is it about the ridge hikes that keep you coming back?

01:29:00 - Discussion about popularity trends

01:30:15 - Tell us about the Mosquito/Ten Mile Range Traverse

01:35:00 - Could someone who doesn’t like exposure find an alternate route?

01:36:10 - Tell us about the Highest Hundred

01:39:44 - How did you logistically tackle this?

01:43:00 - Biking from Boulder to Longs Peak

01:47:45 - Do you feel pressure to keep coming up with new projects?

01:48:30 - Do you see your guides as an act of service?

01:52:00 - Discussion about the Colorado Trail FKT

01:56:00 - Do you have to train to sleep less for an FKT attempt?

01:59:45 - Do you ever plan trips based on the moon cycle?

02:00:20 - Kumo Question: What is the most useless skill you’ve ever learned?

Segments

Mail Bag

Trek Propaganda:

• 12 Epic Multi-Night Loop Hikes in the US by Kelly Floro
• Dead Weight: 13 Thru-Hikers Reveal the Gear They Sent Home by Ariella Nardizzi

QOTD: If you could telepathically say something to all 7.95 billion people on earth, what would you say?

Triple Crown of things in your bedside table

Mail Bag

5 Star Review

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