Hi All. New to the forum. Planning a trip with the fellas in June and are looking for trail recommendations. Originally pegged a Colorado section of the CDT, but one of our team is averse to the constant altitude of the Colorado CDT section. I quickly looked to see if the Colorado trail had any section that mapped thru prairie, but most of it looks to be above 10k as well. To be clear, his issue isn't climbing, its that the entire hike is elevated and he is worried about the volatility of the weather. So to ensure he still comes along, I am seeking a 40-45 miles hike, end to end, as secluded as possible for a week long June trip. Colorado would be GREAT, but not married to the location. We are older fellows so 8-10 miles a day is our goal.

I am researching the Centennial Trail of South Dakota, but still trying find a logistical answer to a good start and stopping point.

Any ideas from the forum would be greatly appreciated.

June in the High Country will be snowy, whether that is Colorado, California, or elsewhere.

And June in other parts may well be hot in the Southwest...

I'm not helping much, and but I am narrowing down the search...

I haven't been, but perhaps Olympic National Park or something else on the west coast would be a better option weather wise in June. I live in the south, so I usually just don't hike in the summer. There are lot's of winter hiking options in the south.

EDIT: I just looked it up, and it looks like Mt. Olympus (Olympic National Park) still has a lot of snow in June.

Your point is well taken. Thanks for the link. I have got my research cut out for me.

yeah, that's a pretty high trail also. Thanks for your input though.

Pacific Northwest ideas:

Don't rule out Olympic National Park. It has some long. beautiful, low-altitude river valleys (like Enchanted Valley) and the Olympic wilderness coast (quite rugged due to having to climb over headlands, but open year-around). The Olympic NP website has excellent trail descriptions.

You could always combine a valley hike (it will be out-and-back, but everything looks different when approached from the other direction) with a section of coastal hike. Permits are required and many locations (including Enchanted Valley and the coast) require hard-sided bear canisters (which can be rented at a nominal fee from the ranger station where you pick up your permit).

There are also early season backpacks east of the Cascades (Hell's Canyon is one possibility). For ideas, check out Oregon Hikers Field Guide
and
Washington Trails Association

Most places in the alpine/high mountains, almost anywhere in the western US, you'll have to wait until mid-July in a normal year. If an unusually high snow year, it might be late July; if a dry year, early July. Late June may be OK if it has been a dry winter plus exceptionally early melt-out.

Thank you for your valued input. I am pouring over topos now to check out the lay of the land around the Cascade trails and Olympic NP.