For one who chooses to walk this footpath, this person will travel through five states, twenty-five national forests, three national parks and across about four hundred and seventy-five water sheds.

The Continental Divide National Scenic Trail (CDT), like many other long trails is a place to reconnect with nature, a place to search for the self and a place that brings people of all walks of life together. One of the CDT′s longest roadless sections, right in the middle of the half-million acre Weminuche Wilderness in Colorado, is where the Trail tracks through high glacial valleys and offers views of the craggy Needle Mountains in all directions. Another location on the Trail in central New Mexico is where the desert meets the mountains. The span of just one day′s hike offers the foot traveler an immense diversity of landscapes.

For the long-distance hiking community, the CDT is one-third of the Triple Crown, and annually, while the number is growing, approximately 150 ambitious travelers attempt to complete an end-to-end trek. Parts of the CDT are still in the planning phases, and trail users must bushwhack through, or road walk around, incomplete stretches. By 2022, the CDT is 95% completed, and when completed will make the rugged and scenic landscapes in the backcountry of our public lands accessible to more people and will reduce the impact of trail users by concentrating them on a well-marked and, resilient pathway. The Continental Divide Trail preserves the unique natural history of the Divide for future generations and provides the opportunity for more Americans to access and enjoy remote Wilderness areas, experience Native American cultures and view diverse wildlife.

The CDT offers a primitive backcountry experience where Trail users can follow in the footsteps of Lewis and Clark, explore old mining sites, and gain more of an appreciation for our public lands. In 2023, we celebrated the fifty-fifth anniversary of the National Trails System Act, the legislation that officially designated all three of the Triple Crown trails as National Scenic Trails. The CDT was designated by Congress as a National Scenic Trail in 1978.

The Continental Divide national scenic trail is a 3100 mile long trail completely across the United States from Canada to Mexico.

The CDT encounters a multitude of ecosystems from tundra to desert, it hosts a rich variety of wildlife, and it preserves nearly two thousand natural, cultural, and historical treasures. The CDT is considered to be one of the greatest long-distance trails in the world, it is the highest, most challenging, and most remote of our National Scenic Trails in the United States. Ranging from 4,000 to 14,000 feet, the completed sections of the CDT provide a variety of recreational activities to many hundreds of thousands of people each year, including hiking, horseback riding, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, wildlife viewing, fishing, hunting, and sight-seeing.

On November 10,1978, the President signed the "National Parks and Recreation Act" amending the "National Trails Act of 1968." The amended legislation addressed the proposed Continental Divide National Scenic Trail (CDNST).

Congress directed the Forest Service to prepare and submit a comprehensive plan for the management and use of the scenic trail. This plan was completed in cooperation with other federal agencies, the public and interested private landowners in November 1985;, then the plan was adopted after public comment.

The entire Continental Divide National Scenic Trail corridor is approximately 3,100 miles (4,988 kilometers) long, extending from the Canadian border in Montana to the border between New Mexico and Mexico. About 1,900 miles (3,211 km) of the corridor contains existing trails or primitive routes.

Considerable trip planning will be necessary to determine your specific route. The corridor varies from 4,000 feet (1,219 m) in elevation to over 13,000 feet (3,962m) in elevation above sea level. Existing and proposed trails along the route traverse a variety of privately and publicly owned lands. The variety of situations encountered in the 3,100-mile corridor necessitate different land use and travel regulations and conditions.