I started at 04:00 am from the parking lot at Berthoud Pass and went counter-clockwise climbing towards Stanley Mountain. After the first off-trail segment, down from Stanley to Vasquez Pass and then up and over Vasquez Peak, I followed the Continental Divide Trail past Jones Pass but stayed on the ridge towards Pettingell Peak before dropping down the gully to refill water at Woods Creek.
The next off-trail section included the summits of Mount Machebeuf, Woods Mountain, Mount Parnassus, Bard Peak, Robeson Peak, and Mount Engelmann before following the ridge down to the town of Empire. I refilled water at West Fork Clear Creek right off Country Road 232 before starting my climb up Country Road 251 which turns into the gnarly, steep jeep road North Empire Road and North Empire Creek.
After leaving the treeline, I took the singletrack connecting to the CDT trail instead of following the jeep road to Bill Moore Lake because I had enough water for the final climb. On the ridge to Breckenridge Peak and Mount Flora, severe weather rolled in with strong gusts of wind and a brief hail storm. I reached the summit of Mount Flora just in time for sunset and finished the route at the Berthoud Pass parking lot with the last daylight.
I ran the entire route alone, didn’t resupply any food, and refilled water filtering from natural sources.