Continental Divide Trail: Yellowstone Section

This entry maps a 70.3-mile one-way section of the Continental Divide Trail between its southern and western crossings of Yellowstone’s boundary. The line follows the current primary CDT alignment through the park’s remote lake country, including the Shoshone Lake shore and the Heart Lake area. It is a point-to-point backcountry traverse, not a loop; the distance counts the park segment once and excludes approaches beyond either boundary. Allow several days and nights. The 42-hour duration estimate is walking time, before camp stops, and your actual itinerary depends on pace and permitted campsite locations.

The mapped endpoints are remote park-boundary crossings, not roadside trailheads or parking lots. This park-only segment does not provide a car shuttle or a complete approach from a road; arrange how you will reach the southern end and leave the western end before starting. Overnight stays in Yellowstone backcountry require a permit tied to designated campsites and dates. Build the route around an available campsite itinerary rather than assuming you can camp anywhere along the line.

The CDT section passes through the Shoshone Lake country. Shoshone is the largest lake in the contiguous United States without road access, so reaching its shore means carrying everything in and out. The route also crosses the Heart Lake area. A generated hero image shows a lily-pad marsh channel looking toward Shoshone Lake; it is a lake-shore view, not a photograph of the tread. The mapped route establishes its corridor, but the evidence does not support a reliable turn-by-turn account of its footing, grade, or daily stages.

The Shoshone Lake Loop, Heart Lake Loop, and Shoshone Geyser Basin day hike are separate routes with different trailheads and distances. They are not shorter versions of this boundary-to-boundary CDT segment. Use the mapped 70.3-mile line when planning this entry, and verify your own access, campsite itinerary, and current conditions before setting out.