Month: July 2024

Shared the hike and bike campsite with some tarp campers from Thailand. On the 26th we slept in a little and then had breakfast. Afterwards we checked at the ranger station. We could have an extra day or two in Many Glacier but the interim campsites were not available.

Bizarrely a ranger asked about our car. I was flabbergasted and explained that it was at our daughter’s place in Stansbury Park. The ranger said he was just trying to see if we were really hikers (or maybe forgot?!?).

We were over the excess wind and it wasn’t as bad under the trees so we decided to hike rather than try to get the wind to die down more. It was cold, but not bad.

So we started up the route to the lake and then the tunnel. The lake is popular for day hikes, but once we shifted to the tunnel route it was much less busy. Never did see Ptarmigan lake.

The route was a steady up. Over three thousand feet in about four miles.

At the tunnel was a large crew of hikers having lunch. They all had the same food and face glitter. They offered us glitter but no food. We passed on the face glitter.

Then we passed the giant metal doors and took the tunnel through the mountain—maybe forty to sixty feet or so—a tunnel that had been pickaxed out of the mountain.

On the other side the trail had a wall on the down cliff side and went straight for some time before the first switchback. The wind was steady, cold and blowing into the mountain which made it comfortable instead of threatening.

Today was twelve miles, most of it on the other side of the tunnel going down toward Elizabeth Lake and our campsite. The lake was stocked with fish in 1922 and still has fish. It also draws fishermen.

Tomorrow is 9.8 trail miles. Our trail follows the Belly River for from 9.8 to 2.0 (or 7.8 miles) and then it is two miles up hill to Chief Mountain and the terminus.

Then we will hitch back to the park and the Mary Falls shuttle. Probably an eleven mile day.

We had coos coos for dinner. I’ve carried that package in my food bag a very long time—and I was glad we finished it off.

This campsite has two serious Bear boxes. Not just a hang. Usually back country has hangs because people leave trash in boxes. But bears are a big enough threat here that they have a box.

I’ve been gravity filtering water and that goes well. I had to chase my filter into the river as the wind blew my water filter bag into the water.

Looking forward to an early day tomorrow.

Then we have GenCon and will return to the trail to hike SOBO to catch what we’ve missed.

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We got up, packed, ate breakfast and beaded both by 6:30. Arrived at the border about 10:00 and tagged Canada and took pictures and came back into the US to hitch to St Mary’s by 10:30.

Hitching took a while but we got to St Mary and had lunch. Then got on the shuttle.

Happy’s post.

14.7 miles with all the misc walking around after the terminus.

Glacier National Park has very little cell service/internet and so I’m not doing daily posts.

The 21st we had our train ride to East Glacier and our hike beginning. Of course Amtrak was almost two hours late. Which meant we got started after lunch rather than in the morning.

The heat wave was in full swing. We hiked 14.1 total miles and ended up in Two Medicine with a ranger putting us in one of the hike and bike spots (Glacier has a number of these that are hike only).

We had some hiking that looked sketchy from a distance but the actual trail was pretty mild—day hiker appropriate.

In Two Medicine the camp store closed up their grill early but they let us have unlimited refills on our frozen yogurt. We got to use a bear box to store our food.

The ranger station there is closed. CDT hikers won’t be able to get permits and that will make things rough.

On the steep sections I had hip pain and really felt like I was hurting. The three thousand feet of vertical ascent was hard.

The next morning we were on trail before 6:00. 15.4 miles (including a campsite off trail) and another day of over three thousand feet of ascent.

I was starting to wonder if I had just gotten really old. But once we got past the steep sections my body loosened up and I felt much better.

After an early dinner we hung our food from a provided hang that had real height on it.

Cooled off enough for a decent nap by 5:30.

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The 23rd should have one bar of Verizon.

We have 11.3 trail miles to get done then the next day is Many Glacier.

The heat is rough. The steep up and down trail is tough too. We are doing one pass a day.

On the other hand the trail is beautiful but we have a burn zone coming up.

Lots of people hiking and trail running the park.

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Well. We were off before six o’clock which was a good thing given how the other hikers at the campsite got an early start with yells and shouts.

There was already a warm breeze as we started up. The trail was a narrow track that went straight up and had been blasted into the side of the mountain.

The trail to the pass went right through the campsite so we were up and on trail immediately.

I drank a liter of water and a little more and carried two. Ran out of water after about eleven miles and pushed through to our reserved campsite rather than stop.

I’ve drunk another couple liters. The steady wind really dried me out.

We picked a campsite, hung our food and built a windbreak down at the lake.

Most of the area is bleak. A fierce fire left a large burn zone with burned trunks howling in the wind. There were a few trees on the lake that survived.

Verizon has up to two bars but no thru-put so there is nothing we can do with the cell service out of St Mary.

Tomorrow will be a flatter day. Our campsite will be right before another peak and then we hike into Many Glacier for showers, laundry and resupply to the border.

We have the trail through Ptarmigan tunnel, one campsite and then the terminus on day two.

Today now that we’ve reached the campsite we are hiding in the shade (all the camping is completely shade less and our tent is set up in the heat). We will use the cooking area for dinner and head out in the morning.

Win built a windbreak that is almost three feet tall.

I’m wishing I had more pastry for breakfast but we have food enough.

The park is really pretty. The ups go places where it looks like there is no passage. They then drop into the next valley quickly.

The Red Eagle Lake Foot campground is really exposed to the wind. That makes the Bear hang harder as the wind blows the cord about. We have a good hang though so we will be able to eat our breakfast without having shared it with the bears.

More of a possibility is the ducks. A flotilla cased us out several times. They acted like other hikers might have fed them.

There is up to two bars Verizon but no Internet from it. just a waste of battery power and hiking up to the rise.

Two more days and we are in Many Glacier.

I’m looking forward to that.

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Almost thirteen miles to the falls this morning. Then we caught a shuttle to the only restaurant on the route.

Hiding from the heat.

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Happy’s post from today.

Happy’s post from West Glacier +

And from Whitefish.

https://www.gaiagps.com/public/UzeH3PYY0aNR7UMQVwaTPKnj/?layer=GaiaTopoRasterMeters

Keebler Crew map.

https://www.gaiagps.com/public/cT39JtYljuNOZWi5biOw8XX8/

Screenshot collection.

https://caltopo.com/m/7QSQ

https://www.gaiagps.com/public/LTwWUlM1bPjQuxjkvMCNurdk/

https://caltopo.com/m/H41ATB0

https://aweewalk.blog/2009/10/31/cdt-big-sky-route-alt-notes/

https://trailjournals.com/journal/entry/269446

https://adrr.com/d20/2023/11/12/cdt-alternative-routes/

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Otherwise the wedding was delightful.

Updates from Spoon:

The heat wave kicked it up to 97 degrees. That was hard.

There was also smoke.

The fires are just exploding even as some are under control and some closures are over.

Amtrak warned us our train will be late tomorrow morning.

Yesterday we were in West Glacier.

We had a perfect pitch (the key is higher settings on the poles—a full 48”).

Visiting deer.

We also got up early. Happy left at 4:30 am and I joined her by 5:30 or so.

The line at the permit office was already getting long but we got permits.

I did a run for morning coffee and cocoa as we waited.

Then we drove to Whitefish and lucked out with an early check in.

Then today we had the wedding.

After it was finished I was really feeling the heat. A black suit in 97 degree weather was warm. We dropped the car off at the airport and got a shuttle back to the hotel.

Tomorrow the shuttle takes us to the train station and we take the train to East Glacier and the trail.

Leaving Anaconda we passed seven hikers heading in.

Over twenty hikers in Anaconda at the hiker hut.

There were more at Pintler’s Portal Hostel which was completely full.

It started before six, but the hiker feed at Pintler’s still had spaghetti, meat sauce, pasta, garlic bread, desserts, wine and beer left at 7:30. Since I don’t drink they still had plenty of beverages when I left.

It is the real CDT hiker bubble.

Deer were not counted for hiker totals.

We have our bear spray and Happy’s knife to pick up. Pintler’s Portal Hostel has its annual hiker feed and we have a wedding and then the terminus to head to.

Driving north has been full of new views.

We rented a car and headed out. Cheaper than airfair or a train.

But the record setting Anaconda smokestack is still there.

Happy’s comments. My comments.

We have a wedding to attend, then we go SOBO.

So we headed south from Grand Lake to the train station.

The train arrived and we were on our way.

It was beautiful countryside and finally not freezing. Mornings in Grand Lake had ice on the boardwalks.

It followed the river from Colorado into Utah.

We spent the night in Salt Lake (train arrived about 1:30 am or two hours late).

Right now we are resting, washing things, replacing some gear.

My replacement sun hoodie was not the size I ordered. Now they are sold out. Looks like I’ll use one that was not bad as clothing but not as optimal for hiking.

The old one just isn’t wearable.

Realized that my pants were probably over two thousand miles and wearing out. Replaced in the only color available as they are replacing the model.

Once the pants show up it is time to apply permethrin to everything.

Changes:

Pants: just color—they wore out.

Sun hoodie. First wore out. Second was not suitable for backpacking and the third we will see.

Reading glasses. Broke or scratched up too much. Broke. Bought a new package of them.

Socks: looser fit. REI store brand.

Calf compression sleeves. Replaced for wear.

Shoes. Longer and narrower. Up a half size but no longer wide.

More aquatabs for water treatment.

New smelly proof bags as the current set is wearing out.

New hiking poles (so Happy can swap back). The $27 ones from Costco.

Leave the last Etowah tent peg home.

Some of the hikers had an early start. Three of the twelve camped at the community center last night got out before us.

Yesterday a kind local drove us around and showed us the trail head. This morning we had breakfast and started out. Did not stop at the one open place for hot chocolate.

The bypass was pleasant.

Though the reminder of the huge fire a few years ago was stark.

As we started west on the CDT we met a trail crew.

They were doing maintenance.

We hiked on.

Eventually we reached the road, and after a roadwalk started back on the trail.

I should have taken a picture of the crosswalk. It perplexes a lot of drivers.

We climbed and climbed.

Win started to feel the altitude.

We set up and rested for two hours.

That confirmed it for us. Time to take a one or two week break and then decide. Outside of Colorado the trail stays at altitudes that we are good with.

We hiked back to the trail head.

A forest ranger ran our identification and checked us for weapons. Then he gave us a ride back to the community center in Grand Lake.

We were able to find a shuttle and get railroad tickets.

Then we went out to dinner with other hikers.

We will return for the wedding, hike from Glacier and hit GenCon, then continue on the trail.

Happy’s Summary.

The big decision is whether to roadwalk Colorado at lower elevations or try something else. I’m agnostic about that, but really want Happy taken care of

We left the residence inn after breakfast and headed to the train station

We are dealing with the altitude sickness issue with a train and then the free bus and will avoid extended time above 12,000 feet.

Also getting new shoes at Winter Park and then the camping at Grand Lake today.

Now planning on three days of food.

Happy Six needs new shoes fairly soon and they have her size in stock.

After thousands of trail miles my feet have spread just a little but only longer, now wider. They are slightly longer and my big toes are bumping the ends of my shoes. I’ll see if they have 8.5 size shoes in stock. The wides I’m wearing have gotten “sloppy” and short.

Here is hoping.

Looking forward to picking up a day’s food, checking shoes and moving down the trail.

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We got new shoes. My toes no longer bang off the ends. Win’s feet look sparkly.

Resupply was easy at the Safeway next door to the bus stop and shoe store.

Now we wait on the free bus. It picks up at one of several edges of the parking lot (and not the first two we went to 😄).

Getting cloudy and windy.

Our driver the last leg.

The community center camping area in Grand Lake for CDT hikers. People kept showing up after the picture.

The biggest bubble of hikers we’ve seen—and the biggest the center has seen.

Then we saw another Jolly Gear hiker with the pattern Happy has.

Now for hamburgers and a good night’s sleep.

Happy’s video

We took the trail out of Silverthorne. Coming in it was pretty sweet trail.

Going out it was straight up from 8,700 feet to about almost twelve hundred.

At that point, mile 29.1 there is no trail or path or tread. Just cairns everysooften. The tread goes up to the peak but the trail has no path for miles.

The cairns were kind of random.

Once in a while there was a trail.

Even stranger, sometimes the app reports a trail that obviously doesn’t exist.

The blue line is the trail. It goes up. The alternative route, which I recorded in yellow, goes to the side. I saw the trail go up. Never saw it come back down and dip into the valley we could see below.

Ptarmigan pass was mile 31.2.

That was easy. But later it was talus and scree and an ascent to a saddle.

Then up and over. Down to around 11,103 where we camped under the trees. An 18.7 mile day. Camping under trees meant no condensation in spite of running water and moisture all over.

Then we continued on. Took off our shoes to ford one stream. Then it was pathfinding and bushwhacking to mile 42.3 where a dirt road went from 10,047 feet to 12,460 and mile 1,285.2 on the trail.

We kept climbing up the road until we climbed past the tree line.

The saddle we crossed was far in the distance.

The road was supposed to continue down the other side of the pass but was blocked by a snow field so we stayed on the trail instead of the alternative.

Eventually we would do 14.8 miles today.

So many summits and peaks over 12k and so much wind. We also saw some trail runners from time to time.

It was cold and windy with snow fields and rocks from time to time. Made me wish we had crossed the snow on the road.

We took the Stanley Mountain Trail down to the parking lot. Happy was on her second day of altitude sickness. But dropping down was warmer and less altitude.

At the parking lot a guy pulled over and offered us a ride to Denver where we are going to rest and reassess and plan. We had planned on Winter Park but Denver is good.

Denver is lower in altitude and warm. Next we plan.

Happy’s post from Denver.

The bottom line is Happy really shouldn’t go above 11k feet and 10k is a soft cap. Which means all of the trail except Colorado is good.

Now we decide what to do next.

Today isn’t the day to make decisions but tomorrow will be. Robin was born today.

We changed up some equipment, used some teflon lubricants for the tent zipper, permethrin treatment for some gear and rested.

We have food for hitting the trail tomorrow, shoes for Happy ordered for pick up in Winter Park, and dropped by REI twice.

We ran into Swiss Cake & Saint at REI today.

Weather is great, but very cool.