Day 1, June 17Today’s goal was accomplished– getting ourselves on the trail! We had been worried about getting permits to hike in Glacier National Park, because campsites are limited and you have to stay in designated sites. We got to the Two Medicine ranger station at 6:30 am and were the first hikers there. A huge group of northbound hikers had “flipped” up to the northern terminus of the CDT and started hiking south, because of the late season snowstorms in Colorado. When we got to the hostel in East glacier last night, they were there, tired, sunburned, happy. Most had already hiked through the park and were leaving the next day. They were happy to meet us; “true SOBOs”(southbounders). Fortunately we arrived just after they all went through, so permits weren’t too much of an issue. Veggie’s mom, Sharon, drove us to Waterton, over the Canadian border, and we packed up our things, said goodbye, and started hiking. It was incredibly beautiful walking around Waterton lake, even though there were rain showers–the clouds kept moving in across the Mountains. We got to the border, took pictures, (Veggie’s got a Selfie stick!!) and got to our designated campsite. We figured the U.S. Border patrol would be fine with us quickly setting up our tents and then walking the 0.9 miles to the border to check in. They weren’t. They came and found us while we were hiking towards the station and gave us quite the talking-to for stopping. We figured they must have a video recorder hidden somewhere at the campsite, to know that we stopped for 20 minutes and set up camp. To top it off, they asked for our passports, and we realized that Veggie’s mom and I switched passports! Here I was, in the middle of the woods, technically in the U.S. But with no passport, and Veggie’s mom, driving alone through Alberta and trying to cross back over 4 hours away into Idaho. This is when I learned from the Border Patrol that U.S. Citizens cannot be denied entry to the United States. They were able to run my license to see I am a citizen. So all’s well that ends well, I guess. For some background, Veggie and I hiked the PCT the same year and hilariously were about 3 days apart for almost the entire trail. Veggie’s mom kindly drove us to East Glacier yesterday, which was a 12 hour drive from Seattle, and then drove us all the way to Waterton. I am so grateful for her generosity ! Things like this are what make thruhiking so special. 23 mile day tomorrow down the Highline Trail, and time to sleep. Day 2, June 18
A good day today- although we only hiked 12 miles, not 23! We got up at 6 and started hiking by 7:30…I have to get used to the trail morning routine again and be more efficient. We were moving along at a good clip and had just stopped to look at the map, when I looked up and saw a grizzly bear ambling down the trail towards us about 30 feet away. veggie ripped out her bear spray, and I kind of fumbled with mine, and we both said “hey, bear!” It stopped, looked at us for a moment, and then slowly turned around and strolled away. We started a steep climb up to date the ridge and saw another HUGE grizzly bear, who fortunately bounded off uphill when he saw us. When we got up to the base of the Highline Trail, we looked back and saw a series of big thunderclouds rolling in. It was already 2 pm, and we knew we would be above treeline, completely exposed on the ridge, for the next 12 miles. We hemmed and hawed for a while and finally decided to stay. In Glacier, you have to stay at your planned designed campsites, but we decided not being struck by lightning on the ridge took precedent. So, we camped, and two hours later the sun came out. Go figure. But we had a nice evening with some section hikers and will hit the ridge early tomorrow morning. I’m feeling pretty tired so am glad to space the hike out a bit. Day 3, June 19
Looong day today. But incredible. We hiked for 14 hours and 20 miles. There was a lot of snow up high, and it took us an hour to get across Ahern Drift, which was icy and about 60 degrees steep. It hailed us while we were traversing the drift, and winds were about 30 mph. But, we got across the entire Highline Trail and down to Many Glacier. We are hoping to change our permit tomorrow for less mileage. Scenery today was beautiful. day 4, June 20 Went from Many Glacier to Gunsight Campsite. Beautiful day over Piegan Pass. Saw a windy marmot. Very tired when we got to Reynolds Creek, had dinner, then hiked fast to Gunsight Lake, and met a few people there. Portland dudes freaking out about bear at 3 a.m. Day 5, June 21
We got up late due to the late night last night. Had a really nice breakfast with a couple who are both archaeologists. The guy thruhiked the Appalachian Trail in 2007 with Veggie’s PCT hiking partner, which was a funny coincidence. We hiked pretty slowly all day–the trail kind of slowly wound around St. Mary Lake. Our designated campsite is in a stand of burned-out trees, on a lake. The advantage is that it is not hard to find the privy. I’m tired; it has been a physically tough few days. Glacier is no joke, especially the way we were permitted to go through the park. June 22, Day 6 We hiked 15 miles over Triple Divide Pass today. A truly spectacular day. We hiked a lot of the day with 2 girls who are students at University of Chicago. We sat on top of the pass for a long time. The marmots were overly friendly, if you can call it that. They came up and were licking our packs, trekking poles, and eventually my leg, to get at the salt from our sweat. It felt so funny to have a marmot sitting on my leg, and kind of reminded me of my parents’ dog. We camped at a beautiful lake called Morning Star Lake. Still few other thru hikers–we know of a set of identical twin brothers who are walking north through the park because of permit issues, but will eventually be going south. Andrew is ahead of us, we think, and Patch is maybe behind us, maybe ahead. Day 7, June 23 Today was the first of two “short” days in our Glacier itinerary. We hiked 12 miles over Pitamakin Pass into Two Medicine Campground, which is a car campground with a little camp store and a ranger station. We stopped in at the station and said hi to Ranger Sam, who had given us the permits a week ago. We gave him the updated information about the Highline Trail and the Ahern Drift, which he seemed to appreciate. He told us thru hikers are the Park Service’s eyes and ears early in the season. We relaxed all afternoon. Being around car campers is actually hard for me–I miss Misha and my Seattle friends and my family so much more, being around families and couples on vacation. Being a thruhiker makes you different from everyone else, which can be isolating. You are dirtier, stronger, and stranger, and it is difficult to blend in. But, it’s indescribably beautiful here–the rain stopped, the light is waning, and the evening birds are singing, my ankles are strong, my legs are one week stronger, and I will walk another hundred miles this next week.
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