Chief mountain overnight

Day 1

I got up early and walked to the visitor center to wait for my shuttle. I met Van Gogh who is from Holland and decorated his white pack with sharpie tattoo art and Necktie who is from the UK. It was fun talking to other CDT hikers. They were hoping to get permits. 

Soon my ride came without me finding out the fate of my new friends and I was off to Chief Mountain. The customs check in and road was closed at the border. I walked up to it and found a pyramidal monument and got a photo. 

The trail began shaded, downhill and muddy. I took my time. Meadows opened up with sweeping views. By lunch I was at the junction to Cosley lake where my designated campsite was located. There was a side trail to powerful Gros Ventre falls. I recognized it from YouTube videos. The water was very high compared to what I had seen. I sat and watched the mist swirl. I was in no rush. 

Just before I arrived at camp I went over to the junction trail to see the dangerous river crossing the ranger warned about. There was no way I could cross. It’s also above the falls. Big nope!

I found a sheltered campsite and napped a bit. The lake was very cold otherwise a swim would have been nice. The winds created white horses, big rolling waves. I wasn’t sure where to get water so I got it from the lake, which was a turquoise color and a little cloudy. Waves crashed on my shoes. 

Later I heard voices and found a group on a guided trip sitting in the eating area. They played cribbage and then scanned the cliffs for mountain goats. We saw some and all took turns using the binoculars. We spent time around the dinner area and then I went back to my camp.

The guide in their group knew about Red Gap Pass and said it’s dry and there should be only small patches of snow. My scheduled route had higher passes so the official CDT Alt will be much better even though much longer. Early start time tomorrow hopefully!

In the middle of the night 

I woke up in the middle of the night from a dream about my parrot, Fergie.  She is 30 years old. She has an obesity problem and a tumor and she feels weak and soft like my other bird Squeaky felt before she died. I miss my parrots. I often wish I could be two or three people at once so that I could do all the things I want to do at the same time, without missing anything. One me could work and make money. One me could be home with my birds. One me could be with Tony. I miss Tony. 

I laid awake for a while listening to the wind roar across the lake. It was almost perfectly still in my camp. For some reason this felt foreboding, like the feeling of safety doing familiar things while a frightening thing looms in the future. I am scared to go to the Bob and leave the familiarity of Glacier Park. It is familiar and the Bob is wild and I’m an old lady who is weak and soft. 

Day 2

It is easy to wake up early here. The birds are chirping by 4:30am. I packed up and went to the eating area to have breakfast. Soon the guide arrived. He told me not to worry about Red Gap Pass, that he heard it was free of snow and only little patches on the way up. He also told me when I get to Many Glacier to ask a ranger for a place to stay. Many Glacier is closed to tents currently. 

It was sunny and clear. I felt great. I hiked along a nice canyon and saw waterfalls. So far I have seen a mountain lion print, bear prints and scat, moose and elk prints, I saw a moose running through a field, I saw goats through binoculars, I say a bunny with big white fuzzy feet, and I was almost run over by a bird. 

I passed a bunch of heavy truckers at Elizabeth Lake. The three guys I rode in with also stayed there but I didn’t see them. I hiked alone to the pass as clouds brewed. There was no one on the trail and no one else on the pass. As soon as I reached the summit I went over the other side because it was cold and windy. The clouds were descending. 

I found a sheltered spot and sat for five minutes to eat something. Then I continued on. Snowfields presented themselves. They were terrifying. Thank goodness I had crampons. Even so I kicked steps for what felt like eternities. I figured out ways to avoid some of the scariest ones. These were seriously deadly slopes. Then I lost the trail.

I saw a trail but it didn’t go anywhere. I wandered around lost. The Far Out app showed I was nowhere near the trail. So I went down the snow through the trees following the path of least resistance until I found the trail. It seemed like it took an hour. It was snowing while I was doing this. It snowed for hours as I descended and eventually turned to rain. 

The trail went on forever. It was much longer than I expected. I really wanted to connect my footsteps in Many Glacier with my footsteps when I hiked here with Shroomer to complete this section of trail. I also wanted to prove to the ranger who checked my permit that I could do it, meaning really just prove to myself. So much muddy trail! So many wet fords! So many ups and downs. So many flowers. Every time I thought I must be getting close I was still so far away. Would I make it to the restaurant by 7:00? 7:30 is still a reasonable time for dinner, surely they will still be open. I bet French Canadians eat at 8:00.

I saw the ranger’s office as I arrived. It was closed. I went to the campground and a nice lady used her radio to find out where they were putting CDT hikers. She led me to a recreation building with a kitchen and laundry. I can sleep on the linoleum and do laundry for free. Trail magic. 

I literally ran to the restaurant. I was so hungry for real food. With the 2 night train ride and the 5 days bumming around the park I had not eaten real food for a week. I made it in plenty of time and got a delicious cheeseburger and ice cold beer. Nothing ever tasted so good. 

I washed my hair in the sink and did my laundry. I guess a shower will have to wait.

I’m happy I remember how to thru hike. It’s too bad I’m so alone. Where have all the other hikers gone?

Next up: Southbound