Starting the Bob

Day 1 from Marias Pass

Oh my god the blowdowns. This was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. But at least there wasn’t any I could not get around. It too all day to go 8 miles. I think I was going half a mile an hour. Found the first campsite and called it a day. 

Day 2

An epic day. First a cold creek crossing. Then minimal blowdowns. Then a climb to a summit with epic views. Then a ridge walk descent. Then a climb over a snowy pass. Then down to a swimming hole that was very refreshing. Then I found a nice campsite after about 18 or 19 miles just in time to hear thunder and get some sprinkles. 

Leapfrogged with Fast Cash and Mango.

Day 3

I did not see anyone at all today. I went 21.2 miles. More than half was burned.

I set off with a creek crossing as a goal. It was 18 miles away. It looked like there might be a storm so I wanted to cross it before it rained. Someone 6’3” tall said in FarOut that it had been very high. 

I felt really strong and the trail was pretty easy so the miles went fast. Even the miles and miles of blowdowns didn’t seem so bad. The creek crossing came at 4 pm and it was thigh high in the deepest spot. Not bad at all. 

I grew concerned as the day went on that I would find no safe place to camp. There were nothing but dead trees as far as I could see. And it was very windy. The wind howled and sang and vibrated through the dead trees. Sometimes I thought it sounded like human voices. 

I felt very alone today. Although I felt physically strong the vast emptiness of this dead treescape made me feel uneasy. I was happy to find a campsite surrounded by living trees with a swift running stream. It was a warm night with just enough mosquitoes to put up my net tent.