Saturday July 20, 22.2mi/35.7km

Campsite at Road FS114 (94.4/4101ft) to Blacktail Creek (116.6/5984ft) (MT)

The day started off with a nice easy walk along a dirt road for an hour. I saw only one vehicle before I entered the woods, and then I was cruising on this soft trail.

A mile into the woods, I hit my first milestone marker!

And after a brief climb, I passed by the first of many lakes today. This is the only lake that didn’t have snow in it.

I climbed up another 1000ft/300m to the summit of Mt. Wam, which had a cool cabin on top. I think normally it can be reserved for sleeping, but it was undergoing minor construction so it was open to the public.

I took my lunch break inside and enjoyed the views. And the free wine!

The views coming down from the summit didn’t suck either.

In the distance, I could see Stahl Peak for many hours.

It had an impressive north face that dropped steeply down into a small lake!

After awhile, the trail turned away from Stahl Peak, and I got to visit more lakes!

This one had a snowdrift at the far end, so it was perfect for an afternoon swim.

The trail crossed under a very chossy cliff, which kept things interesting by occasionally dropping pebbles down on the trail. I hadn’t seen this much choss since death valley.

And around the corner, there were more lakes. Therriault lake was below, and Bluebird Lake was on the trail.

At the end of the day, the trail finally left this basin of lakes, and I crossed over a pass and descended towards Canada. There was some strange old mining equipment along the way.

Camping options were rather limited in this area, so I opted for a wide spot in the trail, which was nice and flat in this section, since it follows an old dirt road. Tomorrow is a town day!

Friday July 19, 21.7mi/34.9km

Red Meadow Lake camp (73.3/5551ft) to Campsite at Road FS114 (94.4/4101ft) (MT) +0.6mi side trail from camp

I usually try to avoid camping by lakes and rivers, but this one seemed so convenient. As expected, it was very damp, and my tent was dripping with moisture both inside and out by the morning. After carefully packing up all my gear, and the wet tent, I set off at 7:30am. It was a nice sunny morning.

The trail climbed up to a 6500ft ridgeline, and pretty much stayed there all day. The views were very good, and there were even signs for the PNT!

All the wildflowers were blooming too.

In the afternoon, I entered a wildfire section, I think it had burned in 2017. The pattern in the trees is creepy.

And up close…

I got to the summit of Mt Locke, and a thunderstorm was rapidly approaching. And, in the burned mess if a forest, I couldn’t find the trail down. Finally, I spotted a segment of trail on a ridge 100ft below, and bushwhacked down to it.

And then things got exciting… it snowed, hailed, and then sleeted.

Video

I’ve never seen those before on my birthday, so it was truly an unexpected gift! After 15 minutes, the sun came out again.

The final 5 miles to camp were wonderfully uneventful, and easy walking on an abandoned, overgrown dirt road. I setup camp near a stream, but well above it to hopefully avoid last night’s moisture problems.

It was only 5pm, so I chatted with some local kids at the swimming hole for awhile before making dinner. After dinner, I walked back to my tent (I never cook near my tent in grizzly country), and found it had completely dried in the sun! Looking forward to a dry night tonight!

Thursday July 18, 18.2mi/29.3km

Polebridge/North Fork Hostel (55.1/3527ft) to Red Meadow Lake camp (73.3/5551ft) (MT)

I awoke to the smell of coffee and bacon, and it was already 7:30am! I dressed and went downstairs to make breakfast, my leftover pizza and danish from the general store. On my way thru town, I stopped at the store to say goodbye to Mesquite and Charger, and then began today’s long roadwalk.

I didn’t take many photos, since there weren’t that many interesting things to see from the dirt road. One of the stranger things were these huge bonfire piles every half mile:

And I did get some views, as the road traveled above Hay Creek valley all day.

It was pleasant walking, and the weather was generally warm and sunny, except for two very brief hailstorms.

I didn’t see any people all day, until I got to my planned camp. It is on a lake, and has road access, so there were a dozen locals staying here. I think most of them are on fishing or biking trips.

Roadwalk miles go by quickly, so I was in camp by 4pm. The next campsite isn’t for another 8 miles, so I opted to stop early for today. It’s a beautiful spot to spend some extra time!

Wednesday July 17, 14.2mi/22.9km

Bowman Lake Head camp (40.9/4042ft) to Polebridge/North Fork Hostel (55.1/3527ft) (MT)

I heard noises outside my tent at 7am, so I was awake and decided to pack up. Turns out the noises were from a very non-shy rabbit!

I had a leisurely breakfast at the food area with a couple hiking the western side of the park. I rolled out after 8am, and had views of Bowman Lake for a couple of hours.

I reached the western end of the lake at 11am, and saw lots of families driving in to the area for a picnic lunch. The weather seemed like it was starting to clear.

I took a break at some picnic tables, had a snack, disposed of my trash, and filled my water for the 7-mile roadwalk to town.

Along the road, I saw this strange sign, which raised many questions. Like, why is there a public horse here? And why does it need a ramp? Are they stunt horses?!

A few miles later, I crossed over the North Fork Flathead River.

And a few minutes later, I was in “town”! It’s just a dozen buildings or so, but everything hikers need – a restaurant, general store, and hostel.

I met two other PNT hikers in town, Mesquite and Charger. This is their first long hike, and they were very entertaining to talk to, and so excited for the trail.

I went “shopping” from the hiker box, then went to the general store to grab a few more items. It rained intermittently throughout the afternoon, so I stayed in the hostel and had social time with the other guests. The entire town is off the electricity grid, so everyone went to bed at sunset (9:30pm), it feels like camping!

Tuesday July 16, 14.6mi/23.5km

Waterton River camp (26.3/4222ft) to Bowman Lake Head (40.9/4042ft) (MT)

I heard it rain briefly overnight, and when I packed up this morning, my tent was already dry! Gotta love the west. I left camp at 8am, and spent all morning slowly climbing up towards Brown’s Pass.

The clouds were shifting around the high summits, which was really neat.

There always seems to be an alpine lake just below the pass. I was hot from the climb up, and thought about swimming. I got in as far as my feet, it was probably only 35F/2C.

At the top of the pass, I found a huge field of wildflowers…

… And a furry friend. He seemed to big to be a pika, and too small for a marmot.

Looking ahead from the pass, down the next valley.

The descent from the pass was quick, probably only two hours. All along the way, there were snowmelt waterfalls. I named it TLC valley, who doesn’t love a 90s reference?

I arrived to camp early, at 2:30pm. These days are short, since the permits in Glacier Park are difficult to get, and I had to take what was available. The campsite by Bowman Lake was nice though!

I read from one of my e-books (“2600 Miles to Home”) for a couple of hours, made an early dinner, and went to bed early. Tomorrow is a town day!

Monday, July 15, 13.6mi/21.9km

Glenn’s Lake Head camp (12.7/4865ft) to Waterton River camp (26.3/4222ft) (MT)

I slept in very late, finally packing up my tent at 9:30am. Good thing it’s a short day today! I met two of the other campers at the site, packing up their stuff too. They are hiking the CDT southbound, and also had a short day planned. Firecat & Hannibal had already hiked the AT, so this trail should feel easy.

The hike up Stoney Indian Pass was beautiful, and the trail was nicely switchbacked and easy climbing.

Looking behind me, down on Atsina Lake:

Looking ahead, at Stoney Indian Lake:

The trail actually weaves around the northern shore of SI lake, just inches above the water level.

The rest of the afternoon I spent descending to Waterton Valley, and then another couple hours hiking in the valley. I met a ranger in the valley, she checked my permit, and we discussed our future hiking plans. Turns out she had hiked the PCT in 2015, starting a week after me! Somehow Suds and I had never met on that trail, but what a fun coincidence to meet now!

I crossed the Waterton River on another fun swingbridge, and arrived to camp shortly after. I setup my tent, then went to the “kitchen” area to socialize.

I met Iceman, who is hiking the CDT southbound (already did the Arizona Trail, and Grand Enchantment Trail). I also met a couple of nice gentlemen from Calgary (Canada), and a young woman from the SF Bay area. I retired to my tent at 9pm, even though it was hot in there with the sun shining on it. The late sunsets here are crazy!

Sunday July 14, 12.7mi/20.4km

Chief Mountain Trailhead (0.0/5325ft) to Glenn’s Lake Head camp (12.7/4865ft) (MT)

I woke up early, and got a ride from the hostel at 6:30am to the Two Medicine Ranger station. Turtleman is a former AT thru-hiker, and he now lives in East Glacier and gives rides to hikers. I arrived at the Ranger station before 7am, and got in line. The backcountry camping permits are popular, but it turned out fine. I got a permit for a longer first day (12+ miles), and a normal second and third day (14-ish miles). I hitched a ride back to town, and took a nap at the hostel until 11am (checkout time).

After my nap, I walked down to the general store for lunch. I ordered a pizza, and did my resupply food shopping. I noticed that beer sales are prohibited this weekend, this happened last time I was here too!

I lounged around the town after lunch, since my ride to the trailhead didn’t leave until 5pm. I checked out the East Glacier Lodge, it’s huge inside!

I met TurtleMan at 5pm, and we made the hour-long drive to the trailhead. We had a fun conversation about all things hiking, and even about the Te Araroa in New Zealand. Along the way, it even felt like NZ, with several cows standing in the road.

We drove by Chief Mountain, which is sacred to the Blackfeet tribe, so I don’t think it’s climbed.

I got my traditional starting photo at the US/Canada border, and then I was off into the woods!

The trails here are so much nicer than back east. It was fun to cruise at 3.5+miles per hour!

And the views definitely don’t suck, either.

I enjoyed crossing the Belly River, it had a long swingbridge. So fun!

The views just kept coming.

It took me until 10pm to hike the 12+miles to camp, since I started after 6pm. But it’s daylight out until 10pm too, so all was good! I passed a group of three guys in the fading daylight, and one of them recognized me! “Hey, I think I met you on the Dart-Rees Track, coming out of Glenorchy”. (New Zealand). Holy cow! After my initial stunned reaction, I confirmed to him that he was right. I recognized him too, and Chris and I chatted for a minute before I took off down the trail. Small world.

Tuesday July 9 – Saturday July 13

Let the week of travel begin! I got my 6:30am bus, and it was pretty empty, so I was able to sprawl out and sleep for most of the 6 hour ride to Amsterdam NY.

I arrived at 12:30pm, and it was HOT. Like 90F/32C. I walked the half mile to my grandma’s house, and enjoyed some afternoon conversation in the air conditioning. Just a nice low key, relaxing day. The next day, we went to Cappie’s restaurant with my grandma, mom, and uncle. This place has seem to become a tradition!

Afterwards, we went to visit my aunt, who was part of my early hiking experiences, in the Adirondack Mountains in NY. I still remember that long hike up Mt Marcy, over 25 years ago!

I would’ve like to visit for longer, but it was getting late and it was a three hour drive to Ithaca. I think we arrived in Ithaca after 11pm, and I went to bed.

On Thursday, I was mostly unpacking/repacking gear, and getting stuff organized. For dinner, we went to a very nice restaurant called Mix, which had dozens of delicious small plates.

Friday was a travel day! I left at 10am with my parents, who are driving down to North Carolina for a vacation. We drove 6 hours to Dulles airport in Virginia, where we said our goodbyes. I got thru security surprisingly quickly, and had time for a meal and a milkshake!

I was flying to Minneapolis on Sun County air, and my row was empty! What a great surprise.

With the time zone difference, the plane landed at 7:45pm, and I made my way over to the Amtrak train station on public transit.

The train station was called Union Station, and was huuuge.

I had dinner at a local organic pizza restaurant, and then boarded my train at 10:30pm. The seats are big, and I spread out across a few of them to sleep thru the night. In the morning, I wandered over to the dining car for breakfast.

The food was pretty good, and only a little overpriced. The views were great!

The train made stops almost every hour, and I took a few stretch breaks to move my legs.

The train arrived an hour late, getting to East Glacier Park Village at 8pm. Yes, it’s very light out at 8pm, I think the sun sets at like 10:30pm.

I met up with a friend from the PCT, P-Squares! She is working in the Glacier Lodge, and we hung out and had some drinks. I had to get to my hostel by 10pm to check in, so it was a short but awesome visit!

Goodnight from Glacier National Park!

Sunday July 7 & Monday July 8

I was busy on Sunday, unpacking and doing laundry and cleaning my gear. I stayed with friends Alice and Nick, and their apartment is dangerously close to Christina’s Ice Cream… so I may have made a few trips there during the day!

I also did some advance food shopping, as some of the towns on the PNT don’t have any grocery stores. There was a trip to Costco, and it’s amazing the quantity of cheap junk food they have.

On Monday, I packed all the food into four boxes, and mailed it to Montana and Washington. After my chores, I got together with some friends who couldn’t make it up to Maine. It was a beautiful day for a beer garden!

It was so great to see all my awesome friends again! Sadly I couldn’t stay as long as I wanted, since I had booked a 6:30am bus the next morning. Tomorrow, the traveling begins!

Saturday July 6, 0mi/0km

We were all pretty sore and beat up from the hike up Katahdin, so today was a paddling day! We walked over to Daicey Pond, and rented canoes from the ranger station.

There were even loons swimming near us. What a great final day in Maine!

Around noon, the sky started to get dark and cloudy… time to leave the water.

We returned the canoes and left Baxter Park, driving the 45 minutes to the town of Millinocket. As tradition dictated, we went to the AT Cafe for a celebratory meal.

Another tradition is for thru-hikers to sign a ceiling tile upon finishing the trail. Done!

After a wonderful sandwich and milkshakes, we hit the road at 3pm, and began the 5+ hour drive back to Boston. It was slow going with all the heavy rain and thunderstorms, props to Cailigh for doing all the driving!

The next few days won’t have regular blog updates, as I get cleaned up from the AT, and ready for the next trail, and then travel west!