 |
| Mileage |
11.9 |
| Elevation
+/- |
1780
/ 1910 |
| Fatigue |
 |
| Camp
Rating |
 |
| Meals |
|
| Breakfast |
Scrambled
eggs |
| Lunch |
Marathon
bars |
| Dinner |
Chicken
& Rice and pudding |
| Water sources |
No problem |
NOTES:
Aside from a half hour climb at the beginning
of the day this was an easy 12 mile day... |
|
|
The first thing Ithought about as
I awoke at 6:40 was that it was a good thing the Granite
Park Chalet had some snacks to sell. Though I had budgeted
my food almost perfectly, knowing that re-supply was possible
at the chalet allowed me to dip into my bag a litle more
liberally...and I did just that to the point of not having
anything to eat after breakfast on our last day on the trail.
 |
| Looking back down to
Fifty Mountain camp. |
After another lousy bag of mountain
house scrambled eggs we got moving quickly and were on the
trail by 8:10. There was the potential to do some side trips
both on the way to, and at Granite Park and we wanted to
have enough time to at least get something in if we felt
able. The weather was again on the cool side---mid 50's---windy
and cloudy which suited me just fine.
We began the day by looking up at
what appeared to be a rather lengthy climb back up to the
continental divide. In reality, the climb took only a half
hour, was no big deal and afforded us some great views looking
south and west. Since we were both pretty hardened from
our previous four days on the trail we didn't even bother
to take a break until we eached Cattle Queen Creek at about
10:40. the sun was starting to make an appearance but it
was still quite windy. The view looking at the trail across
the valley was superb.
 |
| Looking back north towards the
continental divide about 45 minutes from Fifty Mountain
camp. |
We continued our gradual climb until
shortly after noon when we decided to stop at the Ahern
Trail junction, just below a magnificent cirque. Though
Ahern Pass was just a short hike away we decided not to
do the extra distance and elevation to see it---something
I regret. What I didn't regret was the close proximity of
a large boulder which broke the chilling wind coming from
the west. I didn't want to leave our shelter to filter water
but we were both low and it had to be done. I made a mental
note to purchase some gloves when we got off the trail for
use on our next hike.
Finally it was time to leave our
rock shelter and continue towards Granite Park. The trail
took us through more burn areas, scree and talus fields,
not to mention more alpine scenery. The miles were melting
away very quickly and I was feeling great. Any misgivings
I had about doing 12 miles in the pathetic shape I was in
before the hike began were now a distant memory.
 |
| Dorf enjoying the view from the
Highline Trail. |
At 3:05 we caught our first glimpse of the Granite Park
Chalet and began descending to the backcountry campground.
Despite taking numerous breaks and many photos we had managed
to cover the nearly 12 miles in less than 6 hours. We had
our pick of campsites as we were the first ones there and
chose one with a great view to the west.
While Mike was finishing setting up I decided to hike up
to the chalet for a snickers and pepsi. The way I saw it,
if the opportunity was there it couldn't be cheating. Or
could it? It took about 20 minutes to hike up to the chalet
and it seemed almost longer than the 12 miles we just completed.
Mike and I decided that we'd prepare dinner up there so
I had brought along my food bag and water bottle.
While waiting for Mike to join me I busied myself in the
chalet researching lost lodges of the park. On one stretch
of trail we were convinced there had to have been a lodge
near fifty Mountain because the trail was so wide and well
constructed. Despite looking through several historical
accounts I could not find a record of any lodge north of
Granite Park. There were some in other places that are not
standing now: St. Mary, Cut Bank, Two Medicine (the general
store there was part of the lodge complex), and Sun Point.
It was interesting reading and I enjoyed looking at old
pictures of the park while sipping on two Pepsi's. I had
to settle for a couple of Baby Ruth bars as they were sold
out of Snickers. Dammit. This wasn't my day!
 |
| Mike getting ready to prepare his
dinner from our veranda at Granite Park Chalet. |
Soon enough Mike joined me and we found a vacant picnic
table with great views toward Lake McDonald valley and Logan
Pass on the south side of the chalet. We eyeballed the trail
leading to Grinnell Glacier. I was still pissed at myself
for not hiking up to Ahern Pass and thought this might be
a good chance to redeem myself. The problem was that I was
only wearing my Tevas and daylight was running short. I
probably wouldn't have made it back down before nightfall
had I went up.
Dinner in this beautiful setting was about as good as it
got. Not only did we have the views, but we also had a picnic
table all for ourselves, partly sunny skies and candy bars
close by. It was perfect. After we ate I bought another
Baby Ruth a Pepsiand a couple Clif Bars for the trip out
tomorrow as I had nothing but a ziplock full of oatmeal
and two pieces of beef jerky left in my food bag. I was
actually very pleased I had figured out my food needs as
precisely as I had.
By 8:00 we were back at our campsite and decided to have
some tea. I'm not a tea lover, but it almost seemed like
the thing to do in that setting. We talked with an odd fellow
who was with us at Fifty the previous night. He was nearing
the end of his 50-something day trip from Philly. We never
could figure out what he did for a living that afforded
him to take such a long vacation, nor did he tell us. Another
mystery likely never to be solved.
After tea we went back to our campsite and sat, watching
the sky turn a million different shades of orange, purple,
pink and red. It was spectacular, as most things in Glacier
are. We were joined by the Atlanta pair for a while until
it was time to turn in for the night.
 |
| Sunset from our campsite. |
As I wrote in my journal it struck me that this might be
my last night in Glacier's backcountry for another year,
and maybe longer. Mike had been away from home for a long
time and was going to go back after we got off tomorrow.
I couldn't blame him as he'd been gone for over a month.
Our second hike was likely to be a no-go due to the ongoing
bear situation near Two Med anyway.
Now I had a small predicament of my own. I was beginning
to really miss Yumi and my boys, and thought i could leave
without regret. However, this was Glacier, my obsession
for the last couple of years. How could I leave when I still
had the time to spend? I decided that I'd try to get the
second hike Yumi and I were going to do in July: Gunsight
Pass to lake McDonald Lodge. If I got it, I'd stay. If I
didn't I would drive home and probably regret it the entire
winter. I had to get the hike.
I felt much better about things as I drifted off to sleep
now that I had a plan.
|
