LITTLE WING

 

 

“Well she’s walking, through the clouds,

With a circus mind that’s running round

Butterflies and zebras

And moonbeams and fairy tales

That’s all she ever thinks about

Riding with the wind

 

When I’m sad, she comes to me

With a thousand smiles, she gives to me free

It’s alright she says, it’s alright

Take anything you want from me,

Anything.

 

Fly on little wing,

Yeah, yeah, yeah, little wing”

 

From “Little Wing” by Jimi Hendrix, lyrics written by Christopher Young

 

I got an alpine start on Tuesday morning.  I broke camp and ate breakfast in the dark, and hit the trail at first light.  The climb back up to the Sue Lake junction was even tougher this time, since I was carrying a heavier pack.  Fortunately most of my food was long gone, so the pack was no longer more than a nuisance. 

 

I was a little jumpy about the possibility of a bear encounter.  It was really early in the morning, and I was hiking in deep shadows.  I was also the only person on the trail – I didn’t see another person until mid-day near Ahern Pass.  That may explain my reaction when a large bird took off from just above me and buzzed my head.  I nearly jumped out of my skin!

 

The views around the Sue Lake junction were fantastic.  After that I descended into subalpine forest.  There were still plenty of nice views along here, but they weren’t as expansive.  I crossed a tributary of Cattle Queen Creek below a pretty waterfall and contoured through the Cattle Queen valley.  It was late morning when I reached another major stream, and the spur trail to Ahern Pass.  Although I still had a long way to go, I didn’t want to pass the side trip by.

 

The climb was steep but short.  The spur trail led up through subalpine forest, with nice views opening up behind me.  I crested the narrow notch of the pass, and Helen Lake unfolded below me.  It was pretty neat to look down on where I’d camped 10 days earlier!  I continued on the rocky slope to the right of the pass, which offered a better view of the lake and the glaciers and waterfalls feeding it. This vantage also gave me a bird’s eye view of a small tarn at the foot of a glacier.  It was a beautiful milky blue, and it was my favorite aspect of this viewpoint.

 

I took a break before returning to the trail.  From there, I followed the Highline all the way to Granite Park.  Early on the trail hugged a narrow cliff that was a little exciting.  The final approach to Granite Park was breathtaking, as rows of jagged peaks unfolded to the south.  Eventually the Granite Park chalet came into view.  The view of the Chalet from this direction was really neat.  The entire area features massive open slabs of granite, dotted by small trees and shrubs.  The towering peaks in the background provided a dramatic backdrop.

 

I circled around to the chalet, where I stopped for lunch.  It was a hot day and I was out of water, and unfortunately they don’t have potable water (except for guests).  I bought an extremely expensive quart of water, along with a Gatorade and some chips.  The chips and Gatorade were delightful, and I poured the water into my hydration bladder.  I was pretty sure that would be enough to finish the hike.

 

The Granite Park Chalet was a bit disorienting after 12 days in the wilderness.  It’s a busy place, with guests and passing hikers in the dining room / store and on the porch.  I ate lunch on the porch, enjoying the views to the south and west.  Unfortunately it had turned into a hazy (or smoky) afternoon, so the vistas weren’t as good as they could’ve been.

 

I had a major decision to make.  I wanted to continue out to Logan Pass.  That would be the more scenic route, and a fitting end to an epic trip.  However, descending to The Loop would be 3 miles shorter and all downhill.  I was a little concerned about time.  Once I got to the road, I would have to catch a shuttle bus down to Apgar.  At that point I hoped to get a ride out to the airport.  If that didn’t work out, I’d have to walk from Apgar to West Glacier and get a shuttle there.  At the airport I’d pick up a rental car and drive all the way back to St. Mary.  I had reservations for three nights at the St. Mary campground, starting that night.  So it was going to be a busy afternoon.

 

If it had been a clearer day I would’ve continued out to Logan Pass.  With the haze / smoke, it didn’t seem worth it, particularly since I’d hiked that stretch of trail once before.  So I headed down to the Loop.  I didn’t expect much from this trail, and it lived up to those expectations.  There were a few views early on, but for the most part the scenery was pretty modest.  It was a knee-pounding descent, too.  It was unusually hot, and there was very little shade, as the forest is pretty scrubby. 

 

For the most part I focused on keeping a fast pace.  There was one highlight though.  I caught up to some dayhikers, who had just spotted a bear on the hillside above the trail.  I paused, and a black bear poked his head up out of the brush.  It was nice to get one more bear sighting on the way out.

 

I made good time down to the road.  Just before it I crossed a large stream on a bridge.  I thought about stopping there to cool off, but I was more eager to finish the hike.  I reached the road a couple of minutes later, and walked down to the bus stop.  I waited about 10 minutes, which gave me time to eat a snack, change shoes, and re-pack.  The bus ride was smooth, and the air conditioning was wonderful.  However, we stopped at the Avalanche Campground, where we joined a large throng of people waiting for a larger bus to take us the rest of the way to Apgar.  It arrived 20 minutes later, but it wasn’t large enough to take everyone.  Eventually it was reduced to standing room only, and I was lucky to get one of those spots.  The rest of the ride was tedious, and it was a relief to finally reach the Apgar Campground.

 

My first order of business was to retrieve my duffel bag from the bear locker.  I walked straight there, opened the locker, and found it empty.  Sigh.  Apparently somebody had taken the bag.  I looked again, and found a pair of my shorts, which must’ve fallen out of the bag.  I grabbed them and walked over to the site of the campground host.  I was hoping that they had removed it.  I met the host, who was very friendly.  Unfortunately they hadn’t taken the bag.  She did tell me that in the future they’d be glad to hold onto a bag for me while I was backpacking.  I’ll definitely remember that for future reference.

 

A ranger happened to be passing by, so I reported the stolen bag.  She also called the Visitor’s Center, to see if it was in the lost and found.  It wasn’t, but it certainly was nice of her to check for me. 

 

I was a little annoyed.  The bag had contained some old clothes, an old pair of running shoes, an old, beat up cooler, and a few other odds and ends.  Those things were mostly pretty worthless.  I was actually planning on throwing away a lot of it at the end of the trip.  Even the duffel bag itself was nearly worn out.  But the clean clothes certainly would’ve been nice to change into, and I was tired of wearing hiking boots and flip flops.

 

I called Jane and Brittany, who I’d met two nights earlier at Stoney Indian Lake.  Brittany answered, and was willing to pick me up and take me to the airport.  I met her and her dad at the Apgar Transit Center a few minutes later.  They gave me a ride straight to the airport.  This was extremely generous of them, as it saved me from having to walk from Apgar to West Glacier.  It also saved me some money, since I didn’t have to pay for a taxi.  On the whole, it more than offset the stolen duffel bag.  There’s nothing like the kindness of strangers to improve my mood!

 

I picked up the rental car and drove into town.  I was craving a burger, fries, a salad, and a beer.  I spotted a Five Guys, which took care of two of those cravings.  I ended up having to wait another night for the salad and beer.  There was a Verizon store next door, and I picked up a charging cord for my I Phone there.  The cord I’d left in the duffel bag was one of the few things of value that I’d lost, but the replacement was pretty cheap. 

 

Then I drove over to Wal-Mart.  This was the first time I’d gone shopping for clothes in a Wal Mart since…well, ever.  I’d already changed into the shorts I’d found.  I picked up a two pack of boxer shorts for $5.  Then I scoured the racks of t-shirts.  Initially this was pretty grim.  My goal was to find something cheap that wouldn’t be embarrassing to wear.  At first it looked like my options were limited to shirts with Nascar themes, Duck Dynasty characters, or airbrushed wildlife.  I thought I might have to suck it up and pay $10 for a shirt with an airbrushed wolf when I spotted the clearance rack.  I flipped through it, and found a shirt advertising some brewery I’d never heard of for a dollar.  Sold!  I also wanted a towel, and real towels were too expensive.  I eventually found a dish towel for $2.  That would do.  I then picked up some lunch and snack stuff for the next few days.  I ended up getting out of Wal-Mart for less than $20, which was pretty awesome.  Suck it, duffel bag thief!

 

The drive to St. Mary was long and tiring.  Going to the Sun Road was closed at night for construction.  I wasn’t able to beat the closure, so I had to drive the long way around the south side of the park.  I was pretty exhausted when I finally reached the St. Mary campground around 11:30.  This was well past my bed time, after 2 weeks of going to bed shortly after dark.  I reached my reserved campsite, only to find a car there.  What the hell?  Then I noticed the Ohio plates, and I remembered messaging my buddy Dave through Facebook before my trip.  I had posted about being on my way to Glacier, and he had responded, as he was on his way there, too.  At the time I told him my plans, and suggested that he join me at the campground if it suited his schedule.

 

I didn’t see him, so I figured that he was sleeping in his car.  I pitched my tent and went to sleep, exhausted after a long day.  Before I drifted off, I reminisced about one of the best backpacking trips of my life.  It had been everything I’d hoped for.  In review, my favorite days were:

 

1)    Stoney Indian Lake to Fifty Mountain, with the afternoon hike to the Sue Lake overlook.

2)    Glenns Lake Foot to Mokowanis Lake, with the dayhike to Margaret Lake

3)    Hole in the Wall to Boulder Pass, with the afternoon hike to Boulder Peak

4)    Boulder Pass back down to Lake Francis

5)    Mokonwanis Lake to Stoney Indian Pass to Kootenai Lakes.

 

My favorite campsites:

 

1)    Mokowanis Lake

2)    Fifty Mountain

3)    Boulder Pass

4)    Lake Francis

5)    Hole in the Wall

 

Next up:  a couple of dayhikes with Dave.



Continue reading about my trip as I dayhike with Dave to Grinnell Glacier.

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