I would walk 100 miles...

Glacier National Park is on fire. Two weeks prior to my arrival, the Reynolds Creek Fire closed a good portion of the Going to the Sun Road. 

Thankfully, my plan was to stay in a lesser visited section of the park first (Two Medicine) and the Sun Road opened on the day I needed to access it.

The first two days were long, 15 mile hikes with amazing views. 

The third day was the longest, 19 miles in epic conditions (rain, hail, thunder, lightning and 50 MPH winds). My reward was a break in the weather and 360 degree views at Swiftcurrent Fire Lookout, the highest maintained trail in the park. 

From there, it was all familiar territory...Avalanche Lake, Hidden Lake, Piegan and Siyeh Passes, Ptarmigan Tunnel, Iceberg Lake, Grinnell Glacier and Grinnell Lake.

When all was said and done I had hiked a little over 105 miles.

Luck was on my side...three new fires began during the course of my stay, closing several of the trails I had hiked earlier in my visit and creating hazy conditions throughout the park. 

I am grateful to have experienced so much beauty and hope the fires are contained soon.

Trail Angels

Occasionally I do things that put myself at risk. Thankfully, it’s always worked out.

In 2012 near the end of a long hike in Glacier National Park I encountered a group of women headed back to the trailhead. It was only three miles, but they kept my mind off the newly formed blisters on my feet which made walking unbearable. 

I hadn’t given that encounter much thought until just recently...

Weather delayed the start of my 19 mile solo hike on August 6th. This put me on a section of the trail that is frequented by bears, much later than I wanted to be on it, especially alone. Just before reaching Swiftcurrent Lookout, a couple coming down the trail passed me and I asked where they were headed. Their response “Many Glacier” was EXACTLY what I wanted to hear. I quickly scrambled up to the lookout and back down to catch up with them for the remainder of my journey.

Similarly, last month while hiking the Presidential Traverse in New Hampshire, I encountered a man and his two sons on the summit of Jefferson. I had already been on the trail for several hours, mostly in silence. Their conversation as we descended was exactly what I needed to lift up my spirits.

There is no doubt in my mind that Trail Angels exist. Here’s to hoping you never need one, but that one is there if you do.

A Wild Ride

I hit the road at Noon. My destination was the AMC Highland Center in Bretton Woods, NH. I will never forget that location because I checked the 10 day forecast for the past two weeks.

Thanks to Hoagiefest at Wawa I was all set. If you don’t know what Wawa is, you’re missing out. I opted for a salad instead of chips, grabbed two containers of coconut water and was on my way. As a side note, sandwiches and salads are not the best choices if you need to eat while driving.

There is always traffic in Connecticut. What do people in Connecticut do? Why are there always so many cars on the road there at all hours? Once I hit Massachusetts it was smooth sailing.

It was just before 8pm when I arrived. The man who checked me in gave me an ID card for the dining hall and a key to my room. The room had two sets of double bunk beds. The shared bathroom was in the hallway. I feared that my late arrival would land me on the top bunk, but when I opened the door, there was only one bag in the room. I placed my stuff on the bottom bunk and went to explore. I returned to an empty room and got ready for bed. Someone walked in as I was about to turn off my reading lamp. Her name was Kristen. We chatted and I asked if we were the only two people in the room. She said that another woman had come in briefly, dropped her purse and left.

I said good night, put in my ear plugs and pulled the covers over my head. It was still dark when a noise startled me. I opened my eyes and there was a woman sitting at the edge of my bed, staring at me. She was rambling and none of it made sense. Her hands touched my head and she commented on how pretty my hair was. I turned on the light. She scampered across the room and began hopping up and down on Kristen’s bed. 

The next thing I knew, the sun was up, Kristen was sound asleep and the top two bunks were empty. I grabbed my bag and headed to the bathroom. That was one crazy dream, at least I think it was.

2015 Presidential Traverse

I could write a mini-series of posts based on this experience...what not to pack for dinner when you have to eat while driving, my crazy dreams, less distance doesn’t necessarily mean less time, trail angels, a lesson in mental toughness and the feeling of accomplishment now that the journey is complete.

It's amazing the number of people who don’t know the location of Mount Washington, nor that it is the highest peak in the Northeast. 

My traverse covered roughly twenty miles over the course of two days and included seven summits over 4,000 feet. 

Currently, I am very sore, catching up on sleep and extremely thankful that I am no longer stepping on miles upon miles of rocks. 

I’ll check back in soon, but until then, here is the only picture I have of myself...still smiling (on Mount Madison) so you know it was early on.

two minutes

Just after Memorial Day I began to get excited for school to end. My morning commute (especially along Kings Highway) during the school year is an absolute nightmare! Lines of cars, traffic lights, crossing guards...it feels painfully slow.

The last day of school was June 19th. Since then I’ve had a handful of commutes and you know what? I have saved a whopping two minutes each morning.

Rethinking patience.

Gotcha!

Happy Gotcha Day Hazel! It certainly has been an interesting year with this little nugget...

facebook and peanut butter...

I'm quitting both of them for the month of July.

I'll be eating more than enough peanut butter during the first two weeks of August, hiking over 100 miles in Glacier National Park.

In the meantime, you can find me outside being awesome.