July 1, 2013

July 1, 2013

Day 14 - the divide roller coaster 

From a meadow near the divide to Rogers Pass

24 miles

Within the first mile of hiking today I knew it was going to be hot. I was pretty excited to get to walk along the divide today, and while the views were pretty cool, I failed to realize just how much hotter it would feel being exposed on a ridge for most of the day, rather than waking through lush, shaded forest. In addition to the heat, the trail rolled up and down fairly steeply, definitely steeper than PCT grade. 

After a couple hours of hiking today I ran into Huck. He had been just ahead of me the night before and didn't get an early start to the day. We talked briefly before he realized he was short on water and headed off to the next water source before it got any hotter. 

I also ran into another hiker named Challenger. He ended up getting the flu when in East Glacier and is just now getting out hiking again. He plans to get his hiking legs under him and then reconnect with The Captain, Man Party, Lush, and Columbus. 

Towards the end of the day Huck and I ended up crossing paths again. He said that by the time he got to the next water he was cramping up and had a hard time walking straight. He then downed 4 liters of water at the spring. Glad I had plenty of water with me. 

Due to the heat we both decided to hitch into the town of Lincoln for the evening to grab dinner, ice water, a cold beer, and some cold ice cream, before returning the the trail. It was a success given the fact that I have a full stomach tonight. After that brief awesomeness I'm looking forward to getting into Helena for a shower, laundry, and my first zero day. And it will also be the Fourth of July, so I'm looking forward to those festivities as well!

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