On 7/4 I did 18.7 miles and camped after Flesher Pass. On 7/5 I did 32.1 miles to Forest Road 136. On 7/6 I did 25.8 miles to Forest Road 1856. On 7/7 I did 31.3 miles to ridgeline overlooking Deer Lodge. On 7/8 I did 37 miles to Anaconda, MT.
Listen to “Riders on the Storm" by the doors. It's a chill song to listen to as I'm moving fast and trying to dodge the Montana angry clouds.
I went into Lincoln MT for a resupply after leaving the wilderness areas. Lincoln is my first real MT town I've been in and I loved it. It was a super friendly town and is also one of the stop overs for the great divide bike race so several of the local businesses will let hikers and bikers just camp on their lawn. I picked up my resupply box from the post office and did all of my town chores; this also happens to be the same post office the unabomber used to mail out his packages (for some reason they didn't have a sign to signify the post offices infamous past).
I was able to get a quick hitch back up to Roger's pass on the 4th. I was hoping to see some fireworks from the ridgeline but by the time I was ready to setup camp I was surrounded by forest and didn't have a view of the valley below me but could hear the valley floor on both sides of my rumbling with pyrotechnics.
I have been ridge walking the actual contiental divide for the past 100 miles. It's really cool to see smaller mountains and plains to my East and larger more jagged mountains to my West. I still have to reorient myself everytime I use my maps because I have spent over 5,000 miles walking north, I still just haven't gotten used to walking south. Its weird the weather patterns are coming from my right side (West) when they used to come from my left. The sun is now in my face instead of on my back; I also have to remind myself I am working my way down my GPS instead of up my GPS. I'm sure by the time I go through Colorado I'll have it figured out.
The weather in the mountains has still been unpredictable and on the 5th I had to out run a nasty thunderstorm that was heading my direction. One of the biggest real risks (no bears aren't really a risk, they are just fun to talk about) is lightning. The storms in Montana have popped up out of nowhere and many times you do not seem them coming until you hear a rumble in the distance. Combine the fast changing weather with a lot of exposed ridgeline walks and the only thing you stare at more than your feet are the clouds. Its important to be aware of the wind direction and determine if a storm cell is going to hit the ridge in front or behind you and what your course of action should be. The storms in MT have been pretty violent so I have a healthy respect for what they are capable of and have no problem bailing for tree cover or doing double time over a pass to reduce the risk of a lightning strike. Infact I had to cut my day short on the 6th because lighting was filling the sky above me and I drove for tree cover as I setup my tent in the driving rain. Of course it passed in an hour and the sun came back up but I opted to get up at 3am and make up the miles once I was inside my tent. Besides lighting and rain I'm also getting pummeled by hail. I have been hailed on every day from Lincoln to Anaconda which is never super fun and always just happens to hit when there is no cover.
I'm trying to meet up with a friend on trail. Trail logistics are super hard because I cannot know where I will be in a day from now let alone 2 weeks from now. There are just so many variables such as terrain, weather, injury/sickness, general fatigue and resupply issues that are out of my control and if you try to control these variables you will end up miserable. I'm doing my best to make it to Chief Joseph Pass to meet up with Frizzle on the 13th. I hiked 1,000 miles with her on the AT and most of Washington state on the PCT and I missed her wedding while hiking in New Mexico this year so my feet are going to pay the price as I pull some larger miles to try and make it work out As a bonus for the long days I have gotten some really cool views of sunrise and sunset that I would have otherwise missed and it's fun every once in awhile to dial your body up to 11.
Those clouds are coming in hot. I ducked back into the trees quickly when I saw this.
Is it really a thru hike if I dont pick up a sign along the way.
I dont know what these are but they are pretty
I just liked this picture
Sunset with a storm coming in
Sunrise going into Anaconda
I think it's time for new shoes.
Gary with Fred. Gary hitched me back to the trail from Lincoln
Solo and Fred. Solo is spending her summer supporting hikers along the trail. I dont know why she does it, but it's very appreciated.
25 mile road walk into Anaconda. The views were…. Well it was a good time to mediate