I just watched Along the Way | Continental Divide Trail Documentary | Full Film on YouTube. I searched for videos about the Continental Divide trail after writing my last blog post about how inspiring it was to see two men on the CDT near Hope Pass.
I watched it eagerly awaiting the places I’ve been on the CDT specially last weekend at Twin Lakes but also living near it in Winter Park/Granby, Steamboat Springs, Yellowstone and Glacier National Park.
There were no shots from Hope Pass or Twin Lakes, Berthoud Pass or Grand Lake. There was a long section from the grocery store in Steamboat Springs, yes I knew it well.
Regardless a great story and footage of their trek.
I love a good closing epigraph and they served it up well. A lesson to live every moment, take chances and be where you want to be – which is strikingly fitting now. Get ready to be motivated; here’s the ending:
“For soon this experience will be some old photograph, some old story…. You can walk to Canada, congrats Boys ……
Despite doing what I set out to do, making it to the end, passing the final test – those feelings of joy, pride, relief, didn’t fully satisfy me because I wasn’t hiking for Canada or some piece of concrete that marks borders, for the end. It was all for the chance to have those moments in between.
So If you ever find yourself on a walk, far from home, do me a favor make your life happen, be brave, challenge yourself, leave your comfort zone. Go see the grand distance places, let the process run its course.
Above all enjoy the little moments along the way.”
I wake up at 4am to get into Glacier National Park before 6am because I don’t have a reservation. The park opened last minute reservations at 7pm yesterday but I’m in the airport looking for food and forget to log in to get a reservation.
I’m in a bit of a panic driving through Kalispell in the dark and getting to the West Glacier entrance before 6am. As I’m driving I’m trying to figure out how to charge my phone and realize my rental truck, a Toyota Tacoma doesn’t have a USB port. I panic and try to problem solve how to charge my phone and envision the entire day without a charged phone (PANIC). I stop at a gas station hoping they have a solution. I purchase a charger for the outlet and then continue on to get to the park entrance by 6am.
I make it in time and breeze through the entrance, it’s not manned at 5:30am. The sun is starting to rise and I’m relieved that I’m here. Now it’s time to get to Logan Pass and find a parking spot. It’s still early but spots fill up fast, so I don’t stop at any of the turn outs with views – I just drive to the top.
As I drive up Going to the Sun road to Logan pass there are cyclists biking too. I’m in awe of their legs and lung capacity to bike up this steep, windy road. It reminds me of my time living in Colorado when I was training for Ironman and biking up Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park. I lived in Granby, and the west side of the park was the “quiet side” of the park. My friends and I would bike through Grand Lake and into the park and up to the Visitor Center. That was over 15 years ago, but seeing these cyclists brings back this great memory.
I think “fit people doing amazing things in the park” hmmmm, reminding me, also of my trip west when I was 17. I was always seeing people doing amazing things or meeting people in hostels who were biking across the country or backpacking through the mountains or visiting all the parks. This trip today is all about remembering that trip 36 years ago and this is a great memory.
I think interesting, adventurous, curious people are drawn to our National Parks and I just love meeting them, and seeing them.
I can’t remember if I hiked Highline Trail with my group in 1988 but I know I wanted to hike this trail as part of my trip. It’s an iconic trail with amazing views that parallel the Continental Divide. I’m a bit obsessed with seeing and writing about the Continental Divide.
Not only does the Continental Divide split the water of our continent into different oceans but I’ve seen and lived near it for many years when I lived out west: in Granby and Steamboat. I’ve run on its ridge and love to see the sun rise over it. It’s a symbol, to me, of living western.
My heart sinks when I see a sign that the parking lot is full. I land a parking spot despite the sign. There are several spots available at 6am. I realize later that this sign just stays up all the time. I head to the trailhead but first the iconic highest point sign:
There is a sign that warns hikers that this trail is hot and exposed. Do you have 3L of water? Do you have sunscreen? Yes and Yes. I continue on.
The first wildlife I see is on the trail the first 10 minutes – a Mountain Goat. It looks over at me and continues chomping on grass. I keep walking and I’m in awe.
Garden Wall and the Continental Divide loom ahead. The view of the valley and mountains is like nothing I’ve seen.
I’m still not sure how many miles I’ll hike. Ideally I’d like to make it to the chalet and then turn back. In retrospect I should’ve done the loop and taken the shuttle back, but I didn’t want to rely on a shuttle in case I’m stuck in heat or rain. So I opt for an out and back.
This trail didn’t even open until July 11 and it’s July 29. Going to the Sun Road didn’t open until June 22. I see only snow on the high peaks in the distance. I really only picked these dates for the only open date at Glacier Park Lodge; everything was planned around the one night there, for tonight. But I digress. My hike:
I am following Garden Wall and am always looking up to my right. There are parts of that trail that seem long and flat, and there are some up and down. I hike past the ledge that hangs like a shelf but wasn’t really bothered by the trail. I held on to the hand cables a few times. I don’t have a fear of heights, a fear of many other things, yes, but not this. I could see the Going to the Sun Road below me and just didn’t look down much.
I opt to turn around at 6.5 miles because there is full sun exposure and I’m getting worried about the trek back. I know I’m close to the trail to view Grinnell Glacier but I’m okay with turning back. I’ve gone farther than the original plan and am ready to go back.
There are so many hikers and I listen to conversations. I hear one group talk about getting to the chalet for their overnight stay and I’m a bit jealous. I see families with children and two couples with a child in a carrier. I just hope they all have sunscreen and plenty of water. When I started out much of the trail was in the shade and now most of it’s in full sun. I lather on the sunscreen and hope I don’t fry.
Going back the way I came is a different experience. I see everything I didn’t look back to see; one benefit of an out and back. This trail is spectacular and as I hike I know I want to come back and do the loop so I can see the chalet. I hike past the rock slide that has purple rocks. I saw it going out and the purple shade of the shale are stunning. This time, I take a rock as a reminder of this hike. This theft reminds me of my past thievery from Mount Washburn in Yellowstone National Park during my Western Park hiking adventure in 1988. I took a rock from the summit and I had it as a souvenir for many years. I realized I didn’t have it anymore and it got lost in moves. I forgot about that rock until just this moment. This trip is all about remembering something special and that Mount Washburn rock memory was part of it.
I get back to Logan Pass and I’m thrilled that I didn’t run into a grizzly and that I’m not burned to a crisp from the sun. I go to the Visitor Center and look around at the interpretive signs. I’m too tired to hike the trail to Hidden Lake which is just past the Visitor Center. It’s a 5 mile out and back. I think to myself, I’ll do it on the way back to Kalispell tomorrow after Grinnell Glacier.
Now it’s time to look for food. As much as I’m a planner, I didn’t research places to eat east of Logan Pass. It turns out to be the hardest part of the day.
I’m driving east on the Going to the Sun Road heading to St Mary’s Visitor Center area. I stop at the Jackson Glacier viewing and wish I was hiking toward it. Jackson Glacier is the 7th largest of the 25 glaciers in Glacier National Park. As I write this my plan next year is to hike in this area.
I continue on in search of lunch/dinner.
Unexpectedly, I see a traffic jam ahead. Initially I think it’s an accident. As I get closer I notice people looking to the north and their cameras are out.
I look over and it’s a freaking Grizzly bear chomping on grass. I see the cinnamon color on his back and the sun reflecting on him and I’m thrilled. I’ve never seen one. I don’t stay long because I’m starving and need food. In retrospect I should’ve stopped but I always feel like gawking at wildflie is the wrong thing to do so I continue on. Again, in retrospect, I should’ve gawked and taken photos.
I stop at the Visitor Center, where I miraculously find a parking spot. I go in, walk around and don’t buy anything. I am just hungry and need food. As I turn east, I see a restaurant sign hanging on a building in St. Mary’s Village just outside the park. I enter the building not knowing what I will find and by some, again, miracle, there is no waiting line and I sit at a table and order food.
I eat a real meal: a bison burger and bison chili, and a Montana brewed IPA. As I take in everything: the hike, the experience, the road, the people, the lakes, the rivers, the mountains – I did everything today that I planned to do. This is a big day.
I drive to East Glacier and home for the night at the historic Glacier Park Lodge where I visited in 1988. This is the place where I bought a postcard from its gift shop while staying down the street in a hostel. I have a memory of the lodge and this trip is partially about going back and staying in this lodge.
The lodge is as grand as I remember, or remember from the postcard. The room is not worth the nightly rate and I’m disappointed but the view from the back porch is worth everything.
Distance: 13 miles. Time: 4 hrs, 48 mins What I ate: GORP, Kind Protein Bar What I drank: 2.5 L water What I wore: an old backpack, Title Nine skort, t shirt, Columbia long sleeve hiking shirt, Pistol Ultra baseball hat. What I saw: Mountain Goat, awesome views
I drive back to Montana in awe of the Canadian Rockies. I was there two days and I want to go back. As I enter the United States the mountain seem smaller, less dramatic.
My new basecamp for two days is Whitefish. I’ve never been here before and I walk around the downtown and depot. I check out the trains and the historic signs. There are trains blowing their whistles which is such a western sound in my mind. Tomorrow is race day and I’m not super excited about it. I’m actually looking forward to the after-race travel back to Glacier National Park and Polebridge.
Back at the hotel I rent a kayak and paddle north on the Whitefish River. It’s been a long time since I’ve been on water like this. Very relaxing and just seeing where it goes. The day was stormy and I am taking a chance that I get poured on, but worth it.
The Whitefish Half Marathon isn’t as scenic as the full marathon would have been. The half starts at the Amtrak depot downtown and runners head southeast into a residential, ranching area. The course loops around and through a park, then back into town. It is fairly flat and uneventful. The full marathon runs by the lake and close to the ski resort. I wish I trained better and ran the full.
I finish the half and I’m sore. It was perfect running weather: sunny and cool. I don’t stay around the finish. I walked back to my hotel, shower and head for the true adventure: Glacier National Park.
The plan is to spend the entire afternoon in the place I spent five days back in 1988 – Polebridge. I want to see the mercantile and explore Bowman Lake.
I drive toward Polebridge and the drive is mostly dirt road. I make the final turn and I see it. It looks so familiar. I park and walk around trying to find the hostel we stayed in and the river we played in. I don’t find the hostel and go into the mercantile to see if anyone knows about it. The woman at the counter is new and doesn’t know about a hostel that was in operation 36 years ago (ha!). The area I think it is in has no trespassing signs.
It’s okay, I buy a sweatshirt and head into the park and Bowman Lake.
The road to Bowman Lake is narrow, bumpy and not well maintained. It is slow going. But once I see the lake everything gets better. It is a cloudy day but the view is spectacular.
I’m not sure if I remember this lake but what I really remember is Numa Ridge trail to the lookout. Our group in 1988 hiked it wearing bear bells. We got to the lookout and saw the door with 200 spikes that was used to block the stairway to protect lookouts from the grizzly bears!
I’VE BEEN THERE. I read his essay and just understood what he was talking about.
I don’t have enough time to hike the 11 mile round trip to the lookout, and I don’t have bear bells or spray with me. Another missed hike that I know I’ll be back to do. I do, however, hike in for about a mile, all while worrying about running into a bear and never being seen again. Instead, I do what I don’t ever seem to do in my life: I sit on a log and just watch the lake and sky.
I stay still and just watch. I think about being in this moment at Bowman Lake in Glacier National Park, Montana and how happy I am to be here in this place, again.
I drive back to Whitefish for my final night in Montana. In the morning I drive south back to Missoula and the airport.
That trip 36 years ago ignited in me the love of the west, the love of mountain and hiking, and national parks. And really, it showed me at a young age how to see the world. Sign up for a trip where you don’t know anyone and take a chance that you will see things you’ve never seen before.
I feel like this trip is a scouting mission because I want to go back to Montana and hike to the glacial lakes. Stay tuned for further adventures.
Running the Whitefish Marathon was the original plan six months ago when I booked my travel to northwest Montana. Most of my plans change dramatically especially in 2022 and 2023, and now into 2024. This plan changed, too. I am still on the hunt to run a marathon in every US state; I have finished 12 states – which is why this plan became a plan.
My training for a marathon starts out pretty well, following Training Peaks plan for several weeks. Then, I hit Week 8 and I miss days; I miss a key 16 mile run on the weekend. This is what happened with the Little Rock Marathon and the Whitefish Marathon.
What tends to happen is I drop down to the half marathon and start planning all the things I will see before and after the race. When you run a marathon, you usually don’t have the energy to travel and go see things. When I dropped to the half at Whitefish, my plan for Montana turned into travel to Banff, Canada and more. This is part 1. I’ll have to come back again, some day to complete a Montana marathon.
On May 15, Wednesday I flew into Missoula and drove to Kalispell. I checked into my hotel and drove east to West Glacier to spent the rest of the first travel day in Glacier National Park. May is such a perfect time to visit; there were no crowds and great temperatures; 67 degrees. I stopped at Lake McDonald Lodge and walked around the shore.
I promised myself I would stop at everything and read all the signs; and not rush through everything (which is my natural tendency because I want to see everything). I drive toward the Going to the Sun Road. I know it’s closed but I want to see if I can walk a few miles up. Instead, I walk the trails around Avalanche Lake trailhead and hike the Trail of the Cedars loop.
The trees and trail are gorgeous. I start to worry about bears but then see the turquoise water flowing down from Avalanche Lake and my worry dissipates. I keep walking and exploring. I read all the signs about the trees. I wish I had more time to hike to Avalanche Lake. I know I hiked this trail last time I was here but the sun is starting to set and I get nervous again. Next time, I say to myself, next time.
I drive back to Kalispell and wake up at 5am to drive to Banff. I cross the border and I’m driving through the freaking Canadian Rockies! They are just stunning and I’m on the Trans-Canada highway just thrilled to be here. The mountains in the distance are huge. The rivers are turquoise. I’m here with the biggest smile on my face.
I’m so extremely happy because I didn’t get to come to Banff 36 years ago on my first trip out west. I came west from New Hampshire in 1988 on a Youth Hostel trip. Our group traveled and hiked, and stayed in hostels in all the western National Parks. We went to Rocky Mountain National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park and Glacier National Park. We were supposed to go to Banff, but couldn’t since the trip leader forgot her Australian passport. We couldn’t drive into Canada so we staying those extra days in the hostel in Polebridge, later hiking Numa Ridge near Bowman Lake, and playing in the North Fork of the Flathead River.
I drive into Banff and it’s not what I expect; it’s better. The downtown is small with huge mountains surrounding the town.
Light rain falls as I head toward the Banff Gondola. I really should hike to the top of Sulphur Mountain but I want to have enough time to do everything. I’m here for one night and want to explore. The gondola was a great way to get to the top and see the view that I’d been watching for months from their webcam. I walk the boardwalk to explore the top and see hikers coming up the trail.
The top of the mountain has an interpretative center with videos and photos to learn about the area. I read mostly everything.
I walk around town, eat and check into my hotel, The Moose. I take a sauna and swim in the rooftop pool. It reminds me of living in Steamboat Springs where I started training to be a triathlete. I would swim in the Old Town Hot Springs thermal heated pool and sit in the sauna after. This is what I needed to end my day in Banff. An absolutely perfect day. As I start to leave the rooftop area, it starts to snow. I walk around town and find a place to eat – Sushi!
The next morning it’s time to run – I need some cardio. As I leave the hotel it is snowing with about an inch on the ground. It is 2 miles to the top of Tunnel Mountain with 900 feet of elevation gain.
I’m so happy to be running in the snow and there is no one in sight; and there are no views. I read the trail description and know that there is wildlife here and I should be on guard. And like always, about a mile in I get nervous and think of turning back. But then ahead of me, out of the snow swirling a woman hikes toward me, coming down from the top. If she can do it, I can do it. I carry on. View my video of my run/hike here.
I get back to the hotel, shower, pack and head to breakfast. I love Canada so much. Steaming coffee, and just a perfect presentation.
And start the beautiful drive back to Montana through a snow storm.
