PNT - Eureka, MT to Bonner's Ferry, ID

Day 8 - Eureka to Gypsy Meadows  Daily Mileage: 19

I caught a ride out of Eureka with the same guy who had given me a ride 2 days earlier near Theriault Lakes while I was lost.  Small world.  He dropped me off at the Koocanusa bridge and I started walking.  Half a mile later, I was on the quiet side of the lake, and zoomed through a few miles of road walking before starting the climb up Webb mountain.  The first two miles of the climb were a bit brutal, as I was exposed to the sun, but after that the grade lessened slightly and the final three weren't so bad.  I had some lunch and managed blisters on my feet at the lookout tower on top.

The trails from Webb mountain to my campsite for the night were relatively easy to follow, except for an insane number of blowdowns across the trail.  Just as I'd finish picking my way through one, I'd look up to see the next waiting for me 50 yards down the trail.  I missed my turnoff and went 1.5 miles down the wrong trail.  Navigating the blowdowns wasn't any more fun the second time around.  I made camp near the marshy Gypsy Meadows and spend about an hour after dinner watching frogs do their thing in the creek.  I'm not sure if these frogs are a good representation, but if so, frogs lead fairly boring lives.  Watching the salamander soap opera in Porcupine Lake on the PCT with Joe and Guire was much more entertaining.

In other news, it seems like the thru-hiker hunger has finally started to set in.  Even after eating huge meals, I'm pretty much always hungry.  This means future town stops are going to be a total pigout!  Sweet!

Day 9 - Gypsy Meadows to Yaak River  Daily Mileage: 20

Is there really a trail here?

So in the middle of the night, I woke up to the sound of a distant splash.  Something had just jumped into the opposite end of the marsh, about 100 yards away.  I could hear something very large sloshing its way through the waist high water right towards me.  My mind started racing...would a bear do that in the middle of the night?  Are there moose out here?  Was swamp thing real, or just a movie?  I tried peering out of the tent, but couldn't see anything.  Whatever it was got within about 50 feet of me before I let out a loud whistle and turned on the headlamp.  The footsteps stopped and I didn't hear anything for two agonizing minutes.  Suddenly, another big splash and the thing took off back in the direction it had come from.

The sky was starting to lighten (or so I thought), and I was relieved that it was almost morning and I could get the hell out of there soon.  I looked at my watch only to see that I'd only been asleep for about two hours, and what I thought was dawn, was actually fading twilight.  I had the entire night ahead of me to lay there shivering in fear.  Strangely, I fell asleep within about 30 minutes of my midnight encounter, and actually slept pretty well.

Breakfast of champions

I got up the next morning looking for signs of whatever it was last night, but couldn't find anything.  I hit the trail around 7am, and made it to the top of Mt Henry by 10.  I had a late granola breakfast and enjoyed the view from the abandoned lookout tower.  The trail down to the fish lakes valley was fairly easy to follow, except for another series of blowdowns.  They weren't too hard to get through or around, but they slowed me down considerably and took a lot of energy to deal with.  I stopped at upper Fish Lake for a midday break and a swim.  The lake was a bit shallow and muddy, but warm enough for a great swim.  It felt great to finally find a place to swim that allowed for more than just a quick dip before freezing to death.  I rinsed some clothes out and spent 30 minutes enjoying the sun as they dried.

From Fish Lake it was a decent climb for a few miles, and then the final descent into the Yaak valley was tough.  I lost the trail in a huge tangle of blowdowns, and tried to bushwhack it due west in hopes of meeting up with a forest service road a mile or two down.  It took me almost an hour to go about a quarter mile, and luckily I happened upon the trail again.  It took a lot out of me, and I realized there was no way I would make it to my planned camp for the night.  I had to stop at the first crossing of the Yaak river and hobo camped it under a bridge.  I had a great swim and a bug free evening.

Yaak river campsite

Day 10 - Yaak River to Winkum Creek  Daily Mileage: 24

Got a bit of a late start this morning, and didn't begin walking until 8:45.  I had misplaced my spork, and spent almost an hour looking this morning, and of course, finally found it after I had given up and started to walk out to the road (must have fell out of my pocket while I was resting in the sun on top the bridge).  I'd seen a decent amount of traffic on the road the evening before, and was hopeful that I could catch a ride at least partway up the 12 mile roadwalk I had ahead of me.  No luck.  Not a single car.  From the road's end, I hiked up past Garver mountain and down to Pete Creek camp.  The forest had a unique feel to it, and I enjoyed the quiet, bug free afternoon.

From Pete Creek Camp, I had another 7 miles of road walk, and had to do it all by foot as well.  When you don't have to pay so much attention to where you're putting your feet, your mind starts to wander.  I made the mistake of thinking about those tacos I had in Mexico City a few weeks ago.  Ooooh man they were amazing.  About 5 blocks west of the Zocalo on the pedestrian street, there's a little square of food stalls that opens up for a few hours in the morning, and sweet Jesus they have some killer food.  Haven't been able to get 'em out of my head since.

Luckily, I happened to cook up my most fantastic dinner of the trip so far.  Standard mac & cheese, but I added a bunch of dehydrated broccoli (dehydrates super easily, and is definitely going to be a backpacking staple from now on) and a bit of my dehydrated homemade salsa.  Wow!  Totally hit the spot after a long mileage day.  I sure hope I have another bag of that in my resupply box at Bonners Ferry.

As I was laying in bed around 8pm, going over maps for the next day, I heard something making a lot of noise coming down the road.  It didn't sound quite like a deer or elk, and turned out to be a crazy mountain man!  He carried 3 big tins of lard for food, and had slept outside 340 nights a year for the past 4 years.  We sat in the middle of the road and discussed naturopathic medicine (of which I know nothing about) until out of nowhere, he dropped the bomb:

"Would you like to do some Chi-Gung?"

Um...what?  I nervously said I would, and found out it was like tai-chi.  I'd never done it before, but he insisted that an hour of meditative poses would be good for me.  We stood facing each other, four feet apart, and spent 30 minutes doing exercises in the middle of nowhere in silence.  Now this is what I'm out here for!  As darkness started to set in, a van came down the road, and the guy took advantage to hitch a ride down into the valley.  Never even caught his name...

Day 11 - Winkum Creek to Moyie River  Daily Mileage: 26

NW Peak lookout tower

Got up at a comfortable 6am and hit the trail by 7.  I felt great, possibly due to my Chi-Gung extravaganza the night before.  The 3 mile road walk went by quickly, and I was soon on the trail up to Northwest Peak.  I made it to the lookout by 8:30 and was treated to some spectacular views of the surrounding peaks and the upcoming ridge walk I'd be tackling.  I had a leisurely breakfast and enjoyed the solitude.  Solitude except for the bees, that is.  Not sure why there were so many at a summit with nothing but rocks.  Seems like the bees should have some business elsewhere.  Oh well.

Toilet with a view...

Anyway, I started the cross-country ridge walk towards Davis Peak and my eventual meetup with the official PNT trail.  The first hour went well enough, with epic views and fantastic trailless walking.  I couldn't help but think, "Wow...now this is why I hike!"  Unfortunately, as I started climbing Davis Peak, I pulled myself up over a rock ledge and stood up right into an overhanging alpine snag.  I hit it hard enough that it stunned me, and I had to sit down for a few minutes.  Of course, as soon as I got my thoughts together, I noticed the blood dripping down off my face.  I'd got a nice 2 inch gash in my forehead that probably looks real nice.  The problem is that it's right where my hat sits, so I'll have to figure out some kind of bandage situation.

My upcoming ridge walk

I made the decision to try and contour around the peaks, instead of going up and over them, and found myself on some dangerously loose rock slopes.  Large boulders shifted uncomfortably under my weight, and I was mentally and physically drained after an hour of this traverse.  Multiple rockslides had banged me up pretty good, and I was almost on the verge of tears because of the stress of some questionable rock climbing moves I'd had to make.  I was relieved to finally make it to the ridge on the other side, but quickly realized that I'd gone about a half mile out of my way in the wrong direction.

It took another hour of bushwhacking to get back to the main trail, and I was pretty much done for.  I sat and collected my thoughts, and prepared for the remaining 12 miles of hiking.  Of course, a brief storm moved in a dumped enough rain to thoroughly soak me, and then my expect water sources turned out to be dry.  I stopped and cursed the sky, clouds, trees, and nature in general for a few minutes.  Luckily, I found a nicely flowing stream within a few miles, and refilled on some much needed water.

I set up a stealth camp near Kreist Creek in the Moyie River valley and am taking stock of my injuries.  I'm not in too bad of condition, and some bandaids, neosporin, and a good nights sleep should have me feeling better tomorrow.

Day 12 - Moyie River to Bonner's Ferry, ID  Daily Mileage: 19

Nature's bounty

Considering I'd put in 26 miles the day before, I felt pretty good climbing out of the Moyie River valley this morning.  It helped that I found a bunch of huckleberries and wild strawberries growing on the side of Bussard mountain (yes...bussard with an s).  I stopped for a nice morning break and pigged out on strawberries, blueberries, and what looked like 3 different varieties of huckleberries.

I crossed over the mountains in to the Ferry River valley and stopped for a swim in Brush Lake.  I was in no hurry, as I knew I'd make it to the road to Bonner's Ferry in time, so I enjoyed about an hour of swimming and laying in the sun at the lake.  A quick hike out and a 15 minute wait for a hitch took me into town, where I got set up in the Carriage House Inn.  Within an hour of arriving I got into a 40 minute conversation with a crazy looking guy who called himself the "Huckleberry Guru of Idaho".   He totally looked and acted like an over-the-top Woody Harrelson character dressed up in grubby clothes.  His hands were stained purple and he told me all about his history of picking, berry picking rivalries, funny stories from the mountains, secret swimming hole locations, and recent technological improvements in the berry picking industry.

The Ferry River valley

Unfortunately, he's getting old (looked to be around 45), and is thinking it's time to get out of the game.  Time to let someone else wear the crown.  In his heyday, he was pulling in 13 gallons a day, but his numbers are dropping, and it's time for a new generation to take over.  A few good meals here and I'll be on my way into the Selkirk mountains for another 5 days until I reach Metaline Falls, WA.  I think I'm about 250 miles in, and am feeling great.  Pacific ocean...here I come!