Moments in Dirt and Ink

Bridger-Teton National Forest (orange line, map link ) DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4 The stormy night wasn't anywhere near so cold as I feared it might be and I woke to the smoke cleaned up and most the clouds gone too. It was 28°F, but oh, what a beautiful morning! I spent it in my puffies. The sun gives a light touch to the surrounding peaks. Still beautiful light a bit later in the morning. I was still in shadow as I took off down something resembling trail. Water oozes out of the land near the lake and small streams come down from higher up frequently. Many of these were partly covered over in ice. Long fingers of ice formed overnight. Middle Fork Lake.

Bridger-Teton National Forest (blue line, map link ) DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4 I wandered up the hill to the east of my camp and found what looked like a better option until I noticed the one huge hazard tree that looks like it wants to fall over the whole camp any minute now. Then I packed up and got on to the Highline Trail going south. On the way up, there were a few trees on Boulder Canyon Trail, especially on the highest bit. There were even walk arounds trying to get one a little lost in the last mile. It wasn't too bad, though. The little bit of Highline I'd walked north along the lake was looking less maintained. I hoped once I got going south, it might get better, but just past the junction is a mildly extravagant walk around. Only mildly. Hardly anything compared with the worst of the day. The main camping area appears to be to the southeast of Lake Vera. I didn't explore it enough to evaluate the hazard tree situation. It's p...

Bridger-Teton National Forest (red line, map link ) DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5 It was smoky again when I awoke. There were no long tendrils to watch floating in. It was just sitting there over everything already. The peaks glow in the beginnings of morning light and Island Lake is not such a grand view anymore in the smoke. I got my breakfast and packed up and headed down to rejoin the Continental Divide Trail as it follows the Highline Trail. Sunlight up ahead where the Highline Trail passes. A well used trail with lots of fresh footprints. I didn't stick to it very long. The trail winds downward for a bit and then there's a junction. Good bye to the CDT and Highline.

Bridger-Teton National Forest (orange line, map link ) DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5 I slept well, but woke up to smoke wafting along high in the sky. It inspired less outright fear than the stuff wafting over 14ers in the spring had, but did make me grumpy. I'd managed to stay out of smoke for all but that one day without any effort, but that was about to change. Smoke in the first light of day. Even more smoke from the north as the sun starts to rise. There was a little glow on the peaks in the morning sun, but not quite so impressive as the evening glow had been. The smoke was settling down over everything and was obscuring the view by the time I got started. Elbow Peak and a pond above Elbow Lake. Just short of a well used and signed junction the Forest Service had taken off their map, I found a fellow meditating upon his proposed route for the day along that unmaintained trail and then up and over a p...

Bridger-Teton National Forest (green line, map link ) DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5 I must have found quite the cold pocket because the thermometer claimed it got down to 24°F. It's suspicious because all the other nights were around 40°F, but I did have frost on my feet again. Certainly below freezing! I was well positioned for sunshine, so it warmed up quickly once that nuclear reactor was visible. There was enough time to tag the top of Doubletop Mountain, so I only partly packed up before heading out. The trail may not be particularly visible at the junction, but once a little way along, there's plenty of trail. I soon turned off it heading for the lower of Doubletop's double peaks. Looking back toward Palmer Lake from the lower peak of Doubletop Mountain. Doubletop Mountain's higher peak. Then I turned and headed for the taller peak. There had been a false peak to catch me on the way up the lower one. The h...

Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest (red line, map link ) DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4 All I had to do was get back to Battle Pass and I was already much closer than my first night's camp. I wanted to add on Red Mountain, but that could only add a mile extra. I expected a lovely day of it, so had a relaxed morning. I even did something I almost never do. I photographed the setup! Camp, set up. Nemo Hunker 2 (AKA "little roof"), Mountain Hardwear Conduit SL (AKA "bivy"), Exped Ultra 5R, Tyvek, Komperdell aluminum poles with shock absorbers. Not visible is the deep purple MYOG summer quilt. Then I packed it all up and got moving. There's a peak to bag! First up, the wilderness high point. I chose a point, pondered it from a different angle, and became very sure it was the exact same point I'd chosen before. If you've hiked this trail and claim the Huston Park Wilderness high point done, I fully support that. I took in the views fr...

Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest (orange line, map link ) DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4 The day looked every bit like it would be dry and warming like my now two day old weather report predicted. Actually, it might be a little warmer than desired for all the elevation gain that needed to happen a the end of the day. When I crossed the signs on the road yesterday, I noticed that they, like the signs on the trail, were about 100 feet south of where I expected them based on the map. I had spotted that first monument without any reference to where I thought I was in relation to the state line, so wasn't sure how it sat. (My track indicates north of the line drawn.) I had reflected that being that far south could easily have hidden a monument from me when searching for 148 M, but I should still have been able to find 149 M. The first one for today was less than a quarter mile off, so I would look, then get a bit south and look again. There'...

Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest (blue line, map link ) DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4 There was no drying things out the next morning. It was dribbling again shortly after I woke up and it kept it up as I packed, breakfasted, finished up, and headed out onto the trail. Rather than lifting, the clouds were dropping. Try as I might to get under them, they surrounded me and took away every remnant of view. Bits of cloud are drifting down the canyon from the saddle near camp. I didn't have much left of the wilderness and, since the trail now shortcuts a part of old road it used to follow, I had less than I thought before the last step out. My plans along the state line were increasing. Really, why not take the trail all the way to the crossing and then go cross country to the monument I was aiming at? This would go past a second giving me twice as many chances of actually finding one. Plus "finishing" the state even if I'd just started i...

Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest (purple line, map link ) DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4 I packed up for four days but suspected my plan could only take three. That plan: hike the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) through the Huston Park Wilderness and a little further. The trail crosses an old road that happens to go past a state line monument, so I decided I would follow that down and see if I could find that monument before turning on my heels and heading right back north. There was at least one different trail diversion I could take on the way back. For the most part, trails in Huston Park Wilderness are spurs connecting to roads off the backbone of the Huston Park Trail running north to south, and hosting the CDT for most its length. It (marked #852 there) diverges by dropping to a low park (as meadows get referred to around here) and climbs back to the CDT after a similar length and about 300 extra feet of elevation change. I also wante...

Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest ( map link ) My original plan for the day was to start backpacking south from Battle Pass on the Continental Divide Trail (CDT), but I decided the evening before to put it off a day for a hike north as far as Bridger Peak. Here, the trail actually follows a road although my map showed two trail diversions. These weren't enough to persuade me to try it, but I decided that Bridger Peak is a worthy destination. It is a range 5 high point with 1884 feet of prominence and 25 miles of isolation as well as a former fire lookout site. I decided not to change my start point and walked the ridge from the rest area, break check, and trailhead on the south side of the pass. There's a second rest area on the north side with some good signs about Battle, Wyoming, which was once there. Now there's a scattering of homes built on mining claims and a few other remnants of mining history. Welcome to Battle Pass. At nearly 10,000 feet, it's a goo...

Arapaho National Forest White River National Forest (purple line, map link ) DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 It wasn't too cold in the campsite by the creek and I had a rather good sleep. I didn't think I needed to get up early since this day should be a shorter and therefore easier day. I was half right. It was shorter. There's sun further up where the trail goes, but not yet at my camp. It was already past 7PM when I stopped, so I really didn't want to continue on although there is water up there. It wasn't all that late when I got climbing for the pass, leaving the canyon part of the hike behind. No more muck! Also not a lot of water for quite a while, so I was sure to start filled up. There actually was some water in the first mile, but after that it wasn't just one pass but many as the trail traveled around the rim of the next canyon. The unvisited high end of the glacial canyon through which Bobtail Creek flows. Slender cinquefoil . The ...