Daily Miles: 20.2, Total Miles: 1,806.1 Got really cold this morning, no doubt the coldest yet – I pulled on my buff and down jacket and zipped up my sleeping bag again. Water bottles almost frozen solid. I didn’t get away until 8am which is late for me. A few miles later I was able to rock hop across the headwaters of the Snake River. I entered Yellowstone National Park at the Fox Creek Patrol Station. All locked up, but…
Daily Miles: 26.6, Total Miles: 1,785.9 Much of today was spent hiking through old burns and some were recent enough there wasn’t a lot of regrowth except for fireweed. I managed to cross Soda Creek and North Fork Buffalo River without getting my feet wet. Followed the meandering North Fork through a wide valley for several miles before turning up Pacific Creek to Two Ocean Pass and Parting of the Waters where Two Ocean Creek splits into Pacific Creek flowing…
Daily Miles: 17.4, Total Miles: 1,759.3 I had a two-stage hitch back to Togwotee Pass. Later than I wanted but I sure appreciated the rides I got. Just a few miles to scenic Brooks Lake and I walked right by the Lodge. Many hikers send their resupply box there. Ran into my new friends, Mike and Bonnie, whom I met in Dubois. They were just finishing a successful fishing trip on the lake. Now are heading to a ‘secret place’…
Daily Miles: 0, Total Miles: 1,741.9 Calories galore at the Cowboy Cafe – two large breakfasts, cheeseburger, and strawberry rhubarb pie with ice cream so far. Not to mention a scrumptious Thai chicken dinner at the Nostalgia Bistro last night. I called the Yellowstone backcountry office to confirm my campground reservations and was told my first backcountry CG in the park on Heart Lake had been closed due to “bear activity”. Their reservation system was down so they can’t say…
Daily Miles: 12.0, Total Miles: 1,741.9 Showers off and on all night and definitely a cold front moving in. My pants and shirt were still sopping wet so I decided to hike in my thermal long johns I already had on for sleepwear. To look more formal in the unlikely instance I would see someone, I put on a pair of short shorts over the thermal bottoms. I hiked up what I thought was the right forest service road for…
Daily Miles: 26.2, Total Miles: 1,729.9 I hiked around most of the Lake of the Woods in the early morning – full of water lilies. Spent most of the rest of the day crossing several willow-choked drainages and a good stent on Leeds Creek. I arrived at Sheridan Pass where I was closely surrounded by a noisy cow herd, all seeming to want something from me or a piece of me or maybe just a salt lick. We then were…
Daily Miles: 26.3, Total Miles: 1,703.7 I enjoyed a great day following the gorgeous Green River and Green River Lakes downstream for about ten miles. The water color was a turquoise green, I suspect due to glacial silt. Steep massive walls still rose from the valley floor. After leaving the Green, I climbed over 2,000 ft to Gunsight Pass and dropped down to sagebrush meadows and forest. Walked through a herd of cattle before stopping for dinner and getting back…
Daily Miles: 29.6, Total Miles: 1,677.4 I got an early ride to the Elkhart TH to resume my journey through the Wind River Range. Ten miles got me back to the CDT at Little Seneca Lake and then on to Freemont Crossing for lunch. A brief shower made me glad to have my rain jacket back. Lower Jeans Lake was my favorite for the day – just rock and water but perfectly arranged. I took a shortcut over Shannon Pass…
Daily Miles: 0, Total Miles: 1,647.8 A nice restful day in Pinedale starting with a big, tasty breakfast at the Wrangler. Mrs. Haze mailed my missing rain jacket but it wasn’t at the PO when I picked up my resupply box. I returned to the PO later in the day and it was thankfully there. Bring on the rain! A little planning today to get around a fire closure on the CDT near Dubois, my next destination.
Daily Miles: 10.5, Total Miles: 1,647.8 More rocks, more lakes, most with small islands and loads of rising trout. Still thinking about a Tankara rod. I had a nice chat with CDT hikers, M80 and Trooper, who were returning to the trail from Pinedale. As I got closer to the Elkhart TH, more and more hikers and pack trains were coming up the trail. I saw some awfully big backpacks. In fact, one lady, resting on a rock, offered me…
