PNT Day 1: Belly River Trl to Glenns Lake
Daily Miles: 12.7, Total Miles: 12.7
Teresa got me to St Mary’s and I was second in line at the backcountry office. I watched the bear video, passed the “test” and we were back on the road a little after 8am.
What a nice, sunny and relatively clear morning! At Chief Mountain, I took the customary pics at the border signs and on the walk back was soon quickly questioned by a border patrol agent on whether I had “stepped foot” in Canada. Apparently I had snuck by him while he was still sitting in the office.
I quickly got started down the Belly River Trail after volunteering to take pics of a large all-female pack group with several horses. I saw a ranger coming up the trail in the first ten minutes and she eventually asked to see my permit. After that encounter, I saw 10 hikers and two gals in horses all day.
The trail and dramatic views down to the turquoise-blue Belly River and Cosely Lake were much the way I remembered it on my 2017 CDT hike. The rickety, swinging bridge over the Belly River was even more rickety, bouncier and spaces between the floor planks getting wider and wider. Only one hiker at a time!
I couldn’t pass up lunch at Gros Ventre Falls, a short side trip but so worth it, cascading into a deep blue pool I had all to myself.
I hiked the length of Cosley Lake to the head to Glenns Lake and had the backcountry campground to myself until late in the evening. I strung up my new Adoptc bear resistant bag on the provided pole and set up my new Zpacks Duplex Lite tent on the shores of Glenns Lake. The 2-hiking pole setup is roomier than my old Altaplex and was an easy erection.
With temps in the low 70’s and a light breeze, a nice hiking day, even the mosquitos weren’t annoying. There was more haze and smoke coming in at the end of the day but not bad (yet). I saw a large bull elk, deer and a fox on the drive to the TH but no wildlife on the trail – could have been my Hey Bear calls on the lower visibility sections!
I enjoyed the loons calling each other on Glenns Lake this evening.