Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Well, tell us how your trip went. We all want to hear about your special experience.

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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by Sue Z »

mattB wrote:We played a word game on the trail to keep our spirits up.
One person would say a word, and the next person said the first thing that popped into their head.
You know, Like "roses", "red", "blue", "sky".
We had a lot of Glacier themed words...

But I think it was on this slog up towards Brown Pass, where the words, came around to:
"Scary", "movie",
And then devolved into
"horror", "Doom", "Gloom", "Satan", "Die, Die, Die"...

We quit playing the game for a while after that....
I love this.

Good thing you weren't sleeping in this:
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Quoth my brother: "Now is the winter of our discount tent..."
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by teapot57 »

Paul, we did not stop at Lake Francis. We heard it was a drop down to the lake and we didn’t want to lose any elevation. Probably a mistake, but we had set Thunderbird Pond as our goal for lunch and we were pretty set on getting there.

I wasn’t feeling 100% this day and was beat when we reached Hole in the Wall. When asked which campsite I wanted, I chose the one closest to the food prep and pit toilet. I don’t regret that choice- Joybird and I had a beautiful view from our campsite,

My tent is the one furthest to the right.

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Food prep fun.

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More Hole in the Wall scenery for Paul. This was the view from my campsite. I kept my fly open this night and woke up around 1:00 am to an amazing view of the night sky.

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Looking toward the food prep. You can see some of the bear bags hanging from the pole.

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Early morning photo from the creek right next to the food prep area.

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Hole in the Wall is truly a magical spot. In my mind at the time, this was the highlight of the trip as far as scenery. Little did I know that I would be blown away by what the next day would have in store for us.
Last edited by teapot57 on Thu Oct 18, 2018 9:49 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by teapot57 »

Good thing you weren't sleeping in this:
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Too funny! Not sure I’d pay that much for a doom tent. The word association game really helped to pass the time and generate some laughter. And our word choices sure reflected our moods. Matt also entertained us along the way with the plot of a sci fi mystery hiking story that he developed and refined as we hiked along. We had great conversation along the trail!
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by llholmes1948 »

I want one of those doom tents. I think it would make my camping experiences more interesting and perhaps exciting. (Stephen King wants one too)

:arrow: :arrow: :arrow:

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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by mattB »

Day #7 August 7th Hole In the Wall to Upper Kintla Lake over Boulder Pass
The permit says 10.1 miles 1090 ft up and 3070 ft down

The second of our 10 plus mile days!

We took a little time in the morning, enjoying Hole In the Wall.. But then we packed up and headed out! The steep trudge up to the junction with the main trail was a rough way to start the day, but from there it was just a long steady climb up to Boulder Pass, surrounded by amazing views the entire way..

Maia and Mira were wanting to bag another peak on their Glacier experience, after climbing Divide Peak before the backpack started, so there was some talk of maybe having enough time to climb Boulder Peak. So when we got to Boulder Pass Jen pointed out the route to them, and they were off. They were up and back in just over 2 hours, while Jen, Tina, Joyce and I wated for them.. We regrouped at Boulder Pass Camp and had a quick late lunch and then headed for Upper Kintla!

It was all downhill but kind of a long slow trudge, and in the timber a lot so not too much to see. It had been a hot sunny day, and the lower we dropped the warmer it got, so we were all pretty beat by the time we got to camp. Jen dropped her packed and waded right into Upper Kintla Lake for a little cool-off soak!

Setup camp, relaxed a bit, had dinner. And then it was sinking that this was our last night camping, very bittersweet. Thoughts of showers, pizza, beer, huckleberry bearclaws, and orange juice filled our minds, but it was also sad that the trip was coming to an end.. It was an early night, because we were shooting for an early departure, since we had a 10 mile day, and then also a drive around to East Glacier!

Looking back towards Hole In The Wall, on the trudge back up to the main trail..
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Hole In The Wall and Boulder Peak above
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View Looking down into Hole In The Wall
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Almost to Boulder Pass, looking back towards Mt Custer
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Boulder Peak
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A giant Stromatalite
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Boulder Pass Camp was just ahead around the corner, this is about where Maia and Mira left the trail and headed up to the ridge and then on up to Boulder Peak.
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Upper Kintla Lake, through the smoky haze
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Almost to camp!
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Upper Kintla Lake Sunset
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by teapot57 »

This has to be my favorite hiking day ever in terms of scenery. The climb out of Hole in the Wall camp felt harder than it should have, but once we got to the main trail, it was, as Matt described, a gentle climb all the way up to Boulder Pass. I was not prepared for the beauty of the stretch between HOL to BOU. You can look at tons of photos beforehand, but it’s nothing like being there in person and seeing the scale of the mountains and the colorful rocks interspersed with wild flowers and the way the terrain varied with every turn. And the geology is amazing! Words cannot describe and photos can't adequately capture. If you haven't been to this part of the Park, you need to add it to your list.

Joybird was waiting for us at Boulder Pass, and we spent a good 2 hours taking in the mesmerizing views while the teens climbed Boulder Peak. We were in no hurry to leave this beautiful spot. After the teens ate their late lunch, we all dug out our spoons and Joyce treated us to an apple crisp before heading down to UPK. This was the only time that the Stragglers hiked with Joyce as she led the way down to Upper Kintla Lake after our long pause in the Boulder Pass area. It was a quiet hike down for us as we were all tired after a full day and with it being our second 10+ mike day in a row. We didn’t arrive at camp until after 7:00 pm. Laura and Tim had already been there for quite some time in anticipation of meeting their friend Matt, who was to be joining us for our final night. We finished up the last of our rum and packed it in early, so we could be on the trail with an early start to head back to civilization.
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by Sue Z »

teapot57 wrote:This has to be my favorite hiking day ever in terms of scenery. The climb out of Hole in the Wall camp felt harder than it should have, but once we got to the main trail, it was, as Matt described, a gentle climb all the way up to Boulder Pass. I was not prepared for the beauty of the stretch between HOL to BOU. You can look at tons of photos beforehand, but it’s nothing like being there in person and seeing the scale of the mountains and the colorful rocks interspersed with wild flowers and the way the terrain varied with every turn. And the geology is amazing! Words cannot describe and photos can't adequately capture. If you haven't been to this part of the Park, you need to add it to your list.
I share your enthusiasm for that area. I hiked UPK-BOU-HOL-BOW on my first trip to GNP, in 2013, including a scramble to the top of Boulder Peak. The scenery is fabulous beyond words. I was especially enchanted by the variety of rocks, as is evident in this old post: http://www.glacier.nationalparkschat.co ... f=1&t=8039.
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by mattB »

teapot57 wrote:This has to be my favorite hiking day ever in terms of scenery. .
Ok, I loved the hike also, but how many "favorite hiking days ever" can you really have on one trip??
But, honestly I think I agree, every day was better or best in its own way!! Even the last day, which turned into a hot tired slog,
but any day that ends at the Polebridge Mercantile can't be bad!!
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by mattB »

August 8th Day #8 The end of the trip
The permit says 11.6 miles 0 elevation gain 400ft elevation loss
Google Maps says 11.2 miles 922ft up, 545 ft down.

Got a pretty good start out of Upper Kintla, nice hike along the lake, some nice views, but it was warming up quickly.. We'd seen some weather information back at Goat Haunt that indicated a heat wave was coming, and indicated that it would be in the 90's at Polebridge, but I assumed that must be a mistake and it was really for Kalispell...
The climb up the little hill between Upper Kintla and Kintla got us a bit but we trudged on. Stopped for a short rest at the Ranger cabin at the head end of Kintla and then trudged on to Kintla Lake Camp and stopped for a lunch break. Chatted with several kayakers, some were camping there, and some had just come up for the day from Kintla Campground.
It was a long afternoon... All the ups and downs along the lake was killing us... Just when we'd think we were done with them and it would be smooth sailing to Kintla campground the trail would turn up hill away from the lake. It was a cruel cruel trail that day...
Finally we sent Maia and Mira ahead, and Jen, Tina and I said we'd meet them at the car, but soon we caught up to them at a fork in the trail chatting with a man and his teen age sons!! We got them back on track and again sent them off on the fork to the trailhead and the car and told them to YELL went the got to the car..
But the cruel trail continued, more uphill, we trudged and trudge, "How can a quarter mile be this long??"...
But then we heard two shouts through the trees, and soon we had dropped our packs, kicked off our boots, and were cramming gear into the car. And then in the comfort of the air-conditioned car we were on our way to Polebridge plotting what all we would eat and drink!! Apples, Orange Juice, Root Beer, Bearclaws, chips!
I think the weather men were right, I'm sure it was 95 at the Merc when we piled out of the car..
We refueled and rehydrated, with a round of Bearclaws, and drinks!! and then were off for East Glacier. The drive from Polebridge over to Apgar and the Highway 2 is a beautiful pleasant drive on a nice summer evening! After a quick stop at Marias Pass, we were soon unloading at our house in East Glacier... We'd had great plans for meeting people at Serrano's for dinner, but we were all to tired and hot showers were beckoning, so we opted for Pizza and beers from Brownies, and Paul joined us for dinner...
The showers and beds were so nice!!

Morging on Upper Kintla Lake
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Up and over the hill between the lakes
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Between the lakes
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Jen and Maia, at the head of Kintla Lake
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Ranger Cabin at head end of Kintla Lake
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Kintla Lake
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Kintla Lake with oil drilling equipment and kayakers
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It was only lunch time and we were tired
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And we made it!!! Bearclaws and beers for everyone!!
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The house in East Glacier, we were all too tired to take any pictures of the pizza or beer or showers!!
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by ND »

Great TR and pictures! I'm missing summer and GNP right now!
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by NDjason »

Great trip and great group! Really jealous of all the clear skies! Loved the group report.
~ jason
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by tibber »

ya, ditto on the clear skies.

You guys worked hard to earn those huckleberry bear claws at the Merc. What a great journey!
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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by teapot57 »

Matt,

Thanks for spearheading our trip report! It was one of the most challenging yet rewarding things I have ever done.

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Re: Glacier Northern Traverse Group trip Aug 1-9

Post by McKee80 »

Thanks for the report, sounds awesome. I still need to put up my report, same areas, with much scrambling because of fires, road closures, and weather!
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