June 17th, 2024
Mile Marker: 49.4
Miles Hiked: 15
The birds were chirping away at 4:30 AM and we were following suit soon after. I was thrilled that I slept better last night only waking up a couple of times.
The big dilemma for the day was what time we should start walking to try and get over Piegan Pass before the snow/rain became thick.
We decided to eat a couple bars and head out around 6:30 AM.
The morning was cold cold cold so we walked fast trying to warm our bodies. As we walked past a lodge, a man asked us if we knew about the incoming weather and we let him know we did.
Hearing comments like that always make me second guess our decision but we were walking and we could regret it later.
We walked through dense forest and after an hour or so, Journey and I both had a creeping feeling like something was around us or watching us. We started our usual “Heyo” yell alternating between the two every couple of minutes.
A short while later we noticed ginormous bear footprints in the mud.
No thank you. I could feel the adrenaline spiking throughout my body. A short while later we also spotted a young moose down the mountain and didn’t waste time taking pictures because if momma was around, we didn’t want to be.
We continued on and came upon snow that started to become thick and high and started to slow our trek down. The higher we got, the more snow we walked over. Fairly quickly I put on my micro spikes because the long downward steep slopes made me uneasy.
We continued the long climb up and found ourselves in a winter bubble. Thick snow, low clouds, that made it hard to see anything, and snowflakes falling down on us. It was white everywhere and we couldn’t tell how much of the climb we had to go.
Our pace was slow going but I was thrilled to reach the top and work our way down out of the cloud.
I found myself walking along the side of the mountain with snow chutes that spiked nerves throughout my body. I continuously told myself to not look down and only ahead. Taking deep breaths before each section.
I’m thankful the microspikes make me feel more secure but it still terrifies me currently to walk on chutes like that or look down and see a steep slide down the mountain.
After about 3 miles down the snow suddenly stopped and we were in the dense forest again and wet muddy trail.
We made it to our campsite around 2 PM and quickly set up our tent in the rain and got in to get warm. We were wet and freezing.
Both of us have acknowledged that these next couple of days are going to be hard because of the cold rain/snow. It’s hard to ever dry out.
It’s wild to me that I’m doing full days hiking in snow to start my third thru hike and on day 6 of the AT that is what caused a major break down for me.
Wild.
I still don’t love hiking in the snow but have acknowledged that if it was a blue sky day, I’d probably like it more. With it being in the 30s and snowing, AND sketchy, it’s just not my favorite and I’m not sure it ever will be.
However, sometimes all we need is a little more exposure to exploring something new and different with someone who knows what they’re doing and can help you along.
Iz and Oz
Izzy + Ozzy 