Irresistible.
I’m not an avid backpacker. I prefer long day hikes that include climbing a peak, followed by a burger, a beer, a shower, and sleeping in a real bed. However, when my friend Murray invites me to venture into the backcountry of Glacier Park, I seldom turn him down. Murray knows Glacier, and Glacier seldom disappoints.

I’ll pass.
There were several highlights on our most recent excursion into the park – a 35-mile, 4-day (3 nights) trek from the Two Medicine area to St. Mary that started at 2 pm Wednesday (9/16) and ended around 1 pm Saturday (9/19). One of the bright spots was the perfect weather – no wind, sunny skies, no smoke, and pleasant temperatures the whole way! But the highlight of the trek for me was spending time on the two passes we crossed along the way – Pitamakan and Triple Divide. We gained over 5,000 feet of elevation during the hike, much of that on our approach to the passes, but it was worth the effort. The views were incredible!

Good neighbors.
Another fun aspect of this trip was the people we met along the way. If you’re into solitude and want to get away from folks, backpacking in Glacier’s backcountry might not be your cup of tea. There are four campsites at each campground, and they are often all occupied. The sites are spread out, but you eat and store food in a common area. So, like it or not, you’re going to be around strangers. On this trip we had especially enjoyable neighbors. We started our hike at about the same time as a group of four men who were related to each other. We stayed at the same campgrounds the first two nights, dined together, and even took trail breaks together. Their company definitely added a level of fun to our trip. Then at our last campsite we visited with a small group of thru-hikers at dinner and breakfast. The seasoned north-bounders started their 3,100 mile journey on Continental Divide Trail last spring, and were happy to be nearing their destination at the Canadian border. They were VERY interesting to visit with, but we didn’t even try to keep up with them as we all hiked toward St. Mary Saturday morning.

If you’re interested in logistics, continue reading. If not, now is a good time to take the Photo Tour. Be sure to read the captions. Enjoy!

Orchestration.
We took two vehicles – Murray and our friend Tom in one, and I drove mine. We left Helena at 7 am on Wednesday (9/16) and made the 4-hour drive to the St. Mary Visitor Center to get our permits. Next, we dropped Murray’s pickup nearby at the Red Eagle Trailhead, and then drove my car to a trailhead near the the park entrance at Two Medicine (near East Glacier). By 2 pm we were on the trail to our first campsite at Oldman Lake, nestled below Pitamakan Pass (7 miles). The next day we hiked up and over the pass, and onto the Atlantic Creek Campground (8 miles). Friday’s walk up and over Triple Divide Pass to our campsite at the head of Red Eagle Lake was 11 miles. The home stretch on Saturday from Red Eagle back to Murray’s pickup was 8 miles.

Below: This map marks hikes that have been featured on bigskywalker.com so far, including several in Glacier Park – Select full screen to expand, zoom in for more detail, or click on a marker for a link to the post.

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