backpacking..

My backpacking trip was both extraordinary and exhausting. I've never carried so much weight for so long before. I'm use to van camping or having a designated camp ground and going on day hikes for multiple days. Backpacking is a little more extreme though. It's invigorating having everything you could need in a large pack strapped to your back. All you have to do is walk. Surprisingly I wasn't as tired as I thought I'd be. My knee started hurting so I relied too much on my left leg which is now tight, and yeah, walking 15+ miles with 50 pounds of weight on your back makes your feet throb, but it was a good experience, one that I'll need to keep at.

So, Friday we started off on one end of Montana Creek trail, and it was miserable. The rain wouldn't let up, our leader for the trip hadn't hiked that half of the trail before and where we planned on camping, because it looked relatively flat on a topographic map, was completely covered with devil's club. It was getting close to sunset and we all pulled our headlamps out, fearing that we'd have to hike through the night in the rain until we could find a suitable place to camp. Thankfully we found a camp in a pretty wet but relatively flat area. We set up camp, began cooking while half our group went to set up a bear hang. Apparently while setting up the bear hang the rope became wrapped around the tree branch several times and we had to cut the rope to get it unstuck. Than we go the rope properly around the branch and attempted to hoist our bags full of food up. Unfortunately for me while I was underneath the bags of food lifting in order to help the people tugging on the rope, the branch broke off and fell on top of me. I was fine, but it felt like nothing more could go wrong that night. And thankfully, nothing more did go wrong.

Saturday morning we had a late start, ate oatmeal, packed up our gear and continued along Montana Creek trail. It was sketchy in a few places. It looked as though some of the trail had been washed away in a mud slide and we had to climb over and under several trees but we eventually made it to Grandchild Peak trailhead. I hardly even noticed the trail because it ascended almost vertically up a hill, and although it evened out in a few places, most of the trail was very steep, and very muddy. But, the sun was out so no real complaints. We made it to the saddle where we set up camp, watched the sunset and the stars come out. Now, if you didn't already know this. When it's a clear sky at night more of the Earth's radiation is able to escape and leave the atmosphere because it isn't being reflected off of the clouds and back to the Earth's surface. Therefore, clear night amounts to freezing temperatures.

When we woke up Sunday morning, our tent was covered in ice, the pond nearby froze halfway over and the ground was covered in frost. I was pretty cold, but I managed to sleep through most of the night. We all watched the sunrise, I made cinnamon and brown sugar pancakes and we hiked a little farther up the mountain to get a better view before packing up camp and heading back down.

I know I've mentioned this a few times, but I truly do appreciate a hot shower and toilet paper after several days of camping outdoors. Using moss to wipe yourself is alright, but it's always cold and wet and leaves pieces of moss behind. And hand sanitizer can only do so much until you realize that the dirt under your fingernails wont be coming out anytime soon. I'm pretty sure I forgot to brush my teeth Saturday night and Sunday morning, which I realized once I got to the end of Montana Creek trail when I began feeling really gross. Luckily, everyone else in my group smelled so you never have to worry about being the odd man out!

Well, that's all I'm going to write tonight. I'm pretty exhausted, it's becoming harder and harder for me to find the time to post. I will try my best to keep up, but unfortunately I don't think I'll be posting daily for a while. I'll include photos of the backpacking trip in a post tomorrow morning. For now, sweet dreams!