Off to Glacier National Park

Final Notes before hitting the CDT

I’m heading out to Glacier National Park to hopefully finish my hike of the Continental Divide Trail. We are now well into LASH (Long-Ass Section Hike) territory as this will be the 3rd installment.  The first was my long 2022 hike, the 2nd was my 2024 completion of NM.   Ideally, there won’t be a fourth.  It’s a 1200 mile stretch to the southern end of the Wind River Range in WY, plus if I have time, a 200 mile section in Colorado.  Hopefully it takes around 90 days.

Park Conditions

If you want to check out what things look like up there right NOW, there are the Glacier Park Webcams.

Here’s the vertical trail profile with snowy sections overlaid on it by Postholer.  He maps publicly available snow satellite data to the GPS track of the trail.   Come summertime, this whole thing will be grey – meaning no snow.   At the rate things are melting, I’m leaving my spikes home – a 12 oz savings.

This image is live, it updates every 3 days.  Check back if you want to watch the snow melt.

A Little Light Music

For you music fans, here is my 2025 hiking playlist (for best results, pop the video out and watch/listen to the whole thing in a separate window in Youtube – click the word ‘Youtube’ in the lower right). Some old favorites, taking me right back to the PCT.

Conditioning

I took a break from going hiking every day because I hurt my back.   Not a great way to start a backpacking trip.   So I pumped the brakes for a week and we’ll see.  Otherwise, it’s been endless stairmaster time at the gym.   It’s difficult to know whether it truly helps; you use SO many more muscles carrying weight on uneven ground.   Before my back got angry with me though, I was averaging 3mph carrying a load on pavement, and about 2.5 mph on trail.   I think things are good – although who couldn’t use MORE conditioning?   The best way to get good at hiking?   Go hiking!   It reminds me of a thing Bruce Lee is reported to have said:

“I fear not the man who has practiced one kick 1000 times but I fear one who has practiced one kick 10000 times”.

If you want to get good at doing a thing, do that thing.   Everything else is a proxy.

Supplies

I made a final pass through my pile of gear, everything seems in order.   There’s the usual sub-optimal things, like the fact I’m bringing aluminum poles rather than carbon (good new carbon poles are $$).   You can spend hundreds to go completely all-out, but then you don’t have hundreds to do the actual hike.  Other than semi-perishable food supplies, I’m good to go.   I’ll be doing maildrops for the first bit, just to get going.   Once I’m in a big town in MT, I’ll bounce food ahead to ID.

I’m planning just 3 resupplies for now:

1. Starting in Glacier – I’m bringing 7 days of food with me, so I don’t have to pay Park prices for normal items, if they even have any.   I can also supplement my supplies with some snacks if needed.   This comes with me on the plane.
2. The Bob – 176 miles to Lincoln.   I’ll do this in 9 days.   Possibly less.  I’m not looking forward to this massive food carry.  But, it gets lighter every day, and water should be plentiful.   This one gets mailed shortly after I arrive in Glacier.
3. Lincoln, MT – small grocery, which might have what I need, and might not.   For the 3.5 days from there to Helena, I’d rather know I have good food to eat, and not repeat the mistakes of my 2022 trip.   I had to eat cold-soaked “potatoes au gratin” from Saucedo’s in Lordsburg, because the other hikers had cleaned out their mac & cheese.  This one gets mailed shortly after I leave Glacier.

That’s about as far as I’m even attempting to plan.   It’s not because of any superstition or pessimism, but realistically so many things can change.   There could be fire closures.   There could be bad weather that forces me off onto an alternate.   Anything can happen, which goes back to the need for flexibility – a skill I am cultivating.

See you guys out there!