YELLOWSTONE!!

We hiked through Yellowstone this past week. Such a difference between the back country and the tourist areas. Hiking through the Shoshone Geyser Basin, we saw a geyser that erupted every minute, plus beautiful hot pots and thermal areas—all to ourselves. Wonderful scenery and some of the easiest hiking of the trip.

Very different than the Old Faithful Village, with its crowds, overpriced food, and traffic. One night, we stayed at the Grant Village Campground, right next to a large group of young Girl Scouts (7-9 years old). Sad to say, the leaders spent the evening lecturing the girls on cookie sales! Later the same night, John was awoken by the sounds of a domestic argument and the arrival of the police (luckily, I slept through this). Quite the contrast to sleeping in the woods.

We have a little more than 600 miles to go. I’m guessing we will reach the Canada border mid-September. I perceive many thruhikers are going through a seventh inning slump. There’s a cooling in the air, creating an urgency to move faster. We’re taking fewer zero days and hiking bigger miles. At the same time, we’re heading into some of the most remote and demanding sections of the CDT (Bob Marshall Wilderness and Glacier National Park). Feeling torn between wanting to finish (and resting) and wanting to continue (freedom).

Tomorrow we head north to avoid the fires in Idaho and western Montana, hiking an alternate route known as the Butte-Big Sky Super Cutoff. Roughly the route is Big Sky - Ennis - Whitehall - Helena - Bob Marshall Wilderness - Glacier National Park - Finish!