Day 139 – 9/8/13 – 15.0 mi (2582.8)

The down bags were hung by the window with care,
In hopes they would dry in the fresh mountain air…

 

We reluctantly left our cozy (and really smelly) hotel room mid-morning to hitch back to Marias Pass.  It was cold and lightly raining, and thankfully we got a hitch after about half an hour.  Had we stood there much longer, we’d likely have lost motivation and ended up putting off the slackpack until tomorrow.

We were excited to be in Glacier National Park, but had been warned by other hikers this first 15 miles was less than spectacular.  They were right. It was just a bunch of wet overgrown plants, mostly in the trees with no views.  But it didn’t rain much and we were back in town by 3:30pm, so it was not bad.

East Glacier Park is crawling with thru hikers!  We met Gnar and Pod, more fellow – you know how this goes by now – 2011 PCT hikers!  Also in town are Bo, Papa Smurf, Portrait and Castle.  We all had dinner at the Mexican restaurant in town.  There are so many of us, we couldn’t all sit together.  The days of the CDT being a lonely trail are over!

Tomorrow we will zero and secure our camping permits for the rest of the hike.  And lucky us, the weather is supposed to clear up!