Twig Adventures

My Adventures blog

Daily Adventures on the trail

GDT Day 4: Scarpe Pass

Great Divide Trail

Saturday, July 6th, 2024, 0700-1800Lone Lake to Scarpe Pass, mm 43.114.3 miles, Gain: 3400′, Loss: 3340′, elevation 6740′ I slept well initially but then a salt-hungry habituated deer started pestering me all night. I’d hear the soft clopping of her hooves approaching and I’d clap my hands or beat on my tent walls and she would satisfyingly scamper away, only to return again for a repeat. I hung my extra pole in a tree and left nothing out to chew on, but I still didn’t want her rustling around next to me. This was the game we played for hours, thus my sleep was quite interrupted. I swear, bears get such a bad rap when they are rarely the cause[…]

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GDT Day 3: Lone Lake…the Ursine Tinder Meetup

Great Divide Trail

Friday, July 5th, 2024, 0630-1430Akamina campground to Lone Lake, mm 28.814.2 miles, Gain: 4314′, Loss: 3660′, elevation 6670′ I woke early to the 5 am light and a floppy wet tent. The color of my new Zpacks tent (burnt orange) amplified the light, making it feel like an operating room. It was good cheery light for hanging out inside the tent but not great for trying to sleep when it was light out. As for the shape, some of my stakes had pulled loose in the wind but there was something else I was doing wrong. Finally I realized that the peak wasn’t high enough. I had to use a pole extender with this new tent but had still set[…]

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GDT Day 2: Into Waterton National Park

Great Divide Trail

Thursday, July 4th, 2024, 1130-1800Waterton to Akamina campground, off mm 1613 miles, Gain: 4154′, Loss: 2560′, elevation 5800′ I woke to a soggy tent on the outside but dry on the inside, save for the typical condensation. I slept the best I had in 4 nights, but still woke with a migraine. I was locked into a pattern with the rebound effect that would probably last a few days more. I couldn’t get back to sleep so I got up to walk the town. Vince and Georgie had already packed and were gone, but I didn’t feel in a rush since the total distance for the day was only 13 miles…only. I got coffee and a bagel at a shop,[…]

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GDT Day 1: Tagging the Border

Great Divide Trail

Wednesday, July 3rd, 2024, 1530-2030Waterton to US/CA border, then back to Waterton town campground, mm 4.29 miles (technically only 4 that count), Gain: 1470′, Loss: 1470′, elevation 4325′ I did a lot of prep work on this blog before I began the hike, and I thought it would be nice to provide a synopsis of each section. The maps and descriptions are borrowed from the GDTA website, giving readers a sneak preview of what’s to come. I added these details to the corresponding posts at the start of each section. Here is the first synopsis, followed by the events of Day 1: Section A – 145km / 90mi, Alternates: Mt Rowe-Sage Pass, Barnaby Ridge -The GDT’s southern terminus is also[…]

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GDT Days 0: Travel Woes

Great Divide Trail

Monday July 1st to Tuesday, July 2nd, 2024 My trip didn’t get off a great start at the very beginning. My first flight was supposed to depart at 5:13 am but of course after getting myself to the airport 2 hours ahead of time (I woke up at 2:45 am), the flight was delayed 2 hours for a broken PA handset. It was such a minor thing that we were given the go ahead to fly, provided that the correct paperwork was filled out before we took off. We left the gate only 20 minutes late, getting my hopes up that I might still make my tight connection, only to have to return to the gate to sit some more.[…]

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Introducing the Great Divide Trail

Great Divide Trail

The Great Divide Trail, GDT, is a long distance hiking route that runs approximately 700 miles / 1100 kms through the Canadian Rockies, between Alberta and British Columbia (not to be confused with a bike route of a similar name). It’s also commonly thought of as the continuation of the Continental Divide Trail, or CDT, in the USA. In fact, the southern terminus lies at the US/Canada border, 4 miles south of Waterton where the CDT officially ends. The Northern Terminus is in Kakwa Lake Provincial Park, pretty much in the middle of nowhere. It’s anywhere from a 20 to 60 mile ATV road walk/hitch just get from the northern terminus to a highway that leads to Prince George and[…]

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BMT & FHT Summary & Stats

Appalachian Trail, Benton MacKaye Trail, Foothills Trail

Both these trails were relatively short, hence this short(er) post. Some thoughts and findings from the BMT: First, thanks to all the volunteers that make this trail happen! Yes there are blowdowns and overgrowth, because all that stuff happens daily, especially in the summer! Trail maintenance is a constant thing and I saw how dedicated the volunteers were in trying to keep up with it. Thank you! Anyone looking for solitude and that remote wilderness feel will find it on the BMT. I saw only 7 BMT thru and section hikers in 2 weeks. Some of the climbs and descents were brutal but there were also a lot of cruisy sections, especially parts following old road beds along the ridges[…]

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FHT Day 4: An Unexpected Finale, To Say the Least

Foothills Trail

Thursday and on into Friday, May 24th, 2024, 2130-1000Chimney Top Campsite to Foothills Trail Eastern Terminus at Table Rock State Park13.2 miles, Gain: 2530′, Loss: 3690′, elevation 1150′ Finding myself riding out a thunderstorm at midnight in a privy, after having been run out of my campsite by 4 bears, got me evaluating my life choices. On the one hand, I was glad to be away from the bears, dry and safe. But on the other, I was in a privy, dead tired, and debating whether the smell and gross-factor was tolerable enough to spend the night or if I’d be better off moving on. I’d already covered over 3 miles in the dark, what was another 10? Earlier, back[…]

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FHT Days 3: This Trail Has Some Teeth…That End in a Cliffhanger

Foothills Trail

Thursday, May 23rd, 2024, 0630-1700Hilliard Falls to Chimney Top Campsite, mm 63 27 miles, Gain: 5680′, Loss: 4920′, elevation 2300′ Something in all the waterfalls must have supercharged me, because I woke with a feeling of wanting to crush miles. My goal was to leave only half a day’s distance for the last day, and boy did I and then some! This day was actually just typical of ones on the BMT, and it was quite a bit easier…though the stairs really reared their ugly head in a few spots. Since I managed to get a pretty early start, I figured I’d shoot for my 10 by 10 standard. I passed the halfway mark of the FHT just after 7[…]

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FHT Day 2: Waterfalls!

Foothills Trail

Wednesday, May 22nd, 2024, 0650-1800Chattooga Rive camp to Hilliard Falls, NC, mm 36.322 miles, Gain: 3830′, Loss: 4300′, elevation 1520′ This day went down in the books as the best Waterfalls Day, ever. I enjoyed a waterfall for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with a few smaller bites in between. I slept amazingly alongside the river and woke feeling so refreshed and excited for the day. I walked less than half a mile before coming to Burrells Ford Campground. I was so glad I stopped short the day before because there were many house-sized tents, barking dogs, and people about (probably some habituated bears, as well). I wanted none of that drama, but I sure appreciated being able to use the[…]

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