Day 1; Year 2

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It's the first day of the Great Divide Trail. We walked south for six kilometers, a rarity for the next two months as we head north 1,200 kilometers. Touching the US/Canada border we turned around, backs to the US, facing North and looked ahead. Our first day on trail was magical, rocky outcrops towering high and higher channeled us south and back. We walked through a large fire scar that most likely occurred a few years ago, the undergrowth was lush and full, brushing our legs as we trotted along. I couldn't keep from smiling as the sun kissed my face, the breeze blew through my newly trimmed hair. Life is good. I feel so incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to undertake such a journey. I imagine the variety of ecosystems we will pass through, from drier mountainous regions here in Waterton Lakes National Park to the wet and wild North between Jasper and Kakwa Provincial Park. There will be bears, high mountain passes, undefined trails and more. We are ready for the experience.

Oh, and the title, you may be wondering about that "Day 1; Year 2". Well it's no coincidence that we started the 26th of June. It is Solange and I's two year wedding anniversary! What a wonderful way to celebrate our love than to hang out with each other for two months straight, all day, all night. I look at her now and laugh. We're elated. We're anxious. Waterton Townsite is far from a wilderness experience, a truck idles nearby, the toilets flush 50 meters from our campsite. It is tomorrow that we head into the bush for six nights, 145 kilometers. Coleman Alberta, here we come.

Everyone Has a Plan Until...

Frozen Lake below Mt. Assiniboine

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Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth - Mike Tyson, World Champion Boxer

You may be thinking to yourself, how is this relevant to hiking the Great Divide Trail? Well, we had a plan…hike from Waterton National Park to Coleman, AB. The Issue? There are lingering masses of snow, some areas more than a meter deep that remain on the trail. Buried among the FAQ page on the GDTA website (you should visit if you haven’t already!) there is the question

“Will I need any technical gear, e.g. ice axe, crampons, climbing rope, skis or snowshoes?” 

The Answer?

“No, the route is designed within the scope of hiking so as long as you are traveling during the summer hiking season (July to September), you can leave the technical gear at home.” 

Perhaps this is a fated punishment for those willing to begin prior to July, as we are. As we proceed in late June, warnings of unseasonable snowstorms litter the forecasts. Recent on-the-ground reports suggest a trail tucked under its heavy winter coat. 

We have been punched in the mouth, luckily not by Tyson, but by Mother Nature. Our plans are changing. We do not want to skip the first section, it may be our only opportunity to hike Section A for a very long time. We will adapt to the conditions by adding more gear than typical, including traction cleats and knee-high gaiters. Unseasonable weather calls for unseasonable gear. Other gear we thoroughly considered were ice axes and snowshoes. Ice axes may be pretty handy for self-arresting, but we will be able to use our hiking pole for such a purpose. Snowshoes, may or may not be handy, but when the snow warms and you begin post-holing, sometimes the snowshoes aren’t enough and post-holing with snow shoes is a fate not dared by us. 

We understand that there are associated risks involved with taking the snowy path that may or may not involve high-water river crossings, avalanches, storms and arduous hiking conditions. We are willing to accept these risks and navigate them as encountered. I think we may be lonely hikers until the snow melts further. 

Coleman, our first stop, will be a luxury after a potentially long, cold, wet and difficult journey. We will be able to mail our bits of snow gear back home and continue on our journey just a little bit lighter, by foot, on the soil.

GDT: Why?

Mt. Assiniboine

This blog post may also be found on thetrek.co

 Why am I hiking?

That is a great question. Does there have to be a reason? Can it not be said that I am doing it for the joy of the experience? Or perhaps there is a deeper reason for challenging myself to two months of hiking, in addition to the four months of preparation prior to setting that first step on the trail. 

I first learned of thru-hiking in 9th grade, a freshman in high school, unwisely using class time to fumble and stumble across the internet. “The PCT? What’s that?” I clicked. Shortly thereafter, I learned that one could WALK from Mexico to Canada on a trail. In fact a local portion of the PCT encompassed all of a trail I had hiked…whoa. It was so close to home, yet incomprehensible that such a hike could be done. What about food and water? Bears? Strangers? I left it at that. Still amazed that such a trail existed, I never fully excused the thought of hiking it, adding it to my life-time bucket list. 

Flipping several chapters ahead in my life, I haven’t altogether ditched the thought of hiking the PCT, but have replaced it (perhaps?) with another thru-hike. Now that I am a resident of Canada, similarities of now and my 9th grade self shine through. I am still living on the Columbia River, mountains, trees and wildlife are ever present. Not too far from my backdoor, another thru-hike resides, the Great Divide Trail. Is it an opportunity to seize what I had not in the past?

Hiking this trail, the GDT, has several layers of meaning for me. On the surface, it is purely for the enjoyment of such an undertaking, to live the boyhood dream of tramping through the woods, crossing swollen rivers, exploring glaciated valleys, and cresting mountain passes in weather less-than-fare. In other ways, it is a challenge, a challenge of both body and mind. To be able to reinforce and build confidence, push on when quitting seems all too easy and to feed a desire for adventure. It is also an opportunity for me to develop an intimate relationship with the natural world that encompasses my home, to be able to interact, and live within, the seasonality of the Canadian Rockies, to see flowers bloom and to see them fade, to live by the sun and sleep by the stars. 

In another sense this hike is a metaphor on my life journey, the GDT starts at the US border, from where I am a citizen, and travels north, just as I have done with my life. I want this to be an opportunity to connect with my new home, a rugged unforgiving landscape that rivals all natural beauty. I want it to be the most challenging and rewarding undertaking to date. I want it to help me connect with myself and help point me in a direction. I hope that completing the GDT may feel like the final transition from South to North, that it may also open doors that I never knew existed, never dreamed of…but I won’t know that until mid-August when my hungered, stinking self steps foot on the pavement, sticks up a thumb and hitches home.