THUNDERSTRUCK
I
had another four mile hike on Friday. I
still got a fairly early start though, because I planned to climb Boulder Pass
that afternoon. I broke camp, but before
I left I paid a visit to the world’s fanciest backcountry toilet. It was a far cry from the usual hole in the
ground with a seat. I do believe NASA
technology went into its construction.
It is spacious and fully enclosed, and would actually serve as a nice
refuge in wet weather. The only thing it
lacked was the morning paper.
I
returned to the Boulder Pass Trail, and followed it on a gentle ascent around
the horseshoe at the head of the cirque.
The scenery was fantastic, thanks to constant views to the south. The wildflowers were incredible, too. I was a little late for the flowers through
most of the trip, but they were still at their peak here due to the high
elevation and abundant moisture. At one
point I passed through a true garden, with a carpet of monkeyflowers,
paintbrush, and sunflowers at the base of a jagged cliff. A cascading waterfall added to the beauty
along this section of trail.
I
spotted several marmots along the way, along with one cute little rodent that I
couldn’t identify. It was much smaller
than a marmot, but I don’t think it was a pika. I saw him scurrying around in a rock pile,
and we played peak-a-boo for a few minutes while I tried to get a photo. I eventually got one, but he was too elusive
for additional shots.
Beyond,
I climbed a few switchbacks towards Boulder Pass. More views opened up as I gained
elevation. I reached a small pond
directly below Boulder Peak, and headed up towards the notch of Boulder
Pass. At one point I hiked directly up a
small stream. Boulder Pass itself is
long and broad, and it’s hard to tell exactly where the top is. The pass harbored the best floral display of
the trip, and views began opening to the west as I hiked through it. I passed above a lovely basin full of small
ponds and clumps of evergreens. At first
I thought that was where the campsite would be, but it was actually a bit
farther on.
I
reached the spur trail to the campsite at the very base of Boulder Peak. I followed it over open granite and across a
number of small streams. This area was
lovely, and it reminded me of Yosemite, or Wyoming’s Wind River Range. Since I arrived at noon, I had my pick of
campsites. I took the farthest one,
which looked the most comfortable despite being a bit exposed. I set up camp, ate lunch, and prepared for my
afternoon adventure.
Climbing
Boulder Peak is a simple ridge walk from the campsites. However, the ranger’s I’d met the previous
evening had recommending backtracking a couple hundred yards towards Boulder
Pass before ascending. I took their
advice, and found an easy route up a talus slope. It was along here that I passed a whole
family of ptarmigans. I almost failed to
see them because they were perfectly camouflaged with the surrounding rocks.
I
resumed the climb, and avoided a few pockets of snow to reach the
ridgeline. At this point I noticed that
it was clouding up to the west. This
made me pause, but the summit was only a short distance away.
I
climbed quickly, eager to reach the peak ahead of the weather. The views opened up as I climbed, with waves
of rugged mountains marching north into Canada.
The best views though were back behind me, towards Kintla
Peak and the massive Agassiz Glacier. Directly
below, beautiful Pocket Lake was tucked in a rugged, isolated basin.
I
continued up the ridge, which was a bit steep but simple to climb. I reached the summit a few minutes later, and
more views unfolded back to the east.
From that vantage, I could see most of the terrain I had traversed over
the previous seven days. There is an
impressive stone throne on the very summit, featuring a spectacular view back
to the west to Kinnerly Peak, Kintla
Peak, the Agassiz Glacier, and Mount Peabody.
The
sky to the west had progressed from cloudy to hostile. It was grey going on black, and I was in the
worst possible place. I bailed out,
hurrying back down the ridgeline.
Eventually I reached a point where I could drop down off the ridge
directly towards Boulder Pass. I finally
slowed my pace, and even stopped just above the pass to photograph some
flowers. That’s when the storm finally
hit. The first rain drops got me moving,
and I raced back to camp. I reached the
tent just before the full brunt of the storm arrived.
I
rode out the storm in the relative comfort of my tent. The rain crashed down, and the wind howled,
but the worst part was the violent thunder and frequent flashes of
lightning. My campsite was only modestly
sheltered, but at least there was a stand of trees immediately to the west to block
the wind. And it sure was better than
being up on Boulder Peak! I was lucky I
got down just ahead of the storm.
The
storm cleared quickly. I emerged from
the tent to a lovely afternoon. Although
dark clouds lingered, the air was fresh, and water was running everywhere. I spent the next couple of hours wandering
around Boulder Pass, photographing the views and the abundant wildflowers. Afterwards I returned to camp, where I met my
campmates for the evening. Jay and
Trevor were from St. Louis, and were hiking the northern traverse from west to
east. Because I was heading back east
the next morning, we would actually cross paths a few times over the next
couple of days.
I
went to bed early, thanks to a damp, chilly evening. Before bed, I began contemplating climbing
Boulder Peak again the next morning. It
had been a fairly quick, easy climb, and it would be nice to do it in clear
weather. I decided to see how the
weather looked when I woke the next morning.
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