Now we know what we’re made of

Day 6
Tuesday, August 30, 2011

I said it was strenuous...
that doesn't mean it wasn't gorgeous

I’ll start by saying I have never been so happy to see my Jeep! The last 26 hours have been the most strenuous of my life (at least that I can recall). I assure you, if I had brought my laptop on our backcountry hike, the overall tone of the post after arriving at the campsite yesterday would have been significantly different. Now, having arrived back safely from our 20 mile voyage, we are both exhausted and incredibly proud of ourselves. The first 10 miles before we made it to our camp site, the trail was not only difficult to follow on the map (we were able to follow the trail but had no ability to gauge our progress), but 2/3 of it was a steady, merciless incline. 3 hours walking uphill with a 35lb pack was enough to make me consider turning around and heading back to the trailhead. It also made me curse Troy for not pushing me to spend more time on the stair climber. There was also no sign of water the whole first day which made us a bit nervous. We brought 5 liters with us but that incline (oh, did I mention there was no tree covering so we were baking in the sun the entire way) wore us out and we used a bit more water than we anticipated.


When we finally reached our campsite around 2:15. There was such a sense of euphoria and gratitude to the God that kicked our asses up that mountain. To top it off, there was a perfectly clear, steadily flowing stream just to the East of camp. It provided us with the most delicious ice mountain water. It was at then we realized everything was A-OK. David’s comment after trying the water from what we will forever refer to as “our stream” was, “Wow, it doesn’t taste like Bear piss or nothing.”

We set up camp, placing our tent outside of the Bear-muda Triangle (Thank you Brother!), made dinner and just after we got the food strung up in a tree, it began to rain. The rain didn’t last long, but it brought with it every last mosquito in backcountry Yellowstone. We went to sleep just after sunset. Either I am really not a princess or I was just that tired, but I didn’t even seem to mind the large root that ran under me in the tent as I slept.

This morning we departed from camp at 7:15. We packed up our cold, wet gear and ventured on our way. We prayed that the grueling uphill climb from the day before would result in a rewarding decent in elevation and for the most part, we were correct (though we wouldn't have been surprised if it turned out to be the proverbial "uphill both ways" situation). The feeling of cold didn’t last long but the 10 mile hike back was one of wet socks from the wet plants we walked through. For this second part of the journey it was much easier to locate ourselves on the map and we were happy to have both map and compass to navigate us in the proper direction; there were many diverging trails and of course David began quoting Robert Frost.


At 11:30 we finally arrived back at our starting point and I literally ran to my Jeep. I threw off my pack and sat on the gate. David and I both quickly changed into our swim suits because about ½ mile back, there was a hot spring that ran into the river creating a natural, and might I add glorious, hot tub. Before we could go enjoy such a luxury, I had to drink a Mountain Dew (never thought that would be the first thing I would want when I arrived) and I had to pee, for the first time in 16 hours. TMI for most of you, but for my nursing friends, if I were a patient, my I&O total would have bought me at least a 1L bolus if not 2...

He's gonna kill me for
posting this picture!

 The walk back to the Mammoth Hot Spring run off was the easiest, lightest ½ mile I can remember and the water felt perfect (Thank you again Brother!). Mom would love this spot because you can quickly and easily move from perfect hot tub temperatures to ice bath without getting out of the water. There were two other people in our little spring and they happen to be the doppelgangers of one Kate Mock Elliot and her husband Spencer Elliot. It was uncanny! I didn’t think Spencer’s beard or hair could be replicated, but I was very wrong.

As it stands right now, we are en route to Jackson Hole, WY, though it will take about 2 hours just to make it out of the park. We intent next to eat and then enjoy a low key rest of the day in civilization.