Dad asked me recently if I’ve ever had a day during my trip where the weather was so miserable I had to stay in the van. This was probably it. The sun wasn’t even hinting at being up at 7am and the rain was coming down steadily, or maybe snow, I couldn’t tell. When I got out of the van I found it was rain. It was cold and dark.
I went over to my van buddies and asked their thoughts, was it worth going hiking in this misery? Christian was keen as mustard, recommending we get ready and see how we feel. That’s all I needed to tip me over the edge. I made breakfast inside the van, not wanting to stand outside to cook anything I settled for cereal. I packed a bag for the day, which included my stove and two cans of food since we’d concocted the plan to have a hot lunch.
The rain had eased by the time we set out, the three of us in the VW. It drove like a dream except for the rattling wheel bearing. At the trail head, which was about ten miles away along McDonald Lake, we got out of the car and I realised I’d forgotten my rain jacket, so we drove all the way back to camp. I really just wanted extra drive time in the VW! It worked out because it was raining a little less by the time we got back to the trail head. It was around 9:30am when we set out for Brown Mountain Lookout.
We started in forest on a wide trail. The smell of pines was still just perceptible amongst the frost, we started climbing gently next to a river that was feeing the lake below us. Before long, there were patches of snow alongside the trail and soon after, we were walking in it. It was solid uphill for five miles and three thousand feet of elevation, but we enjoyed the trudging because of our surroundings. The snow grew as we climbed and it fell gently from the sky. We all marvelled at the beauty of it and it was clear enough that we could see the lake below us and even mountains in the distance. I was encouraged to know that even though Christian and Mel had grown up with snow, they still considered this special.
By the time we neared the top, we were all weary and trudging through shin-deep snow. We had all slowed down a lot and were hungry having had a snack the longest time ago. But determined we were and the trees were thinning. Christian and I were sure we were nearly at the summit. We stopped to put some more layers on, the temperature having dropped at least 10 degrees during the climb and our bodies weren’t generating enough heat anymore through effort. After layering up, I went ahead, trying a spot of running to heat my body, but it was no use. Ahead of me, I saw that the steepness of the trail was increasing. We were exposed near the top of the mountain, to the wind and the falling snow. Christian and Mel were a way behind me so I stood and did some star jumps before putting yet another layer on. I couldn’t imagine sitting in this weather to cook lunch and we were well above the cloud line so weren’t on for a satisfying view at the summit. I looked at the trail ahead one last time then started walking back down the mountain. I explained that I couldn’t go much further, me feet were sodden wet and cold, my hands the same way, there is no way I could stop for more than five minutes without being painfully cold. They were happy to hear me say it, so we all head back down the way we’d come. We didn’t feel dejected or upset at a missed opportunity, we’d already seen some pretty views on the way up. As Mel said, mountain-1, us-0.
The temperature gently climbed as we dropped in height and our lunges through the snow eventually turned into normal footsteps. We made good time, we were all keen to feel some resemblance of warmth in our bodies again. About half way back down, we came to a spot where there was a lookout over a valley and I suggested stopping for lunch. We were all starving and could do with some hot food. I got my stove out and Christian excitedly prepared his first ever dehydrated meal – mac & cheese. With the water on, we waited, me dipping my fingers in occasionally to warm them up. As we sat, we watched the clouds slowly roll in and cover most of our view, the snow fell a little heavier and our arses became cold from sitting on the cold rocks. The stove had turned off at one point and after relighting it, still didn’t seem capable of boiling two cups of water. We got to the little bubble stage, but there was no way it was boiling. We all agreed we were getting cold for not much reward, so we abandoned our lunch attempt. I put the stove away, we ate whatever snacks we had left and head down the mountain. No feeling in my feet or my hands. Mountain-2, us-0.
We made good time, happy to feel solid dirt and pine needles under our feet. The snow was falling at a lower elevation than it had before, which was nice because it was definitely better than rain. We were all ecstatic to see the VW in the carpark. We spoke to a guy in the carpark who we’d seen on the trail, he hadn’t made it very far, but he wasn’t interested in going to the peak, he just wanted to scope the place out for a good snowboarding route when winter really got going. He was definitely keen!
Christian cranked the heat on the drive back and parked next to my van for a comparison. They are completely different vehicles. His looks like a dog ready to pounce, mine more like the quiet one that sits in the corner, hoping to be noticed.
He parked up and we all got into cooking food. I hung out in the VW van, me in the driver’s seat, Christian and Mel on their bed in the back as we ate terrible food that can only taste good after a long hike. After going back to my car and doing the dishes, I grabbed the only beer I had and returned to the VW van where Christian and Mel had prepared the living room for guests! It is the only van I think that allows entertaining. I sat on the cooler which had a towel for a cushion (very comfortable), which the other two rugged up on the bed. All with beers in hand, we swapped stories. Mel had some Australian experience having studied abroad in Townsville at no other university than JCU, where Tina had been. I asked, but Tina would have graduated before Mel got there. That would have been too weird. Christian reminded me a bit of my highschool mate Brad. Loved a good story (both telling them and hearing them) and had such enthusiasm for life, especially the outdoors.
Eventually around 8pm, we broke up the party, I had some serious warming up to do in my digs. It was now steadily snowing outside. I checked my temperature gauge and it was 0oC in the car, so it was definitely bloody cold outside! I still haven’t used Big Buddy (my gas heater), but I think tonight might be the last night that I don’t. Once I get warm, I am confident I will sleep well considering the trauma my body has been through the last couple of days. I just hope that I will be able to actually see Glacier National Park before I leave it. Maybe if I’m lucky the sun will shine through.