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CDT Day 117 Hiking the Montana Idaho border

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12th August

24.3 miles

Aldous Lake Trailhead (1894.4) to Ridgecamp (1918.7)

It was near on 7.30am when we started hiking. The early part of the day was spent in the rolling hills which didn’t really provide inspiring hiking but that changed late in the afternoon.

The afternoon was spent hiking on the continental divide which is also the border between the states of Montana and Idaho. Views were extensive. On the Montana side, the dry rolling hills of gold. On the Idaho side, flat fields of farmland with rugged hills in the distance.

The sun was getting low in the sky as we continued hiking along the borderline. Lucky, Nips and I were all rather pleased to enjoy the sun low in the sky lighting up the ranges.

Tonight was meteor night. The peak of the Perseids meteor shower. We set up camp on a high ridge with expansive views. The sun put on a show for us as it set. Lighting up the sky and mountains in every shade of red, orange and pink. Many photos were taken. Sunsets like this keep me coming back to the outdoors.

Nips and I were cowboy camping. No tent, just under the stars and hopefully meteor shower. The clouds that gave us a great sunset prevented a lot of star viewings.

Around 9.30pm we heard voices. Two hikers appeared wearing headlamps. It was my old PCT hiking buddy Stone and another hiker Cloudbuster. They’d hiked 39 miles that day. We invited them to camp with us but they wanted to hike another mile to hike a forty mike day. Men on a mission.

Shortly after they hiked on we settled in to sleep. Tiredness trumped our desire to watch the cloudy skies for meteors. Then the water droplets started falling. Are you kidding me. It was raining. Directly above us was a large patch of clear, star studded sky. Surely it couldn’t last.

After maybe five minutes of light rain it stopped and I rolled over to sleep. I woke on numerous occasions to glance at the skies. Fatique called me to roll over and sleep. Only once I forced my eyes awake long enough to try and take a photo of the meteors. I failed. But did see maybe 20 flashes of meteorites burning up.

Nips
Lucky

Next – Day 118 Lima Town Break

Everything you need to know about hiking the CDT:
Complete Guide to Hiking the Continental Divide Trail
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About the Author:
Brad is an Australian who has completed the hiking Triple Crown after he hiked the Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail and Appalachian Trail. He has hiked on every continent (except Antarctica) and has cycled from Alaska to Ecuador. He is an expert on outdoor gear currently living in Chile.

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10 thoughts on “CDT Day 117 Hiking the Montana Idaho border”

  1. Great photos! Enjoying following your CDT journey and dreaming (I was always a few weeks behind you on the PCT last year). What kind of camera do you use?

    Reply
    • Hi Catie, I use a Canon G16, I send the photos to my phone via wifi then edit them using Enlight. In combination it works great

      Reply
    • I will let him know, I’m sure he will be pleased to hear it. I think a trim and a haircut is a regular part of his time off in towns.

      Reply

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