20th August
26.2 miles
Ridgecamp (2043.2) to Farmers field (2069.4)
Lewis and Clark are well know explorers of this part of the world. Today I followed in their footsteps. While heading west and crossing the continental divide they roughly followed the same path that I took today. In fact I stopped for lunch at a place where they first set up camp in the state of Idaho.
Easyrider and I departed the CDT near Lemhi pass and bushbashed our way down to a dirt road many miles below us. It was our version of the fire detour that we were forced to take. It was disappointing that we had to remove ourselves from the CDT but fires happen and we had to adapt and make a plan. As we have a rule that we must walk to Canada on an unbroken line of footsteps all the way from Mexico. No hitch hiking around the fire.
Once we made the steep descent to the road I noticed some locals picking fruit. Cherries, they told me. Wild Cherries. I picked a few but they didn’t taste all that nice. At the same place as the cherry trees there was a campground. Easyrider and I rested and ate lunch. Nips was missing in action somewhere. Turns out the campground was in the same place that Lewis and Clark set up camp when they first crossed the continental divide around 1805.
After lunch we hiked about 4 miles to the main highway. In the town of Tendoy, if it could be called a town, was a small but friendly general store. The owners knew of our existence. Elusive, the 72 year old legendary hiker had been in earlier in the morning. Easyrider and I ate and drank enough to fill us up. We waited. No nips. So we continued on up the highway.
It was almost 5 miles before Nips caught up. We had been resting on the side of the road. Around 5 miles later we camped beside a farmers field near the highway.
Next – Day 126 Roadwalk Detour
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Hope you are ok! Haven’t heard from you in a fee days.
Hi Mike, I’ve been in the wilderness for many days. I’m fine but tired as usual. Updates to come in the next couple of days.
Hey ! I crossed the same parallel three months ago … and many miles east of you (and the panel was mousy).
Here also, hunters practice is the same.
I’ve crossed it several times now in the last couple of years, and j guess I’ll cross it again many more times.
Interesting! While traveling on the Natchez Trace Parkway in Tennessee, my family and I went inside the inn where Meriwether Lewis supposedly committed suicide back in the early 1800s.
I’m always interested in the journeys of explorers from all countries. I enjoyed following in the footsteps of their journeys. I’ve done similar journeys in Australia.
Ticking off the miles! When do you estimate you will be done? Sorry about the fire detour. You seem to be adapting.
Fires happen, I’m not too disappointed. I got to enjoy done lovely Idaho towns. I expect to finish on the third week of September. I’m very tired and my body is worn out, but I’m still moving north.
Those look like Western Chokecherries. Need a lot of sugar and have to be cooked.
You are right, I later found out the same from some other locals. They make a nice jam out of them.