Day 128: East Glacier to Two Medicine and Back

Mileage: 12 miles (2457.7-2469.7)

I slept in until 8am, with only the rustling of other hiker's packs and bag rousing me. I didn't want to move, but today was our best looking day for the next four, so we had to walk. Stabby, Rafiki, and I walked over to the Two Medicine diner for breakfast, each putting away a healthy plate of food and coffee full of cream. I had a stack of pancakes slathered in syrup and butter which was more than enough to fill me up.

Right before we left, Commando walked up and told us he wasn't going. The forecast for the next few days was bleak and he wanted to see Glacier when it was nicer, so he wouldn't go. I thought to myself it really wasn't a bad idea, and I wasn't in a rush, but at the same time I was all packed up and at least wanted to make the 12 miles to Two Medicine to see how it was.

I said goodbye to Commando and then headed off with the rest of the guys. We played more Contact as we hiked, teaching Malarky the rules as we went. It rained slightly, but really wasn't too bad. As we got higher and higher, we all appreciated being on trail for the first time in what seemed like forever.

Even in the clouds, the sheer topography of Glacier began to reveal itself. Rugged peaks whose tops were cutoff by the low ceiling, but sheer faces still visible below. Snow capped some of the high summits, foreboding of what lay ahead. I started feeling sharp pains in my left leg with every step and realized I had shin splints, probably from all the road walking in the last week. Downhill was especially painful, but I pushed on. I kept Banjo company, with his hurt ankle, and had a good time chatting with him about our hikes and the future beyond.

We admired the scenery together, especially the ancient Bristlecone Pines high on the northern slope. Their gnarled trunks and branches a testament to the weather they'd endured year after year, for hundreds of years. We looked down into the deep glacial-carved valley below, where Two Medicine Lake lay. I had resolved I'd stop at Two Medicine Lake and go back to East Glacier to wait out the weather. The more I thought about it, there was no reason to push on with my shin splints and with the weather forecast to be so cloudy and rainy the next few days.

I'd walked 2,500 miles to this park, I figured I shouldn't rush just so I could finish a few days early. Getting to the Two Medicine Ranger Station I informed the gang of my decision. I was sad to leave them, but it was the right thing for me. I got a hitch with a guy from the general store and met Commando back in East Glacier that night. We planned to hitch over to Kalispell and stay with my friend's parents for a few days to wait out the bad weather. We drank beer and reveled in being warm and dry, while our friends were surely miserable, wet, and cold.