Great Divide Trail Trip Report: Kananaskis Lake to Field

 Day 7: 51.6km/1527m

    We got off to a bit of a later start. It was hard to peel myself from the comfort of the 4runner and it was nice to linger over breakfast and coffee. I was quite delighted that my foot was feeling better and it didn't appear to be holding any fluid. Joanna also took a look and assured me she didn't see any sign of blisters. I was curious as to why only my right foot was affected and I believe the answer is the calf sleeve. You see, I only wear one calf sleeve. Mainly because I lost the other one but equally as mainly because it's only my right calf/shin that causes me grief (whoops, I realize in my last post I wrote it was my left foot that was affected but it's my right!). My theory is that the heat caused my limbs to swell and because of the constriction of the calf sleeve, my foot swelled with fluid. Thus, I decided to hike sans calf sleeve until all paranoia of it swelling again had vanished. I then proceeded to tape the entire bottom of my foot in an effort to prevent any possible friction against the skin. 

    Matt dropped us off where we had left the trail the night before. We descended for 5km before heading back up towards another pass. At some point Joanna mentioned that she could feel pain in her shin. The pain quickly escalated and she was sure she was getting shin splints! It seemed like every time we were done with one bout of adversity, another one popped up between the group. Thankfully, Joanna had somewhat prepared mentally for this to happen. Prior to the trip she had read many thru hiker reports and almost all of them reported bouts of shin splints. I can attest to this as I had suffered from shin splints on the PCT. We decided to pop in for a dip and have lunch at Maude Lake. I did some make shift active release technique on Joanna's calf and lent her my calf sleeve which I had sworn off wearing. I figured the extra compression would help. I was impressed with the logical approach Joanna took to her shin splints. She knew that the inflammatory process would likely last 72 hours. Mentally, she knew she was in for a world of hurt for a few days and then the pain should in theory dissipate. She took a taping course in high school and used her knowledge to tape her own ankle appropriately. 

    We didn't talk to much when Joanna was in pain. I know that when I am in pain I turn very inward and just focus on getting through it. I figured she was feeling similar and we put our heads down (while still taking in the views) and did the work that had to be done. Similar to Alicia, I was impressed that my friend was managing to move so well despite being in pain. Walking over 50km on shin splints is no small feat! 

    The moon was very full this night. In fact, we slept without the fly on and at one point I really startled myself thinking someone was shining a flashlight into our tent. I was so frightened that I tried to wake Joanna up to tell her but I then I realized it was the moon 😳.

Day 8: 58km/2000m

    I was really excited about this day because we were going to be going through Assiniboine Provincial Park. I had only heard stories about the park and it's beauty and had been looking forward to it the whole trip! We stopped at Marvel Lake before going up Wonder Pass and it was a stunner. As we hiked up past the lake I could hear Loons calling and it was such a picturesque moment. Nature at its finest if you will. I felt so incredibly lucky to be out there. We took a nice lunch break on a bridge in a beautiful meadow. It was a hot hot day and I tried to seek shade as much as possible. Staying cool was now my number one priority after foot gate (when my foot swelled). 

    As we hiked towards Og lake we were passed by many ultra runners. They were doing some 60k run that sounded quite fun. As I previously mentioned, it was a scorcher! Joanna thought there would be some creeks en route to Sunshine Meadows so we opted to not fill up in Og Lake and avoid the detour down to the lakeshore. We weren't keen on doing any extra mileage at this point! However, not filling up would turn out to be a mistake as there were no creeks. Once we noticed that the creeks were dry I began to conserve water. We both fell very silent through this section. I think we both knew we were short on water and there was nothing we could do about it other than keep moving...thirsty. Only sip when absolutely necessary. This reminded me of a time on the PCT where we had to go 17 miles in scorching heat before the next water source. I think I allowed myself a sip every 20 minutes. So this wasn't my first rodeo with conserving water. We were so relieved to spot a pathetic looking pond below the trail at the intersection of Fatigue pass. We both filled our filter soft flasks and chugged an incredible amount of water before filling again. Who knew what other dried up creeks were ahead! We eventually crested Citadel Pass and stopped and filled up water and ate snacks at the creek. Joanna made a video that she later shared on Instagram of her blisters. I will spare you! I had my first package of Idahoan instant mash potatoes of the trip and they went down effortlessly. 10/10 would recommend. Also great with Fritos mixed in. 

    In Joanna's blog she talks about the long bouts of silence between us and hoped I didn't mind. On my end, I really didn't mind. When you are with another human all day everyday for close to 3 weeks I think bouts of silence are both natural and needed! I actually feel like we talked the most at the end of the day once we were cozied in the tent. Probably because this was the only time our minds and bodies could rest and reflect. We made our way through Sunshine ski resort and picked up cell service and wifi. We were delighted to stop and check in with civilization/social media. The bugs were absolutely horrendous but somehow we were unwilling to depart in the name of social connection. We still had a ways to go before camp and kept the social media check in brief. 

Photo by: Joanna Ford

Day 9: 56.7km/2804m

    This was an exciting day because we were going to get to see our crew at Floe Lake and begin hiking the Rockwall Trail. I did the Rockwall last year as a run with my friend Pascal and Julian and it was stunning. This was the only part of the GDT I had done before and was familiar with. 

    The greeting we got at Floe Lake trail head was simply the best! Becky Bates and Joanna's mom came down the road to meet us and walk us in. Marika was there with her parents sprinter van that was fully loaded with a pizza oven and a shade awning. Jamie, who I met at Kananaskis Lake, was also there helping us and it was great to get to see him again. We were spoiled to the max! Becky had given us each a beet Juice made fresh in Kimberley BC. Marika made handmade pizzas/calzones. Jamie served up his famous mac and cheese as well as packed me some to take with me for dinner (anything to avoid couscous). Joanna's mom had also brought homemade chili and salad. It's near impossible to leave your crew when you are being pampered like this. We both felt like rockstars and I felt so grateful that these lovely humans spent their time and energy helping us accomplish this goal. These were Joanna's friends/family but they always made me feel so loved and cared for. Marika had just thru hiked the PCT the year prior and it was fun to reminisce with her about the hike. Becky had decided to join us all the way to Field and Marika and Jamie accompanied us to Floe Lake. 

    When I did the Rockwall trail the year prior it served up a mix bag of weather. We had sunshine, hail, rain, and maybe snow. As soon as we started hiking it began to hail on us and I couldn't help but think this is just how the Rockies roll! We said goodbye to Marika and Jamie at Floe Lake and continued on towards camp. We later found out that Jamie and Marika were bluff charged by a bear on their way back down. Yikes! We made it as far as Tumbling Creek and set up camp. We were happy to see many tent pads available. Poor Becky had only brought a tiny sleeping pad to sleep on. It quite literally was only big enough to cover her hips. She had initially thought she would cowboy camp under a tree but we had an extra spot in the tent and demanded she sleep with us. The tent pad was rocky and couldn't have been very comfortable for her. She never complained and I think the tent was more luxury than she would care for. She is definitely a lot tougher than me! I was happy that my Neoair sleep pad was staying fully inflated every night. The one I brought on the PCT ended up with 5 holes in it and I'd be waking up multiple times each night to re-inflate it. Eventually I bought a new one on that trip and 6 years later it was still working great! Joanna and I were delighted to have knocked off 56km even with a 1.5 hr crew break!

Day 10: 50.5 km, 1320m

     We were the first ones up and out of camp. In fact, we were always the last hikers to reach camp and the first to leave in the morning. This was an exciting day because we were going to reach the small town of Field, BC. In roughly 50km we knew we had access to a shower and a comfortable place to rest our heads. I was also salivating over thoughts of getting to eat at the Truffle Pig! We initially hummed and hawed over whether or not we should just grab our re-supply in Field and keep hiking but eventually came to our senses and decided it would be best to stay the night. 

The trail out of Tumbling camp is beautiful and it was fun to take a left hand turn towards Goodsir Pass versus a right where I had gone the year before. The trail down the other side of the pass towards the highway was quite littered with deadfall. 

Tangent warning: Prior to us flying to Calgary to start the trip, Peter gave me a hot tip that there was an alternate trail out of Field and that it was in much better shape than the proper GDT route. I had mentioned it to the team but the idea got shut down pretty rapidly (1) it was last minute and the route planning had already been done (2) we were planning to stick to the GDT proper as much as possible. FKT attempts on thru hikes are interesting. On a short FKT attempt its quite easy to stick to the original route. However, when the trail is 1000km long, it's extremely difficult to stick to the exact route someone else set their FKT on. Some years trails close and you are forced to take others or new routes are established because they are more scenic. For example, we weren't initially planning to take the newly established High Rock Trail (HRT) but it made zero sense not too. Firstly, its more scenic and secondly, it would become the new GDT route in years to come and any further FKT attempt would follow this route in the future. At times I grappled internally about not being on the most scenic route possible as I wasn't sure how much setting a record meant to me. I know walking endlessly on logging roads didn't mean much to me but it is the faster route. To circle back, after the alternate out of Field idea got shut down prior to the trip, I didn't bring it up again...until...THE JUNGLE!

    After hours of deadfall we came across a trail crew. We chatted with the man and the woman about trail conditions and the work they were doing out here. We thanked them for clearing trees as it made our day so much better! We asked the man about the GDT trail North of Field and he was adamant not to take this route because it is a "Jungle". Apparently, it hasn't been maintained in years and most hikers are now taking the alternate out of Field. Hearing this validated my/Peter's initial suggestion. I was happy that we were now considering it but Joanna wasn't convinced quite yet and it took her some time to come around. Once at the road we shared a coke and psyched ourselves up for the 8km of highway walking. The trail crew notified us of a short alternate that would cut off roughly 3km of pavement pounding and gave us the beta on where to find it. They asked us if we needed a lift into town and we begrudgingly had to decline. I later realized that Becky didn't need to walk the highway with us because she wasn't chasing an FKT but she walked with us anyway. The highway was hot! The pavement felt hot on the feet and the sun was beating down on us. I was purposely walking on the gravel rocks that were on the side of the highway as they gave my feet reprieve from the hot pavement. I was chugging water and electrolytes at a rapid rate and was thankful there was one water source along the way.

    There is an odd joy that comes from walking a highway. I can liken it to running on city streets in a downpour. There is something magical about being out in the elements when people are cozied up in the safety of their cars. You feel alive! There was nothing safe or cozy about what we were doing. We all plugged in our music and I air drummed my way to Field smiling ear to ear.

    Once in Field we walked immediately to the Truffle Pig. We got a table right away and were comforted by all the other thru hikers who were there feasting as well. We didn't know what our accommodation would look like and eating out seemed like the best option for dinner. We were just about to order drinks when a man comes up to the table and says "you girls are killing me! We have beer and homemade dinner ready for you at the house". I think we were all a little confused as to who this man was. He introduced himself as Jay, the partner to Jessica, who's place we were staying at in Field. Up to this point we had only been in communication with a woman and neither of us had met her. They had been tracking us all day from our inReach and saw that we had pit stopped at the Truffle Pig and Jay quickly biked down to intercept. We quickly grabbed our bags and he guided us to the house. They have this beautiful 100 year old home with an attached guest house they rent out to travellers/thru-hikers. We were staying in a guest room in their house because the guest suite was rented out. They have a magnificent organic veggie garden in their backyard with a beautiful outdoor space to eat. We feasted on corn, salad, and wild pulled Elk. Jessica so kindly offered to do our laundry (brave woman!) and we both got to shower. This was my first proper shower in 10 days and was the first time I got to wash my hair. They had just bought some property in Kimberley which is where Becky lives and they got the chance to bond over that. 

    That night over dinner we discussed our route plan for the morning. Jay was pretty adamant that we would not be taking the proper GDT route/the jungle and that the alternate was the only option. He explained to us how to access the trail from their house and after Joanna did some research/read some hiker reports we decided that this was the best option. This alternate begins with the infamous Ice Line trail which I've heard about and was really excited to hike. Eventually, we crawled into our queen bed, set our alarm for 5am and slept well knowing this would be the most comfortable we would be for the next 8 days. 

The next few days would be some of the most exciting/scary of the trip...