Lookout to Lookout Adventure

After our Bearhat ski trip, the next several weekends held some great mountaineering in Glacier Park as well. Did I say that I was tired of climbing? Well maybe, but it's hard not to come back to something that gets in your bones as much as being in the mountains.

At the Apgar Lookout, 1st stop on the journey of craziness.

From the summit of East Bearhat Peak, Dad and I could see the ridge connecting Apgar Lookout (LO) and Huckleberry LO. I envisioned a fast-paced ridge-run that would take you between the two of them in a day and mentioned it to Dad. He had done it on skis several years before in what turned into an epic day with not very much good skiing to be had. It seems like that is often the case with late-spring ski touring in the mountains, and I have done my own share of slogging long miles with skis on my back and hopes of corn snow dashed.

Looking toward the Logan Pass area of the Park, Lake McDonald in the middle right.

Looking south along the ridge from whence I came.

The following weekend I put the scheme in motion. I parked at the Huckleberry LO trail head, road my bike to the Apgar LO Trailhead, and started running/fast hiking. The trail to the first LO was cake and the views were pretty incredible. Initially, I had grand visions of running the whole way, but it quickly became apparent that it was going to be more efficient to hike the steeper sections of the trail. After Apgar LO, the route jumped off trail through some pretty nasty bush whacking (I've never understood the previous term: it always seems like I'm the one getting whacked...). As you might imagine, I wasn't running. In fact it was more like scrambling over dead fall, through thick brush, up and down the ridge. Not what I expected, but what was I going to do? I had to get to my truck... The ridge went on forever, but travel became much easier when I reached the summit of Apgar Mountain. Amid views of both the Northfork and the Southwest corner of the Park, I finally reached the Huck LO. Jogging down the trail to my truck, out of water and food I was refreshed every once in a while be wild strawberries and huckleberries along the trail.

2nd Lookout of the day. It was a really beautiful day and I was genuinely smiling, not faking it to compensate for exhaustion...

All total the trip pushed 27 miles, 7 of which were on my bike, and probably 11 off-trail. Over that distance I climbed and dropped about 7500 vertical feet in elevation. Yes: I was tired and the 5 Guys bacon cheese burger back in Kalispell tasted very good.