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- Aug 21, 2018
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Day Five -- August 13, 2023.
Technically, we were behind schedule at day five. That was ok because by the end of the day we would be ahead of schedule. I do not think anyone in the group was worried about schedules. . . I doubt any of us even knew what day of the week it was by now. All we needed to be concerned about was making progress up the Thorofare Creek drainage and finding another suitable campsite for the night. If only life could always be that simple.
Morning view of the ridge from our Open Creek campsite.
Walking away from your pack for even a few minutes is risky with this group. Some jokester thought they could slow me down by sneaking a rock in there. All I can say is paybacks gentlemen. Paybacks.
We were back in the trees for a time during the morning hours.
The trail passed over some high ground away from Thorofare Creek.
Hidden Creek flows between the two hills at center left. True to its name we never saw it. Last night's campsite was intended to be near the junction of Thorofare and Hidden Creeks; today we were supposed to be taking a day hike up Hidden Creek and spend the night at the same campsite. Once we past Hidden Creek today we would be ahead of schedule. . . technically.
One has to experience the forest now and again to appreciate the big views.
Today's journey took us thru a lot of tree cover compared to the days prior. It was a warm day, so I welcomed the shade. It also brought us closer to Thorofare Creek, taking us right along the water's edge in places.
Critter tracks everywhere. Thought this was a good one for day five -- grizzly tracks coming and going!
Did the trail veer away from the creek, or did the creek meander away from us?
I cannot remember if this is Pass Creek or Butte Creek.
@scatman showing off some fine rock hopping skills. That next one looks a little far. . .
Wildflowers and clover were everywhere.
Today was definitely about getting to know Thorofare Creek.
There may have been a high route but I followed @scatman along the rocky creek bank instead.
We would eventually take a path that rewarded us with great views of Thorofare Creek's curves.
Cannot quite squeeze the entire horseshoe in with the big camera.
So I used the cell phone and GoPro. It is good to have options.
Cell Phone:
The GoPro shot might be my favorite picture of the day.
We were back and forth from the creek many times this day. Away from the creek:
Near the creek. A sunscreen break for Hugh is the equivalent of a nap break for @Bob .
I was too impressed with the parallel lines created by these gravel bars to take a nap.
Trees began to give way to a view later in the day.
@scatman in his happy place.
The lichens on these rocks came out of nowhere to added a vibrant pop of color to all the greenness. Makes me hungry for a Circus Peanut. . .
Wildlife sighting!
The next stretch of trail crossed patches of lush grasses.
The view as we approached Woody Creek. It was near here that we decided to setup camp for night number five.
I don't know that I remember crossing Woody Creek, but Thorofare Creek was just a walk thru the willows away from our campsite.
The view downstream:
The view upstream:
Tent site for night number five. This was an okay campsite. . . it would have been a lot better if we had not decided to camp in what was probably a horse pasture for a nearby outfitter's camp. We did not see the outfitter setup until hiking out on day six though.
Today's group shot. @Jackson will have to let us know if we've softened a bit. . . but I doubt @scatman ever will. (You have to read day four for context.)
Dinner for Day Five. The flavor of the Backcountry Bison Bowl reminded me of something I'd order from a Mexican Restaurant.
Hugh probably considers this day to be the "real" start of the trip because it was on this afternoon that he spotted his first Grizzly Bear. Everything up to now was just a warmup. He was walking down to Thorofare Creek for water when he says he chased a bear out of the willows. Of course the bear had disappeared by the time the rest of the group made it down to the creek, but there was still some nice scenery to see.
After Hugh's bear sighting we sat and looked up the Thorofare Creek Valley in hopes of seeing more wildlife. This is not the exact view we had, but very close. I think that is Yellow Mountain peeking above the dark hillside at the far right. That would be the direction we would head tomorrow.
I will admit that I can be a high maintenance hiker. I like to wash off the heat, dirt, and sunscreen of the day before turning in for the night if I can. Up to now I was able to jump into a nearby creek or river to accomplish that task, but Thorofare Creek was too shallow at this spot for an evening swim.
That was ok, because I had a plan B. I packed along a small dry bag that has a spigot on the end and doubled as a shower. I had filled it and let it sit in the sun shortly after arriving at camp. The sun warmed the water enough to make rinsing off enjoyable. I hung the heated water bag in a nearby tree and did not use but a fraction of what it held. I offered to let the rest of the group use the extra water, but they had either already taken a sponge bath or were simply just tougher than me. Oh, that is a fresh pile of Grizzly scat on the trail that you see. I thought it added a little something to the experience.
Day five was a good day. I had enjoyed some impressive moments on day four and that may have overshadowed part of the experience on day five. Some of the today's memories become a little fuzzy when replaying them in my head. The horseshoe bend of Thorofare Creek and our time at the campsite were today's highlights. We had some nice views here and there, but experiencing the wild solitude of Thorofare Creek and the valley that surrounds it best describes this day for me.
I was feeling great and the group's morale was good, but would that be enough to get us thru tomorrow? Day six was going to tell me if my training had been sufficient for some elevation gain. Day six we planned on getting high!
GPS Track for Day Five.
Day Six is in the works!
Technically, we were behind schedule at day five. That was ok because by the end of the day we would be ahead of schedule. I do not think anyone in the group was worried about schedules. . . I doubt any of us even knew what day of the week it was by now. All we needed to be concerned about was making progress up the Thorofare Creek drainage and finding another suitable campsite for the night. If only life could always be that simple.
Morning view of the ridge from our Open Creek campsite.
Walking away from your pack for even a few minutes is risky with this group. Some jokester thought they could slow me down by sneaking a rock in there. All I can say is paybacks gentlemen. Paybacks.
We were back in the trees for a time during the morning hours.
The trail passed over some high ground away from Thorofare Creek.
Hidden Creek flows between the two hills at center left. True to its name we never saw it. Last night's campsite was intended to be near the junction of Thorofare and Hidden Creeks; today we were supposed to be taking a day hike up Hidden Creek and spend the night at the same campsite. Once we past Hidden Creek today we would be ahead of schedule. . . technically.
One has to experience the forest now and again to appreciate the big views.
Today's journey took us thru a lot of tree cover compared to the days prior. It was a warm day, so I welcomed the shade. It also brought us closer to Thorofare Creek, taking us right along the water's edge in places.
Critter tracks everywhere. Thought this was a good one for day five -- grizzly tracks coming and going!
Did the trail veer away from the creek, or did the creek meander away from us?
I cannot remember if this is Pass Creek or Butte Creek.
@scatman showing off some fine rock hopping skills. That next one looks a little far. . .
Wildflowers and clover were everywhere.
Today was definitely about getting to know Thorofare Creek.
There may have been a high route but I followed @scatman along the rocky creek bank instead.
We would eventually take a path that rewarded us with great views of Thorofare Creek's curves.
Cannot quite squeeze the entire horseshoe in with the big camera.
So I used the cell phone and GoPro. It is good to have options.
Cell Phone:
The GoPro shot might be my favorite picture of the day.
We were back and forth from the creek many times this day. Away from the creek:
Near the creek. A sunscreen break for Hugh is the equivalent of a nap break for @Bob .
I was too impressed with the parallel lines created by these gravel bars to take a nap.
Trees began to give way to a view later in the day.
@scatman in his happy place.
The lichens on these rocks came out of nowhere to added a vibrant pop of color to all the greenness. Makes me hungry for a Circus Peanut. . .
Wildlife sighting!
The next stretch of trail crossed patches of lush grasses.
The view as we approached Woody Creek. It was near here that we decided to setup camp for night number five.
I don't know that I remember crossing Woody Creek, but Thorofare Creek was just a walk thru the willows away from our campsite.
The view downstream:
The view upstream:
Tent site for night number five. This was an okay campsite. . . it would have been a lot better if we had not decided to camp in what was probably a horse pasture for a nearby outfitter's camp. We did not see the outfitter setup until hiking out on day six though.
Today's group shot. @Jackson will have to let us know if we've softened a bit. . . but I doubt @scatman ever will. (You have to read day four for context.)
Dinner for Day Five. The flavor of the Backcountry Bison Bowl reminded me of something I'd order from a Mexican Restaurant.
Hugh probably considers this day to be the "real" start of the trip because it was on this afternoon that he spotted his first Grizzly Bear. Everything up to now was just a warmup.
He was walking down to Thorofare Creek for water when he says he chased a bear out of the willows. Of course the bear had disappeared by the time the rest of the group made it down to the creek, but there was still some nice scenery to see. After Hugh's bear sighting we sat and looked up the Thorofare Creek Valley in hopes of seeing more wildlife. This is not the exact view we had, but very close. I think that is Yellow Mountain peeking above the dark hillside at the far right. That would be the direction we would head tomorrow.
I will admit that I can be a high maintenance hiker. I like to wash off the heat, dirt, and sunscreen of the day before turning in for the night if I can. Up to now I was able to jump into a nearby creek or river to accomplish that task, but Thorofare Creek was too shallow at this spot for an evening swim.
That was ok, because I had a plan B. I packed along a small dry bag that has a spigot on the end and doubled as a shower. I had filled it and let it sit in the sun shortly after arriving at camp. The sun warmed the water enough to make rinsing off enjoyable. I hung the heated water bag in a nearby tree and did not use but a fraction of what it held. I offered to let the rest of the group use the extra water, but they had either already taken a sponge bath or were simply just tougher than me. Oh, that is a fresh pile of Grizzly scat on the trail that you see. I thought it added a little something to the experience.
Day five was a good day. I had enjoyed some impressive moments on day four and that may have overshadowed part of the experience on day five. Some of the today's memories become a little fuzzy when replaying them in my head. The horseshoe bend of Thorofare Creek and our time at the campsite were today's highlights. We had some nice views here and there, but experiencing the wild solitude of Thorofare Creek and the valley that surrounds it best describes this day for me.
I was feeling great and the group's morale was good, but would that be enough to get us thru tomorrow? Day six was going to tell me if my training had been sufficient for some elevation gain. Day six we planned on getting high!
GPS Track for Day Five.
Day Six is in the works!
