I was excited to see the sign that said: Welcome to Montana. Since I was greeted by the sign of Idaho at West Yellowstone to Darby, I have been in and out of Idaho and Montana for quite some time. From Darby north, I will be just hiking Montana: the last 600 miles to Canada, and I am looking forward to it for a few reasons. One is that I have heard about the beauty of the area, especially Bob Marshall Wilderness and Glacier National Park. Second, I am curious to see how my body would handle another few weeks of hiking long distances. When I hiked the PCT in 2023, I did what was called SNOWBO, an acronym for Snow Bound. It was the biggest snow year since they recorded the snowfall, and many of us hiked northbound to Canada, skipping the Sierra, then flipped southbound to hike the Sierra in the fall to finish the entire trail. I had a week break after the 700-mile desert section, and another week after hiking 1,000 miles from Northern California to Canada. At this point, I am hiking more than 1,000 miles consecutively. I feel great most of the time, and it all depends on how much food I can eat. I feel a great sense of freedom when hiking, and it feels like I could go forever. Daylight in Montana is long- it stays light past 9 pm, and the only thing that stops me from walking is that I feel hungry and need to eat. Many hikers use the phrase “turning into a machine” to describe this state of being. I prefer to say that I am becoming a true human, imagining how our ancestors walked thousands of miles to hunt, gather, and migrate on this planet since time immemorial. Finally, I am excited to see some of my friends along the way! 

Since I left Leadore, I noticed that there was less and less road walking, and I was happy to hike a well-maintained trail. There were CDT signs at most junctions, and thanks to the trail crew, down trees were removed. 

The landscape and vegetation also changed quite dramatically- from rolling dry hills of sagebrush with little water to steep mountains with plenty of water, with trees and wildflowers. There were fewer cows, too! I enjoyed it.

I didn’t experience many thunderstorms in Colorado’s high mountains. Interestingly, there were thunderstorms almost every evening during this stretch of hiking, and they were intense. On the first day when I left Leadore, I saw dark clouds forming in the direction where I was going around 5 pm. Soon, the wind picked up right when I was approaching the hilltop, and rain started to fall. I ran to a tree and hunkered down as the hailstorm began. I watched where the lightning was happening and which direction the cloud was moving. I was only 1.5 miles from the spring in the woods. As soon as the lightning passed, I ran into the field into the trees to the spring in the rain since I knew the rain would not stop for a while. By the time I was at the spring, the rain stopped, and for the rest of the night, it was calm. The second evening, the storm started a little later than the day before, and I was able to find and set up my camp right in time before it started to pour. The rain stopped, and everything became calm until around 9 o’clock. The lightning storm started again, and this time, it was very close. I paid attention to the lightning and how close it was. One was right above me. Even though I was in trees, I still took a lightning position until it moved away over a mile from me. On the third day, it started earlier while I was still hiking and climbing toward a pass. I had to hunker down under a tree a couple of times to stay dry and paid attention to where the lightning was. It moved to the south, and I am hiking northbound, so I decided to keep going in the rain. That evening, it rained for a couple of hours. All these three days of thunderstorms were intense. I watch, listen, and smell the weather, and use my experience and knowledge to make a judgment call. It helps me open and engage with all my senses, and for that, I enjoy experiences like this.

Some of the highlights from this section are taking staples out of my leg myself! If I were not thru-hiking, I would have gone to an ER or urgent care to have someone do that for me. Since I have no access to medical care, the Old Faithful Clinic gave me a staple-removing kit. 

Seeing wildflowers again after walking through sagebrush land was refreshing. Finally, I came to a field of huckleberries and thimbleberries! I enjoyed receiving these sweet gifts.

Another highlight was meeting Esther, a solo southbound hiker originally from Afghanistan who now lives in Germany. We connected right away, and we talked for a while. She told me that NOBOs (northbound hikers) she saw were mostly white guys in their 30s, and they made comments like: 
“On PCT, I was able to hike 30 miles a day, but I can’t do 30 on the CDT.”
“I want to be one of the first to finish the trail.”

We both said, “Who cares!” They care, but we don’t. If you cannot put 30, then be it. Nobody is at the northern terminus with a barcode scanner to read first place or third place. It’s most likely that you’ll be alone. Competitiveness is a huge part of the thru-hiking culture, and it could be very toxic since it disconnects people from themselves, others, and nature. I’m here to connect with myself, others, and nature. 

So, when a swell of SOBOs came and I rode waves of praises for going through Colorado in May, I felt seen and heard, but not necessary because I am hiking the trail, not to impress someone or to prove myself to anybody, but to get closer to the truth and freedom. Joy. Gratitude. Mindfulness. Connection. Reciprocity. It’s all right there. Nature teaches us. 

Esther gets it. I’m glad that I met someone like her. We made an incredible connection, and we moved in different directions. That’s how it goes: thru-hikers. I’m looking forward to staying in touch with and cheering her on as she moves south.

Appreciation: 
Jen, the driver, and Jen & Mark from Mustang Inn in Leadore, for their incredible hospitality and warm welcome. Bannock Pass is probably the most remote pass that CDT hikers come through, and without a shuttle service to Leadore, it is very difficult to resupply there. At Mustang Inn, I ate and ate, and replenished my body so much. Thank you. Jared, a travel nurse who picked me up at Chief Joseph Pass and brought me to Darby, thank you. This 31-mile drive is probably the longest, and I was glad to be able to find a ride.