My first backpacking trip and what better way for Brian and I to spend our 2 year anniversary then hiking and sleeping in Hells Canyon? We started the trip by climbing 2,000 feet in elevation in a little over 3 miles - OUCH. The views from Freezeout Saddle were well worth the climb, but we didn't have much time to enjoy it. We had to head back down the mountain to our campsite for the night.
We snagged the one flat spot in the Canyon and set up camp for the night. After very little sleep (I was scared we were going to be eaten by bears!), we woke up, cooked breakfast, and headed up the trail. We hiked for several miles and then ran into a few nice gentlemen who informed us that we were not on the Saddle Creek trail but in fact we were on High Trail. Wooops!
So, not wanting to get lost we turned around and hiked back to the campsite where we stayed the night before. Now, the sun was out in full force and I began to truly understand why this place was called "Hells Canyon." By the time we got back to the campsite, I was burning up and was in desperate need of shade. Without any trees nearby, I set up the tent and crawled inside hoping it would provide me some relief. Sadly, it didn't. So, Brian and I hiked to the nearby stream and soaked our shirts in the freezing water and wrapped our bodies in our wet clothes.
Around midnight that night, we hear something moving outside our tent and Jake starts barking. Scared to death a bear was about to attack, I stopped breathing and started praying. Luckily, it wasn't bears. A group of 8 had just arrived at our campsite and was setting up tents around ours. Shortly after, we calmed Jake down and went back to sleep. Next morning we woke up and started to pack the tent again. As we were packing, a strong windstorm came into the canyon making the process much more difficult. We finally got everything ready to go and we began our hike out of the Canyon and back up Freezeout Saddle. As we were heading out, the weather was slowly getting worse and we got to the car just as it started to really rain hard - phew!
All in all - it was an awesome adventure and I saw some of the most incredible sights!! Next backpacking trip is set for June 8 -10th.
Oh and Brian - I love you and happy anniversary! Thanks for keeping the bears away :-)
Becky
We snagged the one flat spot in the Canyon and set up camp for the night. After very little sleep (I was scared we were going to be eaten by bears!), we woke up, cooked breakfast, and headed up the trail. We hiked for several miles and then ran into a few nice gentlemen who informed us that we were not on the Saddle Creek trail but in fact we were on High Trail. Wooops!
So, not wanting to get lost we turned around and hiked back to the campsite where we stayed the night before. Now, the sun was out in full force and I began to truly understand why this place was called "Hells Canyon." By the time we got back to the campsite, I was burning up and was in desperate need of shade. Without any trees nearby, I set up the tent and crawled inside hoping it would provide me some relief. Sadly, it didn't. So, Brian and I hiked to the nearby stream and soaked our shirts in the freezing water and wrapped our bodies in our wet clothes.
Around midnight that night, we hear something moving outside our tent and Jake starts barking. Scared to death a bear was about to attack, I stopped breathing and started praying. Luckily, it wasn't bears. A group of 8 had just arrived at our campsite and was setting up tents around ours. Shortly after, we calmed Jake down and went back to sleep. Next morning we woke up and started to pack the tent again. As we were packing, a strong windstorm came into the canyon making the process much more difficult. We finally got everything ready to go and we began our hike out of the Canyon and back up Freezeout Saddle. As we were heading out, the weather was slowly getting worse and we got to the car just as it started to really rain hard - phew!
All in all - it was an awesome adventure and I saw some of the most incredible sights!! Next backpacking trip is set for June 8 -10th.
Becky
1 comment:
I hate bears too! Shhh dont tell anyone :-/
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