Mileage: ~13.5km We wake up to a dry tent for the first time in ages. No condensation to worry about when wrangling Toothless to get him dressed for the day! Dry tent to pack up! Toothless still gets dressed in his rain gear though as his carrier is still damp and the first part of … Continue reading GDT Day 56 – A not so grand finale
Mileage: 17.8 km (ish) We woke to sun! It was beautiful this morning. A real treat after the grey skies and wet brush yesterday. We had random camped with great views of Mount Moren and Mount Mahood and the clear skies really let us take it in today. The ground was mostly dry, but my … Continue reading GDT Day 55 – wet feet and killer views
Mileage: 17.1km Today started off better than expected - no rain overnight and no rain when we started off on the trail! This didn't last for too long though and we got just enough rain to wet all the brush that lines the trail. I think the calorie deficit is catching up to me and … Continue reading GDT Day 54 – “Waterproof” boots
Mileage: 28.8 km (1 km Bighorn Alley, 1.1 km main route, 1.5 km pipeline, 3.3 km main route, 4.9 km pipeline, 17 km main route) We got packed and checked out of the hostel pretty quickly today. I was pleased with our efficiency. However we stopped off at Cocos for breakfast (to go) as we … Continue reading GDT Day 53 – 🎵this is a highway, and I’m gonna walk it all day long🎵
My ankle has improved. Resting before starting the section, using K tape early on and taking a tonne of Advil seems to have helped a lot. Sometimes I slip and pull something in it, but I can keep that from getting bad with the above. One person in front helps fend off people when Toothless … Continue reading Section E Reflection
Mileage: ~18km Last night felt like our coldest night on trail. I don't think it actually was, but going to bed cold and wet, surrounded by snow, and sustained off and on precipitation through the night didn't create any warm cozy feelings. Kyle slept with his puffy jacket and rain jacket on; I kept on … Continue reading GDT Day 51 & 52 – Aftermath of bad decisions
We chose to Notch, which in retrospect was a bad decision. Mileage: 18 km (1.1 km from Lodge, 16.9 km from junction to Signal Campsite) This day in 2018 we left the cabin at Kakwa Lake PP and started our walk out of the park. This year we were sitting in a cabin at Shovel … Continue reading GDT Day 50 – to Notch or not to Notch
Mileage: 15.5km It rained off and on all night, but for once we ended up on the "good" side of the weather forecast and the 50% chance of rain for the morning turned into blue skies as we packed up. We took out our very last bars from the ursack, crossed our fingers that our … Continue reading GDT Day 49 – May the (weather) odds be ever in your favour
Mileage: 10.7km (plus a few hundred metres to/from the Maligne Lake cafe) Today was a short day and I really, really appreciated Toothless sleeping in. We all needed it. The tent was still wet on the outside from last night's rain. We shut the doors last night to keep warm and ensure we stayed dry … Continue reading GDT Day 48 – out of the rain and into the chilli cheese fries
Mileage: 21.2km Toothless was up at least 5 times last night, so I wasn't at all bright-eyed and cheery, ready to face the day this morning. Maybe the off-and-on rain kept waking him? Thankfully he goes back down quickly after nursing, but the lack of continuous sleep made me very slow moving as we packed … Continue reading GDT Day 47 – Rain, rain, go away
Backpacks & Bike Racks 