Ptarmigan Tunnel. Raw. Primitive. Lonely. An incredible early season hike & climb.

This might be my last post for a little while. I really need to start studying my commentary for the upcoming tours. Out of the last three weekends and two weeks, I’ve only done about four days of training. But great life experiences count too, right? Hmmmmmm. Almost time to be a responsible adult. Sort of.

So as I slept in my wonderful double cabin all alone last night with the dream of an early start this morning, I heard the rain start hammering the roof at about 2:30 am. I don’t have a problem hiking in the rain. I just hate to start that way. Which put me walking up the trail at 7:30a towards the Ptarmigan Tunnel.

This is a real hike. At just shy of 11 miles RT, it boasts 2300 feet of gain while topping out at about 7300′. Given everywhere I have hiked this spring has had heavy snow over 5500′, I know this will be a wet one. Plus if I do try to climb to the Tunnel, that will be the better part of a grand straight up.

The day looks like… it will be up in the air. Again.

After passing Ptarmigan Falls, I take the cutoff and am instantly on a blanket of snow. Still hard enough to kick into, but getting stickier by the hour. Ugh. Not fun for long uphill slogs.

Now and then I got a peak of where the trail should be, but there were a LOT of footprints to follow.

After I started hitting the really steep snowfields, the tracks of others started to become fewer and fewer. Yeah, this is where people found out they bit off more than they could chew.

Tons of topped trees and broken branches on top of the snow. This can only mean a windstorm. And a really bad one to be able to take out all of these little Alpine Firs that have been fighting the elements their whole life.

There is still a lot more to melt, and this random waterfall is flowing at capacity already.

Ptarmigan lake finally makes an appearance. The 1.6 miles from the turnoff I thought would be about 40 minutes. With the snow conditions, it was close to an hour and a half. You can see the great big long double switchback in the summertime trail.

Trying to follow it would be a fool’s errand. Much longer than a direct route, and I’d be taking my crampons on and off. Plus I’d be at the mercy of whatever the pitch is at the upper reaches, instead of controlling it in my traverse. The dotted line was the ascent line I picked.

I check over my shoulder to make sure the weather will hold. I’m figuring about an hour up if the snow conditions are good.

I find a trail sign. I guess I won’t tell anyone I cut the switchbacks if you don’t. After all, it IS illegal.

And so I begin the main ascent. The snow is getting soft. I have to double-kick the step to get a good bite with my crampons. And I’m getting a little balling, so have to clear my spikes about every ten steps. Otherwise, the snow packs up and you lose your footing.

It only happened once. The step blew out and there I was screaming downhill to the rocks below. The nice thing about wearing a day-and-a-half pack is that it’s the perfect size when you fall on your back. It keeps your balance high and makes it easier to flip over on your belly and self-arrest.

I only slid about 30 feet. I was glad I brought my climbing ice axe and not my general lightweight one for simple glacier travel. As heavy as a tank, but it has never failed me. Yes, this is the required equipment for this kind of silly snow work stuff. Remember my Gortex Gaiter Post? I like keeping my toes dry. Although my kneecaps tend to get sunburned.

Looking back I’m thinking what a long trip home it’s going to be. I would eventually make it up in just under 4 hours from the trailhead.

I thought my bragging rights for the first ascent to the tunnel in 2022 were dashed when I saw this snow track cutting in above me. On closer look, they were not boot marks. All hooves all the time. My four-footed ungulate friends.

Finally, I make it to the tunnel. One little snowball in front of it, but bolted closed for the season from the inside. It’s the back side of the tunnel that is in the full shade that will take many more weeks to melt off before the doors are opened.

Just incredible views from the mouth of the tunnel. Not a soul around. Again, I get to have a very very popular summertime destination all to myself on a relatively nice day.

Damn. It is a LONG way home.

Of course, I could not help but climb the extra 80 feet on the wet cliffs above the tunnel to get a peak at the Belly River drainages. Lake Elisabeth just pops when put up against the red Grinnell limestone of Gable Mtn and Red Gap Pass.

Needless to say, I had to shoot a couple of small videos. For a place I’ve been to some many times, it has never felt as wild and remote as it did today. Always remember to look for something new in everything old.

Dave at the Tunnel.

Dave is on TOP of the Tunnel.

Only met another three couples hiking up in the Ptarmigan bowl on the return. All nice people, all looking for a more remote and tourist-free destination for the day. Everyone is going for the much better know Iceberg Lake. After all, why hike out to that little puddle called Ptarmigan Lake?

Especially if you can’t knock the Tunnel off your hiking list at the same time? Because now is when this environment is in its most natural state. Slowing waking up from a long winter’s sleep. No food yet to draw in the fauna. Still taking that first breath of spring.

Not all hikes are meant to be just scratched off of a three-day Glacier visit to-do list. Some will take a lot more effort than most are accustomed to giving. For others, you will have to battle much more difficult elements that the warm August sun on a perfect day.

I feel that the more you give, the more you get in return. This day, this hike, had all of my favorite attributes of traveling in the wilderness. The snow climb was a bonus. It was real work (especially coming down when every other step I had kicked in was blowing out), but at the end of the day satisfying work. I would almost say enjoyable.

The dashboard is a little lame compared to last year, but once I get settled with my tour stuff and start having regular days off, maybe I can start throwing out some decent numbers.

Category	Count	Miles	Elv Gain/Loss	Hours	Avg Grade	Avg MPH
Hikes	9	62.4	14,000	29.2	8.5%	2.14