The Dawson-Pitamakan Loop. Twenty miles of love that keeps on giving

This is one of the most famous loops in the park. It’s a great hike that ties together two wonderful mountain passes and then links them with a four-mile section along the spine of the Continental Divide.  Truly wonderful scenery to your left and right and the opportunity to look into some of the most remote parts of Glacier National Park.  One of the few wild and roadless areas left. 

I have been saving this hike for somewhat later in the season with the hope of having somebody hike with me.  Last summer when I did almost 450 miles alone it dawned on me that I need a buffer. I need somebody between outer Dave and inner Dave to stop the two of them from fighting.  They really don’t get along.

The problem is that this summer I found with such a small employee population at the Beargrass RV park & Cabins, there are very few people that have the same days off as me.   And now as we get into the latter part of the season I’m finding out it doesn’t matter.  Why?   Because most people couldn’t keep up with me anyway.  I guess I’m just born to walk alone.  Most likely down the boulevard of broken dreams.

So what the hell? Let’s go for time.  Let’s see what I can get this well-oiled machine and the little knee cartilage I have left to do if I were to keep an eye on the watch.  And really really focus. As always, all great hikes start with an early out.  Especially in August when the heat has been turned up as of late.  

I love the Two Medicine area and I love the view of Upper Two Med Lake.  I could look at Grizzly Mountain, Painted Teepee, and Sinopah all the time and all day long every day. 

You can’t see the sun coming up behind me with all of the great pinks and reds that set the hills on fire early AM.  I knew there was going to be a lot more color on these hills and soon, but I needed to get going.  It was already running after 6 AM and did not want to lose another 20 to 30 minutes of cool mountain hiking on the trail.  It was going to be a blistering hot day, and there would be lots and lots of exposed miles ahead of me.  Almost 19 of them to be exact.

If you ever do this loop, make sure you do it counterclockwise. You always want to go up Pitamakan Pass first.  Why? Pretty simple. Because it is a beautiful approach with perfect lighting. It’s a fantastic valley walk with some comfortable gain at the end and is the most picturesque trail miles you can ever ask for.  Even more so in the early morning hours.  Of course, this is active bear country,  so don’t start TOO early.

The trail wraps snugly (to start) alongside the back of Rising Wolf Mountain. You probably remember this hike from a little while ago. That was a big day and it’s a little different looking at that massive peak from the back (unclimbable) side in the morning sun.

Miles and miles of Lodge Pole pine-forested trails. There’s not been a fire through here in some time.  Definitely what they would call a climax forest ready for a reseeding event.

Wonderful meadows in the early morning shadows. These same shadows are shielding me from what the waking but brutal sun that will strip away my very soul and will. But I’ve got to keep on hiking.  But as usual,  I’ll have to tap my inner Dave and power through.

Beyond the flowered meadow and the bands of trees, rising Mt Flinsch to the left and Mt Morgan to the right.

This a great photo to illustrate why you do not climb Rising Wolf from the backside. These are some truly horrible cliffs with equally horrifying rotten sedimentary rock.

So I guess if a picture says 1000 words then a quick little video will say a couple million?

This is about as picturesque as it can get. Glacier Park at its finest?  Oh, we shall see what else she might have to give. As I climb up to Pitamakan Pass I start getting the early morning reflection views of Mt Flinsch in Old Man Lake.

I must say it is a great morning to have the trail all to myself.  I did pass a couple of people going up to the pass like I am.  They were younger guys trying to keep my pace.  I had to smile.  That’s why you need to find your own stride in the mountains.  Never pin your goals and stamina on someone else.  You will only fail and die tired.   Especially if it’s me.  Especially if it is this summer.

Pitamakan Pass. Was able to make the 7.9 miles in just 2 hours and 55 minutes, with several thousand feet of gain.  I was really moving.  And really feeling good.  Of course, felt a little tired.  But it’s the kind of fatigue that takes a long time to set in and you hope it won’t catch you until the finish line.  On these long days, you always have to keep checking to make sure you’ve got enough in the gas tank. Or those last miles will drag you down.

From Pitamakan Pass you get great views of Pitamakan Lake and Lake of the Seven Winds  (a small tarn to the left).

Of course, it’s a good spot to do a brief video.  So you can get the full feel and vibe of this wonderful little pass.

Now the trail is going to meander for 3.7 miles and take me around the back side of Flinsch and Morgan all the way to Dawson pass (which is well out of sight).

Of course, I have to do some goofy selfies before I move on to the next section of the marathon hike.

First things first, I’ll let some mountain sheep take their turn on the man-made trail.  I’ve used enough mountain goat and sheep paths in the past.  Kind of a quid pro quo thing.  We all just need to share and get along.

There is nothing like looking down into the remote Nyack area and seeing two of my old favorites. Mount Pinchot on the left and massive Mount Stimson on the right.

This is certainly beautiful country that I could gaze at for many many hours. But my boots kept moving. They know they’re on the clock. That doesn’t mean that it’s not a fantastic hike.

A quick panorama pic on nothing less than a beautiful and perfect August summer day.

Why not capture that in a video for y’all.

There is this one point of the trail that everybody freaks out on. They ask me how scary I think it is.  I tell them I don’t know because I’m not sure what part of the trail they’re talking about.  It’s just an average trail.

This time I decided to take a close look at every step and every mile, and I’m pretty sure this must the point that’s spooking folks. I’ve seen a footnote on most of the hiking descriptions and maps saying this trail is not suitable for pack animals. Doesn’t look that bad to me.   Anyone who knows me can tell you I’ve been on much much worse.

Love that August sky.  The heat is coming on and you can see the scars of past forest fires.  The horn of Flinsch is to the left and the massive Mt Phillips is to the right.

Now it is time for my wonderful walk across the Continental Divide on an equally wonderful morning. This is when I can’t remember if it is afternoon or not.

Trying out the panorama mode on my G22 again.

Old Man Lake and the long valley that I just hiked up.  An unnamed ridge of Red Mountain to the left and mighty Rising Wolf to the right.

Time and place.  Flinsch showing me and the camera a little love today.  Fantastic sky.

A couple more mountain sheep bedded down and waiting for the sun to warm them up before starting another day of foraging.  Winter is coming soon.

A rock cairn marking Dawson Pass.  Only 1 hr. and 40 minutes for this nearly four-mile stretch of what can only be called hiker’s bliss.  The horn of Mt Flinsch looks like (and is) an easy climb, but not today.  Rising Wolf is so distant, yet the scars are so fresh.

The rugged peaks of the Nyack.  Lone Walker, Caper, Battlement, and the spire of St. Nickolas.  Some of the hardest (and most technical) climbing in the Park.

Thinking back to last summer when I climbed Mt Helen as a part of this nearly 20-mile loop.

I guess there are a few glaciers left.  Everyone on the tour bus keeps asking me where they are.  At the end of the day, you have to get off the paved road to find them.

If I would have known how long that ridge was to the summit of Rising Wolf, I might have changed my mind.  Naw.  I would have still gone.

Let’s do a little one-minute chat near Dawson Pass:

These mountain sheep were so kind to pose for me with the perfect mountainous backdrop.  Feels like something you would see in the Swiss Alps.

Finally back to the truck which I parked near the Two Medicine Campground.  It was 2 hrs. and 20 minutes down from Dawson Pass, which is a REALLY good time considering how miserable that last section can be in the heat.  With sore feet.  And zero views in the sweltering forest. 

Total elapsed hiking time for the entire 18.8 miles and 3800 feet of gain and loss was just a couple of minutes short of 7 hours.  Well done.  Very well done.  The average is 10-12 hours.   But I would later find out it did take all of the gas out of my tank for the next couple of days.  I had to really dig deep for that one.

Side note:  The same day I was climbing Rising Wolf, another party decided to attempt the climb directly from the cliffs that back up to the campground.  Much shorter approach.  None of the cliffs will take you to the top and it’s a fool’s errand.  And one of them was killed in a fall.  Sometimes people choose poorly.