Glacier Mountaineering Society

Tue, Jul 25 2023 - Grizzly Mountain (View Original Event Details)

Coordinator(s):		Cindy Weaver, Michael Contrada
Participants:		Cindy Weaver, Michael Contrada, Dabney Langellier, Anne D., Alda Sigvaldason, Greg Adams, Kim Ibes, Jason Wilkes

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Write Up:
We gave it the old GMS try. We should have seen the windy writing on the Rocky Mountain walls. It was not a pleasant scene in the parking lot - everyone already bearing down against the wind as they got ready. Two hikers came to Two Medicine to join us but decided in the parking lot they would have a better day visiting family and friends than trying their luck against the wind. That left six of us who headed out to see if the day might get better. Conditions brightened up with the sun shinning and the trees sheltering us from the stiff breeze. We had a pleasant hike to Cobalt Lake. However, once we started up the Rockwell- Painted Teepee basin wall the full force of the wind hit us again. The ferocity of the gusts increased as we approached the Rockwell saddle. Once on the open ridge walking toward Chief Lodgepole, we continued unsteadily to brave the wind, stopping every few steps to crouch against the onslaught. At one point one of the gals would have blown away if she hadn’t been held back by one of the hikers. We saw Grizzly ahead in an otherwise clear, sunny sky but now the gusts turned to a full, steady-on gale and we all dropped down behind some wind-cramped bushes. Everyone agreed we were spent. We returned to the lake for a pleasant lunch and then back to the trailhead. Sun and easy breezes the whole way. At the after-hike tailgate, we laughed about the adventure enjoying our cold drinks and Flathead cherries. We only regretted that we had made such good time up to the Rockwell saddle but couldn’t make the peak. We noted the wind was back up in the parking lot, a clear warning to anyone thinking about going high. It was the coordinators’ second GMS Week attempt to climb Grizzly that they had to abort. Last year we were blocked by bear-closure to the trail. Grizzly is still there; it didn’t blow away. You can join us next time! We hiked approximately 14.5 miles and gained 2400 feet in 7 hours.

Have some photos from this event that you'd like to share in our photo album? Please forward them to Tim Anderson at twamontana@gmail.com. Please note that we prefer to receive the photos in approximately 640x480 or 750x500 pixels - do NOT send original high-res photos. If you have a LOT of photos, please submit up to twenty of your favorites (only) for a day event, or up to forty of your favourites for a multi-day event. Thank you.