If you missed it, here are the links to Part 1 and Part 2 of this crazy adventure!
After our glorious ski turns on the snowfield we carefully picked our way over the boulders back to camp as the skies cleared. Sweet! With clear skies and tired bodies, the decision to overnight at Lake Angeline was easy. We quickly settled in, making dinner and constructing a lean-to just in case. We’d been in camp about 40 minutes when I started developing a headache.
Altitude and I don’t always get along. As a teenager anything above 8500′ was a guaranteed headache. These days, I’ve learned to manage it, knowing that a couple Aleve, good hydration and keeping my sleeping bag around 10,000′ work well for me.
I dug through my first aid kit only to discover no Aleve! Or any other kind of NSAID for that matter. So I grabbed Jake’s figuring he’d have some, right? You’d think that between a paramedic and a former EMT we’d have something. Nope, not a single pill. We discussed the situation and decided to try and stay anyway since normally I just have a stout headache and can sleep it off. As the shadows lengthened it became apparent this wasn’t my usual headache. I started feeling queasy and the pain was bordering on migraine-level. It was time to leave.
What? We’re going back out this trail, tonight?!
In what was the fastest packing job ever, we gather our gear, pulled on headlamps and hit the trail. Not surprisingly, as soon as we started descending, the headache let up. Into the night we hiked, discussing whether or not to push to the vehicle. That decision was quickly decided when the skies began crashing and flashing for the second time that day.
I might have been excited to see this sign in the daylight, but the second time around my enthusiasm might have been a bit less.
Around mile 12 the fatigue of hiking with a 70lb pack all day really began to wear on us. That last mile to reach the wilderness boundary went on and on and on. Fortunately Corbet, our Wirehaired Pointing Griffon, is a stellar trail dog and when we’d occasionally lose the trail he’d be standing on the right path with an indignant look, “Hey dummies, unless your noses work better than mine, you should just keep following me.” I’m not sure but I think he wanted to get to the pickup even more then we did.
Even rockstar trail dogs get tired sometimes!
The final stretch of trail is ATV accessible and smoother going. Both Jake and I were grateful for easier terrain because our bodies were screaming to be out from under our packs. Sometime around midnight the white metallic gleam of the pickup filled our headlamp beams. Packs crashed to the ground, water (and Aleve!) were gulped down, and horizontal positions were assumed.
Thank Starbucks for high-test coffee! I might still be asleep in the Bighorns without it.
The next morning it took more than the sun’s rays to drag us from our sleeping bags. Sometime around 8 we reluctantly crawled from them. Even the dogs only relocated from their beds to eat before finding shady napping spots. After breakfast we finally started to feel alive again. As we bounced out the winding two-track we looked back at the mountains and smiled. Somewhere up there were two sets of snowy signatures gracing the Angeline snowfield.
*After note: So what exactly happened with the altitude sickness? Hard saying but I’d hazard a guess that I was more dehydrated then I knew due, partly due to a pack that doesn’t accommodate a hydration bladder. These days I rarely hike without one and will definitely be replace this pack ASAP. Add in a minor sinus infection and it all added up to a bad case of altitude sickness, probably my worst case ever.
We did have a much stronger prescription painkiller with us but neither of us were comfortable with me using it and then going to sleep. We didn’t want to risk things turning into something worse then they were. Thankfully we both know how far we can push our bodies and what the dogs can safely handle when it comes to hiking. While the hike out wan’t ideal it was completely manageable and non-emergent. This scenario was far better then waiting things out and having an emergency later in the night. And you can bet that both first aid kits have been fully restocked!