adktyler
Active member
Well, after months of the idea, weeks of not planning or scouting, and days of ignoring friend’s advice, I decided to give it a go. My goal was to hike all 5 of the peaks in the Sawtooth Range that qualified as hundred highest peaks. I used Spencer’s book to find the true summits on the map, and that’s about all the research I did. After penciling in the route I wanted to take the day before, I drove to the Seward trailhead and began the epic journey.
Leaving at 4:15 in the morning I walked with an outgoing trail runner by the name of Brian for the first half hour of the trip. He was working on hiking all 46 in 4 days, so it was interesting to hear of his story and plans. We parted ways soon enough, since he wanted to walk fast and I wanted to pace myself. I ran into him two or three times again, since he wasn’t quite sure he was going the right way or on the correct trail. I probably shouldn’t have taken the horse path and led him astray that way, but I wasn’t thinking, and the horse path was a trail I hadn’t hike before. We parted ways for the final time at the Seymour cairn, and I saw no more people for the rest of the day.
After another 45 minutes or so of hiking I arrived at my jump-off point for the bushwhack. It was then, at 7:30 am, that I left the trail and headed into the unknown. The unknown turned out to be a lot easier than I expected. I soon arrived at a beautiful creek with lovely cascades and deep, amber-color pools. This creek proved to be a lucky route quite a way to the summit of Sawtooth Number 3, and the lack of blowdown across the water simply made my morning grand! Within no time I was leaving the creek and moving through moderately open woods towards the summit of my first peak. I arrived at the zenith at 10:15am with the sun overhead and the birds singing in the trees. An antler and small clearing were the only indications that I was on the summit, beyond the fact that my map and gps confirmed it.
The descent back to the creek was a breeze, and soon I was walking along the brook once more, finding neat artifacts of logging days of yore, and lovely blubbery patches scattering the lichen-covered ground. After a short traverse to the next creek, I was once again ascending to a peak, this time Sawtooth Number 5. This mountain proved to be another easy climb, and at 12:00am the summit greeted me with a wooden sign that had seen better days. Views were still non-existent, but my exuberance over the open forest masked my want of seeing other mountains. Shortly once again I was on my way to the next summit, through some confusing ups and downs and possibly thick forest.
My fears were misfounded once more, and the woods were both free from blowdown and quite welcoming with their pathways of moss and corridors of evergreens. However, I was about to be greeted with the trees that give the Sawtooth Range their formidable reputation, and as soon as I began ascending Sawtooth Number 1, I clashed head over heels into mind-numbingly thick woods. This fit perfectly with the fact that I had ignored my own route planning worked out the day before, and had shot straight for the summit. These two factors married harmoniously into a nightmare of cliffs, unstable forest floors, and trees with razor-sharp arms waiting to tear at any exposed flesh. However, by 1:50pm I was resting comfortably on the summit, this time with beautiful views that made the previous route totally worth every second.
I spent some time on the summit, soaking in the other mountains that refracted off my retinas. Eventually, though, I knew it was time to move on. My legs were cramping up a little bit, and I wanted to find the next water source so that I could comfortably chug the water I was hauling on my back. Sawtooth Number 1 was intent on making me pay for the easy previous summits, and it did not let me off of its shoulder easily. I had to descend some precipitous cliffs (which were actually quite fun), and push through some thick, thick, thick cripplebush (which was actually not fun at all).
However, in due time I did stagger upon my little brook, from which I drank deeply (though the water was surprisingly warm). Soon enough I was climbing upwards to the summit of Sawtooth Number 2, wondering what hellish forest lay in front of me. To be quite honest, it wasn’t half bad until I came within 0.1-0.2 miles of the Eastern Summit. From then on it was once again unforgiving, and I settled in to 0.5mph contentment.
By 3:45pm I was standing on the summit of my new buddy, Sawtooth Number 2. This peak also had excellent views, and I spent even more time on the summit of this mountain than I did I Sawtooth Number 1. Eventually, however, the black flies drove me away and I was once again back on the road again, onto my final peak of the day. Thankfully, my leg cramping had ceased, and I still had quite a bit of energy left. That energy was needed, along with a lot of patience, because coming down the ridge from Sawtooth Number 2 was the most time-consuming part of the day. The woods were thicker than anything I had seen since the Sentinel Range, and my cloths and backpack were mercilessly shredded if I tried to push my way through at any speed faster than a sloth walking to the vet.
Once the descent was completed, I had a final little taste of some open forest. I suppose the mountains began to feel sorry for me, and let me have one last minute taste of some easy walking before I made the final push to Sawtooth Number 4. This open forest lasted long enough for me to realize that my feet hurt and I had some serious chaffing issues developing. But, those thoughts were soon logged away as I approached the summit of Sawtooth Number 4 and was again greeted with woods so thick even the flies left me alone. I finally pushed through the last few trees, and stood on the apex of the mighty Sawtooth Number 4! It was only 5:45pm and I still had plenty of daylight left in the day. I was living the dream, and loving every minute of it.
Hiking down off of this final mountain was not so bueno. It continued to produce super-thick trees, and I’m sure I could hear the ground laughing a few times when I had a dramatic fall or extra-painful poke in the ribs. I soon ditched my plan to hike down the ridge, and shot for the lowest land I could find as quickly as I could muster myself. This proved to be another good decision, and I was soon in open forest once again. I quickly caught up with the brook listed on the map, and it took me right into…a big, stinkin’ marsh! After wandering around aimlessly for a little while, I eventually came across the property line for the Ampersand Lake/Pond property. This provided me with a clear trail all the way back to the road! I burst through the woods at 7:45, 12 hours 15 minutes after I had begun the bushwhack.
To be quite frank, the 5+ mile hike back to the car was one of the hardest parts of the day. The chaffing was killing me, and I felt like I was walking on concrete with bare feet that had just been beaten with a baseball bat. I took several breaks, employed many self-motivation tactics, and ate the rest of my food. Nothing helped, however, and I simply had to grin and bear it, taking comfort in the fact that as long as I was moving, the trailhead was getting closer. By 9:45pm I arrived at my faithful Subaru, and collapsed into its cushy seat and welcoming effortless-transportation. It was at that point that I realized I was tired. And I suppose that I had good reason to be such.
Overall it was an excellent day. One of my most challenging day hikes yet, but worth it in every way. To the best of my knowledge, I'm the first documented person to hike all 5 in one, continual day trip. It was certainly fun! Now…on to the next adventure.
I have a couple of PICTURES here: http://picasaweb.google.com/adktyler/SawtoothRangeInOneDay#
And here is a video of each summit:
Sawtooth # 3
Sawtooth # 5
Sawtooth # 1
Sawtooth # 2
Sawtooth # 4
Leaving at 4:15 in the morning I walked with an outgoing trail runner by the name of Brian for the first half hour of the trip. He was working on hiking all 46 in 4 days, so it was interesting to hear of his story and plans. We parted ways soon enough, since he wanted to walk fast and I wanted to pace myself. I ran into him two or three times again, since he wasn’t quite sure he was going the right way or on the correct trail. I probably shouldn’t have taken the horse path and led him astray that way, but I wasn’t thinking, and the horse path was a trail I hadn’t hike before. We parted ways for the final time at the Seymour cairn, and I saw no more people for the rest of the day.
After another 45 minutes or so of hiking I arrived at my jump-off point for the bushwhack. It was then, at 7:30 am, that I left the trail and headed into the unknown. The unknown turned out to be a lot easier than I expected. I soon arrived at a beautiful creek with lovely cascades and deep, amber-color pools. This creek proved to be a lucky route quite a way to the summit of Sawtooth Number 3, and the lack of blowdown across the water simply made my morning grand! Within no time I was leaving the creek and moving through moderately open woods towards the summit of my first peak. I arrived at the zenith at 10:15am with the sun overhead and the birds singing in the trees. An antler and small clearing were the only indications that I was on the summit, beyond the fact that my map and gps confirmed it.
The descent back to the creek was a breeze, and soon I was walking along the brook once more, finding neat artifacts of logging days of yore, and lovely blubbery patches scattering the lichen-covered ground. After a short traverse to the next creek, I was once again ascending to a peak, this time Sawtooth Number 5. This mountain proved to be another easy climb, and at 12:00am the summit greeted me with a wooden sign that had seen better days. Views were still non-existent, but my exuberance over the open forest masked my want of seeing other mountains. Shortly once again I was on my way to the next summit, through some confusing ups and downs and possibly thick forest.
My fears were misfounded once more, and the woods were both free from blowdown and quite welcoming with their pathways of moss and corridors of evergreens. However, I was about to be greeted with the trees that give the Sawtooth Range their formidable reputation, and as soon as I began ascending Sawtooth Number 1, I clashed head over heels into mind-numbingly thick woods. This fit perfectly with the fact that I had ignored my own route planning worked out the day before, and had shot straight for the summit. These two factors married harmoniously into a nightmare of cliffs, unstable forest floors, and trees with razor-sharp arms waiting to tear at any exposed flesh. However, by 1:50pm I was resting comfortably on the summit, this time with beautiful views that made the previous route totally worth every second.
I spent some time on the summit, soaking in the other mountains that refracted off my retinas. Eventually, though, I knew it was time to move on. My legs were cramping up a little bit, and I wanted to find the next water source so that I could comfortably chug the water I was hauling on my back. Sawtooth Number 1 was intent on making me pay for the easy previous summits, and it did not let me off of its shoulder easily. I had to descend some precipitous cliffs (which were actually quite fun), and push through some thick, thick, thick cripplebush (which was actually not fun at all).
However, in due time I did stagger upon my little brook, from which I drank deeply (though the water was surprisingly warm). Soon enough I was climbing upwards to the summit of Sawtooth Number 2, wondering what hellish forest lay in front of me. To be quite honest, it wasn’t half bad until I came within 0.1-0.2 miles of the Eastern Summit. From then on it was once again unforgiving, and I settled in to 0.5mph contentment.
By 3:45pm I was standing on the summit of my new buddy, Sawtooth Number 2. This peak also had excellent views, and I spent even more time on the summit of this mountain than I did I Sawtooth Number 1. Eventually, however, the black flies drove me away and I was once again back on the road again, onto my final peak of the day. Thankfully, my leg cramping had ceased, and I still had quite a bit of energy left. That energy was needed, along with a lot of patience, because coming down the ridge from Sawtooth Number 2 was the most time-consuming part of the day. The woods were thicker than anything I had seen since the Sentinel Range, and my cloths and backpack were mercilessly shredded if I tried to push my way through at any speed faster than a sloth walking to the vet.
Once the descent was completed, I had a final little taste of some open forest. I suppose the mountains began to feel sorry for me, and let me have one last minute taste of some easy walking before I made the final push to Sawtooth Number 4. This open forest lasted long enough for me to realize that my feet hurt and I had some serious chaffing issues developing. But, those thoughts were soon logged away as I approached the summit of Sawtooth Number 4 and was again greeted with woods so thick even the flies left me alone. I finally pushed through the last few trees, and stood on the apex of the mighty Sawtooth Number 4! It was only 5:45pm and I still had plenty of daylight left in the day. I was living the dream, and loving every minute of it.
Hiking down off of this final mountain was not so bueno. It continued to produce super-thick trees, and I’m sure I could hear the ground laughing a few times when I had a dramatic fall or extra-painful poke in the ribs. I soon ditched my plan to hike down the ridge, and shot for the lowest land I could find as quickly as I could muster myself. This proved to be another good decision, and I was soon in open forest once again. I quickly caught up with the brook listed on the map, and it took me right into…a big, stinkin’ marsh! After wandering around aimlessly for a little while, I eventually came across the property line for the Ampersand Lake/Pond property. This provided me with a clear trail all the way back to the road! I burst through the woods at 7:45, 12 hours 15 minutes after I had begun the bushwhack.
To be quite frank, the 5+ mile hike back to the car was one of the hardest parts of the day. The chaffing was killing me, and I felt like I was walking on concrete with bare feet that had just been beaten with a baseball bat. I took several breaks, employed many self-motivation tactics, and ate the rest of my food. Nothing helped, however, and I simply had to grin and bear it, taking comfort in the fact that as long as I was moving, the trailhead was getting closer. By 9:45pm I arrived at my faithful Subaru, and collapsed into its cushy seat and welcoming effortless-transportation. It was at that point that I realized I was tired. And I suppose that I had good reason to be such.
Overall it was an excellent day. One of my most challenging day hikes yet, but worth it in every way. To the best of my knowledge, I'm the first documented person to hike all 5 in one, continual day trip. It was certainly fun! Now…on to the next adventure.
I have a couple of PICTURES here: http://picasaweb.google.com/adktyler/SawtoothRangeInOneDay#
And here is a video of each summit:
Sawtooth # 3
Sawtooth # 5
Sawtooth # 1
Sawtooth # 2
Sawtooth # 4
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