Siyeh Pass
10.9 miles
2285 ft elevation
3418 ft descent
(according to my Gaia app)
As much as I love it, wine and I don't get along. Every time I drink it, I end up awake in the middle of the night for about two hours. Doesn't matter if I sip one glass or five . . . It always happens. I thought that after the hike yesterday I would sleep well despite the glass (or two) that I enjoyed that evening, but I was wide awake at 3:00 am and maybe drifted off a bit here and there. I would guess I had 5 hours of sleep at the most.
I promise the rest of my trip report won't start with an intro about our alcohol indulgences. Just so you know a bit about our group, we are 7 gals who are good friends but don't get to spend a lot of time together back home due to family and work demands. So we were having a good catch up over a few drinks in the evenings. I have been organizing these hiking trips every summer since 2013. The group varies in size year to year, anywhere from 2-7. Some are there more so for the hiking, others more so for the social aspect. There's one gal that grew up hiking in the mountains of Europe and can climb like a mountain goat. Another girl has hiked only occasionally, but is still rather fit. We have a range of abilities, as in any large group.
Siyeh Pass . . . Our hike for the day. Our goal was to leave East Glacier at 7:15 am. There was quite a bit of frenzy to get out the door on time, and finding a bat on someone's bed didn't help the endeavor. Having two vehicles, we left East Glacier pretty much on time and had no problem parking one vehicle at Sunrift Gorge and the other at Siyeh Bend.
Side note-- I sure wish the Park would paint some lines for parking spaces. The Sunrift Gorge Parking area has plenty of room for cars to park on an angle or perpendicular to the road. When we got there that morning, there were at least 4 cars parked parallel to the road, taking up more precious parking space than necessary. A couple of those cars were still there parked like that at the end of the day.
A few of the gals were a bit nervous about the length and elevation change on this hike. So we started with some nerves that seemed to dissipate once we entered Preston Park. The beauty of that area is beyond words.
Peigan Glacier:
Peigan Glacier again:
Most people I know seem to like the climbs better than the descents. Not me. I am usually slower on the uphill and can fly on the downhill with no problem. However, I was sucking wind and slower than usual this morning. I think it was the horrible sleep and a lack of a substantial breakfast that did me in. I found my place at the back of the pack with another gal and enjoyed her company. We were slow but in good spirits as we climbed the switchbacks. We could see the Pass before us, and life was good. We were elated. In our minds, the end of the climb was in sight and the worst of it was almost over.
Then, I looked up and to the right and notice some hikers way up high, about 300-400 feet above us. I say, "Oh, look at those people. They must be off trail hiking." My friend says, "Nooooo . . . That's Christie! That's the trail!"
Be forewarned . . . the Siyeh Pass Trail is deceiving, folks. The trail does not actually go over Siyeh Pass, which separates Preston Park from the Boulder Creek drainage. Instead, the Siyeh Pass Trail approaches Siyeh Pass, but it then climbs higher to the south, I think along the side of Matahpi, and then over into the Baring Creek drainage. You actually never cross Siyeh Pass.
Right about then, the backcountry ranger came around the switchback. He stopped to talk to us for a few minutes. He said he liked to call Siyeh Pass "Disappointment Pass", because everyone thinks it is their destination and are then disappointed to learn they have more climbing to do. He described the rest of the trail to the cairn, making it sound like a piece of cake. And in the end, he was right . . . we were almost there! It looked so far, but we were at the high point only 10-15 minutes later.
We ate our lunch at the top and watched the sky turn grey. The ranger had told us to be off the high point by 2:00 because a storm was rolling in. We had some fun by the cairn and then headed down.
The scenery on the Sunrift Gorge side is ridiculously amazing.
Sexton Glacier in the background:
So pretty:
The wildflowers were out of this world:
I didn't expect the burn area to be so beautiful.
By the time we reached the river, the storm was rolling in. After being in the back of the pack on the way up, I had a burst of energy at the end and high tailed it back to Sunrift Gorge, leading the group.
I absolutely loved this hike. I would put it in my top 3 for sure.
We had dinner at Two Sisters before heading back to East Glacier. A long day, but a good one.
Tomorrows hike . . . Dawson Pass. Will the entire group make it? Stay tuned.
Glacier Park Chat
To say the least, with those high expectations, I was a bit disappointed to see it was a 'normal' mountain lake. I was also too tired to go on to the pass. That was a mistake too.
I think I need more exercise.