Another Chinese Wall Adventure!
Eight Days in the Bob Marshall Wilderness of Montana
September 16-23, 2011
Part Two, - The Snow Storm near Cliff Mountain
Part One - Benchmark to Prairie Reef
Part Three - Photography and Beauty along the Wall
Part Four - My Lake to Headquarters Pass Trailhead
Copyright Notice

From our camp near Prairie Reef we hiked up to a camp near Cliff Mountain and the following day over to north of Salt Mountain. This part of our journey was marked by some less than desirable weather.

Photos by Ralph Thornton and Jim Utsler.
To see Jim's fantastic art visit his Art by Jim Utsler website.

More Chinese Wall Stories click HERE
The day began with a little drizzle. I never have liked packing up to leave camp in the rain and this was no exception. Fortunately the drizzle stopped long enough for us to prepare breakfast.

The drizzle came and went most of the day. The dry dusty conditions of our first two days were gone. So was the warm sunshine.

We kept our packs covered and were very careful crossing streams on wet bridges and slippery logs and rocks.
Some time after noon we were passing a large avalanche slope across the valley on Red Butte. We heard an elk bugle! We knew he was close by but he was hidden in the brush across the valley. Soon the big bull elk came out of the brush and looked our way. Jim got this photo with his long lens but the damp, dark, rainy conditions didn't make for the best of photos.

To hear an elk bugle, just click on the play triangle below.
This was a tough year for huckleberries because of the very late snowmelt but we did see a few in along the trail above Burnt Creek. This one disappeared shortly after Jim took this photo.
Our first view of the Chinese Wall above Burnt Creek.
As we approached our camp spot for the evening the sun made a brief appearance on the now far away summit of Prairie Reef.
The night was fairly dry and the stars shown brightly though breaks in the clouds. Around 3 am, however, it began to rain. Rain came in heavy waves the rest of the night. As daylight came heavy clouds swirled around Cliff Mountain (left) and over the Chinese Wall north of Salt Mountain (below).
Shortly after we packed up in the rain the winds came on strong and the rain changed to snow. Lightning flashed and thunder boomed. Time to get moving!

We followed the trail over the saddle near Cliff Mountain and down into the basin at the head of Moose Creek. Before long the snow began to pile up.
This is my favorite spot along the Chinese Wall. Unfortunate the visibility was not so good on this day.
Hiking along the Chinese Wall on a pleasant fall day. NOT!
By late afternoon the snow had stopped falling and the temps rose to above freezing. The snow began melting off of the trees. We set up camp north of Salt Mountain and prepared for a damp cold night.

By around midnight, not a cloud was in the star spangled sky. But boy was it cold!

The following morning our tent was frozen solid and we guessed the temperature was in the high teens. We awoke early though, because we knew that with the clear sky there would be some magnificent views to photograph.
Click below for:

Part Three