W W W. D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA NA . C O M
17
defeated by the unusu-
ally high, swift waters of
Gordon Creek. We opted
to press onward, and that
evening nature rewarded
our effort by providing an
idyllic camping area near
the creek's edge.
Bathing in the frigid
waters of the mountain-
ous wilderness is not for
the faint of heart. Au-
dible gasps, momentary
motionless shock and a
fair amount of floundering
about ensued, but none of
us could deny the invigorat-
ing results or the contented sleep which followed.
DAY THREE:
GORDON CREEK TO LENA LAKE
(6.3 MILES)
Despite the smoke from our campfire, a persistently
curious mule deer doe greeted us during our morn-
ing coffee, while Grandpa David and I discovered
that an unseen, more mischievous woodland creature
had chewed through essential
portions of our hiking boots
during the night. Boots hap-
hazardly repaired, we began
our day's trek.
As the trail traversed wooded
mountainsides, we quickly
realized our travels would be
more difficult than anticipated.
According to other travel-
ers, spring storms in the area
brought winds up to 108 miles
per hour, toppling impossibly
tall trees and thereby blocking
large sections of trails. Often
times, the root systems retained
soil and boulders as they fell,
creating gaping holes throughout the forest. e more
remote our location became, the more "blowdown" we
encountered.
After miles of navigating fallen timber, we stumbled
wearily onto the bank of Lena Lake. e water's surface
was as smooth as glass, save for countless breaching
fish. Having reached our deepest point in the wilder-
ness, the scene could only be described as pristine.
Aftermath of Blowdown
Spider Web at
Upper Holland Lake
Retrace Bob Marshall's 1928 trek
viewed from the Chinese Wall. The
wilderness now bears his name.
www.distinctlymontana.com/bobmarshall164
DISTINCTLY MONTANA | DIGITAL
CORY
MATKIN
CONTINUED
