August 29-September 1
North of Chief Joseph Pass the Beaver Creek Fire closed 57 miles of trail. I left the CDT shortly after lunch on the 29th and hiked steeply down a lightly used and poorly maintained trail to Mussigbrod Lake. From the campground at the lake, I walked 21 miles on dirt roads and another 19 miles on paved highways before rejoining the CDT for a final 43 miles to Anaconda.
It was a race to get to town before the post office closed on Saturday the 1st since the post office would be closed on Sunday and Monday (Labor Day) and I needed my box! For over 100 years the major industry in Anaconda was smelting copper ore, but in 1980 the smelter closed and the town has struggled to survive.
I took a zero on Sunday in Anaconda and 5 Star met me on Labor Day and we hiked out together in the afternoon. Our next stop is Helena, Montana. I estimate 440 miles to Canada, but there are two more fire closures and potential trail closures due to grizzly bear activity in Glacier National Park. It's always exciting on the CDT!
For additional content, check out Flickr for images, YouTube for video, SoundCloud for audio, and the Postholer Map with my most recent location.
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