3 September 2016, Saturday

It rained all night but we remained snug and warm in our tent. We sleep in until 7:45! It is still 5 degrees when we emerge, a good morning for enjoying hot food and hot coffee. We are in no hurry to strike camp. The tent and tarp are sodden, but we’ll be setting up again soon anyway. We finally strike the tent during a break in the morning showers. Not until 11:30 are we ready to take the trail. As we are making final preparations to leave, Mike, another hiker with whom we have chatted over meals and hiked a bit, stops by to say goodby. He is on his way to Whitehorn tonight and will be out of the backcountry tomorrow. We discover we may all be in the Banff area at the same time next week. He promises to text in 6 or 7 days to see where we are and to find out if we can hike together.

O and I finally begin our short hike to Marmot campground. The rain and wind make the day feel colder, and we are not walking far enough today to really get warm. On the bright side – we arrive at Marmot campground early and choose the best site. It even has a bench in perfect position to stretch a tarp over. As we arrive there is a brief spell of sunshine. I optimistically spread the tent and fly out to dry as O works on hanging the tarp. Needless to say, it soon starts raining again. I hurriedly set up the tent so the inside remains dry while O puts the finishing touches on the tarp hang. Two young women pass by on their way up to Berg Lake. O asks for the latest weather forecast. “More of the same,” says the first woman. I comment I was hoping for sunshine. The second hiker assures me it will be warm and sunny (she does not say when.)

We have lunch under our tarp, capped off by a dark chocolate hazelnut bar. We are both feeling chilled in the damp wind. We boil water for our last servings of hot chocolate and start our southwest hominy stew cooking. We are now seeing occasional breaks of sunshine, but it is still quite chilly. The rain has largely stopped except for a few sprinkles. The valley is still shrouded with low clouds and the intermittent glacial rumbling continues, creating a mystical atmosphere.

We decide an evening walk is in order to warm hands and feet before bedtime. We wander a kilometer or so down the trail we will follow tomorrow. By the time we return, my hands and feet are finally warm. It is about 4 degrees C. We retire early in an effort to get a quick start tomorrow morning. I have a feeling it will be hard to get out of the tent due to low temperatures.