Less than Ideal
Frosty trees play hide and seek in the fog on top of Sepulcher Mountain.
Last Saturday we were sitting in our cabin in Gardiner, Montana, trying to decide where we wanted to hike the next day. After mulling over a bunch of possibilities, my husband suggested we take advantage of the perfect weather that was being forecast and attempt a late season effort of the 13 mile Sepulcher Mountain loop out of Mammoth. Despite the fact that it is a tough hike at the best of times due to the length and the 2,500’ elevation gain, and knowing it was going to be especially challenging because of the snow at the summit this time of year, we decided to make a run for it, hoping for a reward of incredible views from the top.
Having the luxury of two vehicles makes the trek a little easier than it would otherwise be since we can park one car at Mammoth and take the other up to the Bunsen Peak trailhead where we would start. The route is no shorter when done this way but it allows us to begin the journey at 7,200’, hike to the summit at 9,640’ and then loop down to our second vehicle at 6,700’. That way we can do a “3/4 loop” hike instead of an “in and out” and we save ourselves an additional 500’ in elevation gain (although we still have to do the full 3,000’ on the way down).
Aspen trees frosted by the fog.
A bison warily watches as we pass by on the trail.
On Sunday we woke up to a world of white. The unexpected moisture lay like a thick blanket over the landscape. After some debate, we decided to stick to our plan, sure that the fog would lift by the time we got to the trailhead.
More discussion ensued when we arrived at our parking area and realized visibility seemed to be getting worse instead of better. Still we decided to forge ahead, knowing we could always turn around and follow our path back to the vehicle if the going got too tough. Even though we couldn’t see very far, the landscape was beautiful with a heavy coating of hoarfrost on every surface, even on the coat of the bison that watched carefully as we passed by below him.
The higher we climbed, the thicker the fog became.
As we climbed higher and higher up the mountain, our visibility decreased to a few feet in any direction. We chased a fox and a small herd of mule deer as we moved forward, talking constantly in an effort to avoid startling any wildlife we didn’t want to surprise, such as grizzly bear or bull elk, both of which we have encountered on this trail in years past.
At this point our plan was to go until we encountered deeper snow and, if the fog hadn't lifted by then, we would have lunch before turning back and reversing our steps.
Nearing the top of Sepulcher.
When we finally reached the elevation where the snow began to accumulate for real, we found the going to be much easier than expected thanks to the 22* F temperature that kept us from post-holing on every step. So of course we decided to continue onward. A few minutes later we realized our visibility was improving dramatically - not because the fog was lifting but because we had climbed above it!
Five shots merged together create a breathtaking panoramic view of the top of Electric Peak rising above the fog which is hiding the vast valley between our location on Sepulcher and the 10,970’ Electric.
We finally arrived at the views we were seeking but at a cost. The air above the clouds was warmer and the sun had softened the snow underfoot. Now we were sinking up to our knees with every step forward.
This is a trail we have hiked a number of times over the years. Without that prior knowledge, I think we would have yelled “uncle!” at that point but by now we were determined to continue our course and so we pushed on across the top of Sepulcher, following the faint depression in the snow and the few flags on trees marking the trail underfoot while marveling at the fresh mountain goat tracks that seemed to disappear into thin air off the edge of the sheer cliff beside us.
I don’t think I have ever hiked this trail without seeing grouse and this time was no exception. A pair of Dusky’s flushed in front of us, one going up into a tree and the other down a short slope where I was able to capture a shot of her in the fog, which was slowly surrounding us once again as we moved down in elevation.
When we finally reached the junction with Beaver Ponds Trail that told us we were a half mile away from Mammoth, it felt like we had entered a different world. For more than six hours we had been hiking in an alternative universe, one that was devoid of all other people and defined by a haziness foreign to those of us who reside in the arid climate of northwest Wyoming.
Electric from below late in the day of our hike.
We got in our car and drove back up to the trailhead where we had started our day. It felt surreal to gaze up at Electric Peak which was now visible on the lower slopes while the top was completely encased in fog. The world had flipped!
I am so glad we decided to go ahead with our plans. It turns out a less than ideal day can result in a perfect hike!