Two park rangers drove a team of mules down the trail which pushed a mama bear and her two cubs down the same trail. This in turn caused several hikers to backtrack to a little pull out we had just reached. Courage though ran uphill with David and Mariah’s enthusiasm making the three of us more confident which in turn calmed a very nervous family standing next to us. The bears passed by less than ten yards from us and it was awesome.

The two nights we spent up in the north fork of Cascade Canyon where simply amazing. The weather was good, company great, and the views stupendous.  Besides the bears, we also spied moose, mule deer, marmot, pika and one, maybe two, silver fox. We hung out at Lake Solitude and when the day hikers left we stayed. It was also cool hangung out with our west coast family (and playing cards by flashlight in our little tent almost 10,000 feet high was something we will not soon forget). The discomforts, like having to bury our poop, eating mostly dehydrated foods and, worst of all, instant coffee were a small price for having a piece of wilderness all to ourselves. We can’t wait to camp with David and Mariah again.