Selway Bitterroot Wilderness - Day 4

I woke late to the sound of rain.

When it stopped I ran out to retrieve my food bag, made a fire, and brewed up a strong double batch of lapsang suchong. I leaned back on my pack and drank the tea while I looked at my maps. The North Fork of Moose Creek appealed to me greatly. It was steep and rocky and felt alive where the East Fork had felt somehow strange and uncomfortable. I followed it north on the map. It curved through a steep drainage, and a trail followed on the east side. About six miles away, a ford crossed the creek and the trail continued up a steep ridge line, eventually reaching the height of land around 6,000' of elevation. This trail looped around and it looked possible to descend back into the Selway River drainage - perhaps even coming down the Three Links trail where Dave had spent so much time. The idea was appealing and I felt an immediate excitement about it. I would leave the East Fork behind and follow the North Fork instead.

All that morning the rain came and went. I did not want to start hiking again only to get my boots soaked, so I waited for a real break in the weather. That break never came, and around 2pm I decided it was a rest day. I passed the time in the tent by reading Dave’s words and studying the maps. At times I just thought. When there was no rain I collected firewood and puttered around camp. I was content.

In the evening I walked over to the river and stood watching it run. It was noticeably lower than the day before, a hopeful sign for the required ford on my route. It ran wonderfully over and around boulders, shedding elevation quickly on it's way downstream towards where I started four days ago.

The wilderness echoed around my tent. I had spent the entire day on my own, not seeing another human being. Wilderness existed here on a scale that I had never seen before, and in four days I had barely scratched the surface.