On October 5th, two Saturdays after my IMTUF DNF (but *before* I had decided to try for one last ultra distance in 2024) Patrick and I went on a different kind of trail outing.
When I say “different,” I mean different for *us.*
We actually simply went camping for the night, with the intention of hiking the next day.
Typically when we’ve packed the tent into the minivan and set our gps for a couple of hours away it is for the purpose of camping at a race hub and getting me set up to run an ultra the next day. These adventures are super fun, and something that we truly enjoy, but I wouldn’t call them relaxing or low key at all.
Camping just two weeks *after* an ultra, though, changed all of the vibes.
We went to explore a new-to-us-trail, and enjoy the fall perfection of Idaho’s public lands.
If you’re not an Idahoan, you may not know that ¼ of the state—12 million acres—is Bureau of Land Management public land. Coming from Texas, not even two years ago now, we still find this astounding. We find the concept of disperse camping intriguing as well, and have been slowly learning the ropes, and taking advantage of this vast resource.
To learn more about disperse camping, go here.
For a comprehensive list of all of the Idaho lands that the BLM manages, start here.
I learned about our destination, Jennie Lake, through a paperback hiker’s guide that I picked up at the library by Scott Marchant.
The guide contained everything we needed to know to execute our overnight adventure, but I did a little bit of internet research to prepare Patrick for the kind of fishing he might expect to do there too.
Then we simply checked the weather, packed up the van, followed the driving directions, and picked out a disperse campsite a couple of miles up the road from the trailhead. At this point in October, since we left on Friday late afternoon, we ended up setting up our tent at dusk, and cooking our dinner by lantern/headlamp before turning in for the night.
Without a race start line to prep for, we got up when we felt like it, Patrick made hot breakfast, we layered up (it was chilly!), and drove over to the trailhead.
One of the main differences for me during this hike was that I wasn’t decked out in my typical trail running gear, and I carried an entire backpack instead of a lightweight hydration vest. Since we planned to hike (as opposed to run) the five miles in and five miles back, it was going to take more than a couple of hours. We carried lunch, hammocks, reading material, and fishing gear. I wore jeans and a puffy jacket.
And when Patrick remembered about a mile and a half into our hike that he’d forgotten the majority of our lunch in the van, it was him that we sent for a little run back to get it. I continued on, but much more slowly as I took his backpack too.
It was around the time that Patrick made it back to me with our lunch that I removed my puffy and packed it into my pack. The sun was up, and the air was still crisp—perfect hiking weather.
Even though we were “just hiking,” I was surprised at the physicality of it. Interestingly, having a fully loaded backpack, non-running specific attire, and an intentional hiking pace was actually quite different from trail *running.* I didn’t think it would be. For one, what’s hiking to a runner? Isn’t walking easier than running? For two, I hike many of the miles I “run,” especially as the grade gets steep. So, doesn’t it follow that hiking the not as steep parts wouldn’t be as hard as running?
Actually, between the load and the slow pace, it felt like a much longer trek than I was anticipating. Not running a single step significantly increased the time it took us to arrive at Jennie Lake than if I’d jogged even a third of it. (Which I wasn’t going to do laden down with hammocks and books, and wearing jeans, if I’m honest.) Five miles out and five miles back wasn’t a formidable distance at all, but taking that mileage on over several hours was. So, although chill, it was still challenging.
And lovely.
What a destination!
We spent about two hours at Jennie Lake. Patrick—apart for the ten minutes I convinced him to eat lunch—spent the whole of it fishing.
I’m very glad that I packed in those hammocks (even if Patrick didn’t use his), and that we made a day of it.
Jennie Lake was a magical place to spend a few hours; it was so beautiful at midday. And because I never am satisfied with the beauty that my stills capture in stunning Idaho, perhaps video will do a better job brining her to life.