As I sat at the laundromat down the street from my house, with a 30lb backpack next to me, I wondered what my companions for the next week would look like. Would we get along, would they like me, would they think I had no clue what I was doing or would they be impressed with my minimalist packing? Yes, it’s true, I volunteered to go on a backpacking trip for 6 days in the Bighorn Mountain’s, Cloud Peak Wilderness, with 7 other people I had never met.

Located in Northcentral Wyoming, this 189,000 acre area, has many sharp summits, sheer rock faces, and boulder fields, carved by glaciers. In other words, plenty of places to dump a dead body. The night before a patron of mine at the bar (where I get most of my solid advice) expressed his very real concern that I was to be their dinner. Like some sort of C rated horror movie, they were inviting me on the trip so they could grill me over the campfire. Being their dinner was the least of my worries, my biggest concern was whether they would like the actual dinner I prepared for them the night before. I was up at 1am that morning bagging the vegan meal that had finally finished dehyrdrating in the oven. Last minute preparation is not my thing so I was panicking…..also I am not vegan but a fellow camper, who in an ironic turn of event had more cheese and meat than all of us, had requested we adhere to his new healthy lifestyle.

So how does a 34 year old find herself hopping in the car with 3 men, strangers, all over the age of 55? She answers a FB post on the local hiking club looking for more women! Yep, the post said a group was getting together and the lone women, wanted more of us to join her. The fact that she ended up dropping out of the trip due to injury is of no concern. But I, along with one other woman, who carpooled in a separate vehicle, ended up being the only two women of the group. And we were both strangers to all.

Now, I’m not a complete idiot, so I did extensive FB research on the organizer of this trip and made sure our mutual friends had nothing bad to say. No one seemed to think he was a serial killer or a creeper…..that was all the reassurance I needed. So when the Subaru (of course it was a Subaru) pulled up with 3 strange men, I hopped in. Three hours later, I found myself, unloading my backpack from the car and with 6 strangers, loading gear, adjusting straps, packing snacks in pockets, filling water, and performing all the other last minute rituals that only backpackers would understand.

We took off from Circle Lake Trailhead and headed towards Lake Herd for our first night. We quickly split into groups, those of us who run (cardio training helps) took up the lead and two of our fellow hikers, from low elevations, took up the rear. They were quickly realizing how thin the air is up in the mountains. While packing our gear the next morning, and enjoying a geology lecture from one of the hikers who happened to be a geologist, a moose decided to walk 20 feet from our camp. We quickly walked away from the lecture to take pictures.

Photo Credit: Colin Paterson, who happened to be the geologist that was interrupted by this moose.

Our second day of hiking found us off trail, climbing (or falling) through boulder fields. These natural obstacles, formed as a result of glaciers, and the freeze/thaw climate, proved difficult to most of us. We would walk on these for the rest of our trip, seeing soil less than 10% of our time. After boulder hopping for what seemed like the majority of the day, we excitedly found ourselves looking at Lame Deer lake, which would serve as our base camp for the remainder of the trip. With those big boulders, and the number of times my companions stumbled, one can easily guess how the lake got its name.

We quickly set about performing more of those familiar backpacking rituals: making camp, finding flat areas, setting up tents, creating our kitchen, filtering water, and making dinner. The next morning we woke before the sun was out, because we were ascending Bighorn Peak. Hiking to the top of Bighorn peak was tough. The air was thin and the boulders thick……the size of small cars. Waiting for us at the top (12,324 feet in the air) was the monument marking the summit, a cairn with a bare stick protruding from the pile. Next to it was a geocaching box with a small journal inside. We proudly logged our names and the time it took us to ascend.….4 hrs and 15 minutes. I also deposited a very special treasure, my lip gloss.

If I thought hiking up boulders was tough, nothing could prepare me for the descent. I only fell off a cliff once, well jumped off and didn’t stick the landing, walking away with a minor scratch! The 3 hour descent felt more like 8 hours, especially after I ran out of food and water. Every time I thought we were getting close to our base camp, another steep descent would appear before me. Had we really climbed that far or were we descending into a never ending sinkhole? Was this a cruel joke? Not to mention the boulders were getting bigger.

When we finally descended the last slope, I saw the lake and took off running, I was so hot and thirsty; I wanted nothing more to jump in the cool water. I took off my shoes and as soon as I stuck my feet in realized I needed to abort the mission immediately. This Texan still freezes in ice water. Thankfully two of our low land hikers did not make the ascent and had filtered water during their day at base camp….my heroes!

Dinner in Buffalo, after 6 days in the wilderness.

The rest of our trip consisted of the same rituals, day hikes to surrounding lakes, and hanging out in the kitchen. We all got to know each other very well...considering we were sharing a trowel and hand sanitizer. The hike back to the trailhead was both exciting (visualizing all the food I would eat in Buffalo) and bittersweet because I could backpack with these people forever.

So to answer the question, what happens when you backpack with strangers, well for me, I figured out what I would do with my life. Because of the conversations I had with these strangers, less than two weeks after returning, I launched Explore Fitness and Adventures. I am forever glad that I answered the FB post and took this trip with strangers. A group of folks that are now my friends and who, in some part, are responsible for me living my dream.

What Happens When You Backpack With Strangers