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On July 19, the
Nimblewill Nomad again shouldered
his pack and headed back out to
thru-hike the second trail planned
for this year's 2010 Odyssey. This
journey will be 'oer the
Pacific
Northwest National Scenic Trail,
which runs along the US-Canadian
border from Chief Mountain Customs,
in Montana, through the northern
panhandle of
Idaho, to Cape Alava, Washington, on
the coast of the Pacific Ocean.
The trails route was first conceived
and explored by
Ron Strickland in 1970. In 1977,
Strickland founded the
Pacific Northwest Trail Association
(PNTA), the organization that
oversees education, maintenance, and
fund-raising for the PNT. On March
30, 2009 the
Omnibus Public Land Management Act
of 2009 included the addition of
the PNT as a national scenic trail,
and named the Department of
Agriculture as administrator of the
trail.
In an article titled
The New Northwest Passage,
written by Ron Strickland, a portion
of his description states,
"Stretching from the Continental
Divide to the sea, the Pacific
Northwest Trail (PNT) hearkens back
to the Northwest Passage, that
fabled gateway to the east sought by
explorers of old. This 1200-mile
route, however, doesn't lead to gold
or furs but something infinitely
more valuable—true adventure.
The PNT links
Glacier National Park in Montana
with the northwestmost point of the
Olympic Peninsula at Cape Alava,
Washington. Deliberately designed
for high-altitude enthusiasts, the
trail offers superb scenery,
solitude, and geographic diversity
as it traverses mountain range after
mountain range. En route, you'll
cross the Rockies, the Purcells, the
Selkirks and the North Cascades;
meander through the
Salmon-Priest,
Okanogan, and Pasayten
Wildernesses; climb through the
North Cascades and
Olympic National Parks; and dip
your toes in the water of the
Columbia River, Puget Sound, and
the Pacific Ocean."
The Nomad, a devout and
seasoned thru-hiker, is always ready
to answer the call to be one with
God's Nature, to see and feel such a
vast variety of sights and
experiences for himself, and to
share them with you. So, if you're
not lacing up your bootstraps to hit
the trail yourself, then sit back,
relax, and enjoy hiking along the
PNT with the Nimblewill Nomad,
through the photos, videos, and
written journal entries he will post
along the way. |
