No Man Lake

There are a couple different ways to pack a mule. The easier way is to use a pack saddle and panniers. You might think of them as baskets that hang on the sides of the mule after being secured either with cordage or a mantie around both bags. The other method, which works well for bags and other soft-sided luggage is to bind the equipment or whatever you are transporting in a mantie. After wrapping said items in the giant tarp you tie it up with a rope like some kind of bizarre 50lb-100lb present, and then affix it to both sides of the mule on a slightly different type of pack saddle.

We were about twenty miles into a pack trip across the Madison mountain range northwest of Yellowstone national park. Twenty miles might not sound like much but with eleven horses and ten mules in the back country it can take time. A downed tree for example, that a hiker could easily by-pass requires a twenty minute stop to cut by hand or a risky reroute through some of the steepest high country you can imagine.

The plan was to overnight at a small lake sitting at around 9,000 feet, one of the more experienced men on the trip had made camp there before. The trail was about a four-mile leg out of the way that included some of the steepest incline I'd ever ridden as we ascended from about 7,000 feet up to the lake. The terrain changed quickly as we followed the trail, from big timber on a cliff, to an almost barren rocky stretch that looked like an almost vertical incline.

It was here at the rocky, damn near vertical part of the trail where the mule being led toward the front of the train had a mantie work itself loose and began its nearly quarter mile tumble downhill at a remarkable pace. Horses and riders alike jumped to the side to get out of the path of the mantie and the cascade of rocks that accompanied it.

After the horses settled and secured the retrieved load to its mule, we completed our perilous journey to the top of the trail where we found what is quite possibly the most beautiful place I've ever been. The feelings of excitement and awe and this place were overshadowed by one small, insignificant trouble. - A complete and utter lack of any bladed grass or other feed suitable for a herd of our size.

So upon reaching the most beautiful and remote location in the world we had but one option after refilling our water and giving the animals some time without a load. - Head back down and go out the way we came.

The lake is on my bucket list of places I need to see again. I may or may not take a horse next time, maybe just a backpack and stay a while. If you are ever in the area, it is definitely worth the climb. Just don't bring a hungry horse.