Day 12 (Tuesday 11-1-2011): North Bend, ID to Gilmore Summit, ID

Oh boy, another day of climbing after the brief evening descent into North Fork last night.  Luckily it was a gradual climb throughout the day, and for the first time, I had a tail wind most of the day so the going was pretty fast.  I had checked the weather the other day in Florence for where I thought I would be tonight and I saw overnight lows in the mid teens. Given how cold I was on the 30 degree descent down from Lost Pass I figured it would be a good idea to 'upgrade' both my gloves (5 finger, thick, non-wind and non-water proof full finger gloves) and balaclava (thin, and having an opening for my entire face).

Going through the average sized town of Salmon I stopped in a general store to look for a better balaclava and gloves. Luckily, they carried some cheap but warm looking winter gear and I picked up some wind proof 'lobster' gloves and a windproof balaclava that covered the mouth and nose as well. They also had a closeout on some candy so I picked up some Chick-o-Sticks (coconut-dusted peanut crunch candies that taste almost exactly like Butterfingers!) as well as some Hersehy's Cookies and Cream bars and some Butterfinger Crisps.  Mmmm... yum!

I continued on the very low traffic Route 28 as it slowly climbed in elevation until it got dark.  With flat plains on both sides of the highway and usually fenced off, I was having a hard time find a good place to stop for the night to set up my tent.  Luckily (or perhaps unluckily?) there was a animal reservation at the peak of Gilmore Summit, the highest point that I had been so far at 7169'.  I went shortly down the side road off of the highway until I found a good spot that was sheltered from the wind which seemed to be picking up as the temperature was dropping (in the high teens). Luckily I found an natural depression in the ground that provided some shielding for my tent. Unluckily, it was even rockier and the surrounding countryside so it was a pain to get the tent pegs into the ground...