The Happy Camper: Thru-hiker Bruce Watts and The Great Divide Trail
“The GDT… harder than expected and more beautiful than imagined.”
—Bruce Watts
I had the pleasure of doing a Whisky Fireside Chat with Bruce Watts, a thru-hiker with a popular YouTube channel called Campology. He’s been backpacking for over 40 years, covering thousands of kilometers, explored every Canadian province and territory and most of the USA. Bruce has a great video series on hiking Ontario’s Bruce Trail end to end, and the Rideau Trail (twice). His latest series, however, is his best yet. It’s a five-week hike on the Great Divide Trail (GDT), widely known as North America’s toughest and wildest thru-hike.
The GDT is set in the Canadian Rockies, following the continental divide between the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia. The starting point is in Waterton Lakes National Park at the Canada-US border (Alberta-Montana) and it ends 1,123 kilometers to the north in Kakwa Provincial Park. Along the way it crosses the divide 30 times.
It’s definitely not an easy trail. Less than 30 backpackers attempt it each season. Some sections are well-blazed, and some are unmarked and extreme wilderness navigation is needed. There are countless glacial stream crossings, lots of mountains to scramble up, sudden summer snowstorms to content with and the odd grizzly. It passes through five national parks, eight provincial parks, three wildland parks, two wilderness areas and two special management areas.
Bruce stated the GDT was “beautiful but unforgiving, quietly and with stealth procession beating away at my feet, legs, gear, self-esteem and spirit. Yet strangely, I had one of the best and fulfilling experiences of my life.”
Two other hikers joined Bruce. Chris “Crusher” Abbott and Tracy “Mango” Généreux, Bruce’s trail name is Dudley, after Dudley Do-Right (he’s a retired cop). Check out the interview on my KCHappyCamper YouTube channel below. Then, check out Bruce’s GDT video series on his channel Campologoy.
