GREAT DIVIDE TRAIL: solo thru-hiker on Section A

I set out to thru-hike the Great Divide Trail (GDT) from Waterton to Mount Robson Visitor Centre on July 21, 2020. The GDT is divided into lettered sections. I am hiking northbound (NOBO) which means I started with section A.
Section A spans from Waterton National Park to Coleman, AB. I completed 104 km of hiking, some of which wasn't on the GDT due to trail closures. It took me 5 days to complete this section completely on my own. I plan to hike sections A-C solo. Although there were many tough moments on this first leg of the hike, there were many more amazing moments! I hope you enjoy following along on my journey.
Equipment used:
Tent: MSR Hubba Hubba: amzn.to/31ffOWY
Backpack: Arc'teryx Bora AR 61 Backpack Women's: amzn.to/2ZcNbXB
Hiking Shoes: Salomon Women’s Outbound Hiking Shoes: amzn.to/2YyGYXd
Sleeping Pad: Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XTherm MAX Ultralight: amzn.to/3g02MAJ
Sleeping Bag: Mountain Hardwear Lamina Synthetic Sleeping Bag -18C: amzn.to/3awsxan
Pillow: Sea to Summit Aeros Pillow: amzn.to/2EdogfJ
Garmin inReach: alnk.to/9xb2mvq
Gortex Jacket: Montane Women’s Alpine Pro Jacket: amzn.to/2ZdmIJJ
Down Jacket: Montane Women’s Phoenix Jacket: amzn.to/31jvFDU
Smartwool Longsleeve: alnk.to/aAFAfqf
Smartwool Shortsleeve: alnk.to/6TrFEiA
Smartwool Underwear: alnk.to/2uyJ7UM
Fuel: alnk.to/58i5QbX
Laundry Soap: alnk.to/1MTHcy6

[@JelaineMcDermit68]

Just found your channel and subscribed. Love it! At the end where you were munching down the chips, made me laugh! 😂

[@beverleymaclellan3360]

Such a beautiful gift to join your journey, Krysta and seeing the gift(s) you're giving yourself. Many thanks and much love. Can't wait for the next segment xxooo

[@betty-loucreamer112]

Amazing hike and beautiful scenery!💜❤️❌⭕️

[@IjukeYOUout]

Hell yeah I love the adventure!! Happy for you

[@IjukeYOUout]

@@KrystaNorwick I explore down here where I live in the Sonoran Desert, in Arizona 🏜️super pretty year round

[@filmic1]

Neat, Story, my buddy has an MSR NX1. Rockin' that 17kg? Arc'Teryx!

[@unvexis]

The all-dressed chips were so Canadian I cried tears of maple-syrup joy.

[@KrystaNorwick]

Hahah this is amazing!

[@RootlessWanderer]

HIked this baby back in my early 20's! Would love to hike it again solo!

[@RootlessWanderer]

@@KrystaNorwick Serious props! Nice to see other solo women! I am all about the solo's these days! They're....Liberating! Exhilarating! Stay Safe and Happy Hiking!

[@RootlessWanderer]

@@KrystaNorwick I concur! However, now that I have my amazing border collie Jasper, I will never truly be solo....

[@luckyhiker3434]

I have just started watching your channel and like it. You seem to have found a good mix of pleasant talk and great views.

[@RootlessWanderer]

Agreed!

[@nedanother9382]

your joy is infectious

[@remainingwild]

LOVE the part at 11:38 where you're in the wildflower meadow. I honestly can not get enough of the beautiful flowers in the mountains

[@madame88ca]

This was AMAZING to watch, Krysta! So many unknowns and uncertainties yet you did it !! You earned every one of those granola bars, not to mention all those CHIPS 😁. Looking forward to seeing the next section of your through-walk. 👍🏻💕🌺

[@dylanhunt8742]

Can't wait to show this to my wife, so inspiring!

[@dylanhunt8742]

@@KrystaNorwick saving for PCT northbound together in 2023!

[@pauljollymore4031]

Hello again MM, I was following you on this section of trail and often saw your fresh impressions! We eventually met up at Elk lake and I was thrilled to meet you. You’ve done a fabulous job with the videos, keep it up!

[@RVAHikerGirl]

Just subscribed to support another fellow solo female hiker out there! Us girls have to stick together! When solo I second guess myself all the time if I'm going the right way. I ran out of water for my AT section hike thru Maryland in upper 90 degree temps a couple of weeks ago. It's so scary too. Doesn't it make you appreciate water at home so much more? LOL Beautiful trail!

[@RootlessWanderer]

Ditto!

[@erichelston7116]

hey Krysta and Brian.it was a pleasure to meet you at the Vavenby store yesterday.I loved the video-very heartwarming-great documentary in these hard covid times.I have sent your site to an old friend Larry Stanier who is a professional mtn guide out of Canmore;said he'd have a look [great guy]good luck with the van conversion and everything else.Eric Helston

[@FrScottHikes]

You are doing so good!! Loving the adventure/scenery! 💪👍😊

[@remainingwild]

"I am going to drink SO much water when I get to that lake. It looks delicious" LOL this is one of my FAVOURITE parts about hiking! Nothing beats drinking that ICE cold water right off the side of a mountain on a hot day.

[@meganharden3194]

It's crazy to watch this because I think we were only a few days apart until you passed me at Pinto! So funny how similar and yet incredibly different my experience was on the same trail at essentially the same time. It was great to finally meet you in Section E after hearing your name for so long!

[@travelclimb]

What a trip! Super inspiring. Hopefully my gf and I can do it in a few years. We have the PCT set for next year!

[@KrystaNorwick]

Hi hi! How’s your hike prep coming along?

[@frankross7982]

I love your videos. I am planning to hike section A of GDT this summer. solo. just wondering this. while on your hiking trips do you stuff your sleeping bag back into that teeny compression sack, the air mattress back into its tiny sack, or just stuff them into your pack and don't spend the time with compression sacks.

[@dougs4913]

Thanks for the video. What lake is that you camped at off Barnaby Ridge?

[@tarynbailey132]

Where did you camp each night in this section?

[@david_onthetrail]

19:59 Alldressed are my favorite.

[@KrystaNorwick]

Me too!!

[@giveyandmyla1859]

My gosh I feel like crying too😭

[@remainingwild]

That first little bit with all the dead trees was in Waterton right? So sad to see that, there was a huge fire there in 2017 and burned almost the entire park to the ground :(

[@remainingwild]

On a positive note though, the fire will allow the area to regenerate since fires are a natural part of the forest cycle. There are way more wildflowers there since the fire so the cycle of forest regeneration continues :)

[@Wesley-oo6kn]

That filter was a lucky break! I have a similar filter and was just thinking of trading it out but now I'm second guessing.

[@Wesley-oo6kn]

@@KrystaNorwick I've been looking at the sawyer squeeze because of weight and convenience. Also a cnock squeeze bag for more durability and water storage.

[@nedanother9382]

so funny that all your "walk by" shots were done without that heavy pack. Any regrets on your pack load out? You look exactly like I felt when I used to carry heavy loads....it was just life wrecking for me. Looks like you did it though so great on you. congrats

[@nvtruant5994]

How heavy was your pack?

[@HM-gk3rq]

Did you start at the border?

[@waltermaner5265]

Feels very fresh 11months late. Identify with the water-source paranoia

[@waltermaner5265]

@@KrystaNorwick In my youth, a section hiker and sometime trail maintainer ("nettle cutter") on the Va AT. Solo hiked most of Va AT in fall of 1991 carrying 3 weeks of grub in a Kelty outer frame pack loaded to 60 pounds, with no phone and no GPS. Blazing was hit-and-miss in those days, so was often lost and sometimes had to use a compass and orienteering skills to find my way. I learned to say to myself, "You are never truly lost if you like where you are."

[@iKeto_gal]

Where do you pee? I see many male youtube hikers doing all these trails but they can urinate easily somewhere. So where do you pee? Hydration is important so ya gotta be using the "restroom" a few times in a day.

[@RootlessWanderer]

Subbed!

[@RootlessWanderer]

@@KrystaNorwick I'm really looking forward to them! 🙂

[@RootlessWanderer]

@@KrystaNorwick I haven't gotten to those videos yet, but I will! I am also currently preparing to move into a van. Just a "no-build" minivan build lol.

[@JohnSmith-xi2oq]

On day 1 you have dehydration and 2 bandaged toes. Next time consider more conditioning

[@KrystaNorwick]

Hey John! How’d your hiking season go this year?

[@31415926535equalspi]

Hi! What kind of filter is that at at around 6 minutes?

[@KrystaNorwick]

Hey! It's the MSR Miniworks Water filter. I really like it, I've now used it for two years with great success. I have a video reviewing all of my gear here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/n2q7ipZmaN6gZsk Also, I LOVE your name!! Thanks for watching!