CARDWELL — Cold, relentless rain. Bushwhacking through face-slapping thickets. Scrambling over deadfall. Encountering two grizzlies intent on sharing the trail.

All of it daunting.

But none as unnerving as loneliness.

Jake Redlawski, 26, left Cape Alava, Washington, on May 31, and headed east on the rugged, remote and often unmarked Pacific Northwest Trail. He eventually intersected the Continental Divide Trail in Glacier National Park and headed south through the Bob Marshall Wilderness.

“Mentally, the rainy miles of western Montana were the most draining,” he said Friday. “I was very lonely in those parts and struggling to cope without someone to share the days. Gratitude and praying for patience were of great help in overcoming the depression of being alone.”

Author Edward Abbey ob

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