Hiking in the Montana wilderness

The Stillwater River widens as it gets lower.

(Stephanie Reynolds / Chicago Tribune)

Chicago Tribune

May 20, 2016 12:07 PM PT

A couple tackle a longtime dream of a marathon hike in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness in Montana.

The Billings Gazette story about a female grizzly bear with two cubs that killed a hiker in Yellowstone Park. (Stephanie Reynolds / Chicago Tribune)

Thom Park at the headwaters of the Stillwater River in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness. (Stephanie Reynolds / Chicago Tribune)

Thom Park stands next to a tree burned in the 1988 Storm Creek fire. (Stephanie Reynolds / Chicago Tribune)

Fallen logs have become home to ants, which bears love to eat. (Stephanie Reynolds / Chicago Tribune)

Downed timber in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness from the Storm Creek fire of 1988. (Stephanie Reynolds / Chicago Tribune)

Ham stew made from dehydrated meat and vegetables. (Stephanie Reynolds / Chicago Tribune)

Stephanie and Thom camped under a tarp. (Stephanie Reynolds / Chicago Tribune)