Splashed and Stunned
Last night I couldn’t find anywhere with Wifi to write my blog post, but I have this morning! So here is my day yesterday.. it was quite spectacular. I don’t know what you did yesterday, dear reader, but if you had a bad day, it’s probably not a good idea to read on..!
It began with a beautiful sunrise over Flathead Lake. This was my view out of the tent opening!
It was really something. It was worth all the faff the previous night, trying to find that campsite, hidden away but right on the lake shore. I decided not to go for an early morning swim.. somehow I felt it wouldn’t be as much fun as the evening swim!
The next stop was the white-water rafting, inspired by Sarah (from Pike’s Peak) and her friend Bonnie. It wasn’t quite as exciting as it was the last time I went rafting (a long time ago, on the James River).. that was clear from the start, when a) they didn’t give us helmets to wear, and b) half the people there were until 11!
It was fun though, there were some huge splashes, particularly for me (and John, who asked me if I were Canadian!) who were at the front of the boat leading the paddling. At one point the guide told us to kneel down in the front of the boat, ‘to lower the centre of gravity,’ but in reality to make sure we got properly soaked by that particular rapid..
The picture CD was almost as expensive as the trip, but I decided to get it anyway. Here they are, in all their splashy glory!
After changing into some dry clothes, I drove back into Glacier National Park to head over the Going-to-the-Sun road. This is by far the best road I have driven on, in terms of scenery. It wasn’t much fun, because it is really quite narrow, with a stone wall on one side, and the sheer mountain cliff face on the other, but the views were out of this world.
I’m pretty sure I missed some of them, due to concentrating on not smashing my car into the wall (as at least one car I passed had done). I succeeded, and pulled over regularly to simply look in awe at the amazing views. It took me nearly three hours to drive less than 60 miles—although that did include a three-mile walk.
Along the way I took a couple of short hikes, totalling just over six miles between them. The first was to Hidden Lake, the second to St Mary’s and Virginia Falls. Hidden Lake is in the top three of all the views I’ve seen all trip: the other two being the Grand Canyon at sunrise, and Odessa Lake (Rocky Mountains). I took a load of pictures, but they don’t even come close to doing it justice due to the haze. It was spectacular.
The waterfalls also were beautiful. The highlight there, was really on the walk back to the car, when I ran into a group of people who had just seen a small grizzly just round the corner on the path. I also happened, just at that moment, to catch up with a couple of American tourists, and together the three of use made our way gingerly round the bend—but it was gone.
I could hear it rustling away through the undergrowth, but couldn’t get a glimpse of it. As it was a small one (apparently), there was a high probability of a larger mother bear somewhere near, so I walked the rest of the way with that couple, and had a nice chat about where I’ve been.
Surprise, surprise, it was fine. So, I still haven’t seen a bear! But I have now heard one, at least.
Finally, I drove around for an hour trying to find somewhere to eat with wifi.. gave up and returned to a place I had passed before I got to the campground.. never mind, at least gas is cheap here!
It was quite an eventful day, I think probably one of the busiest, most fun, and certainly one of the most spectacular days of the entire trip. It also inspired me to change my plans.. no trip to Waterton this time (except to drive through tomorrow): I have decided to stay another night in Glacier, and hike up to Iceberg Lake. Hopefully the weather (and my feet!) will hold out long enough for me to make it..