Day 8 Glacier National Park Day Two

Got up this morning and tried the Luna Cafe. Good pancakes and thick sliced bacon. Decided to go to St. Mary which is about 25 miles north of where I was. Even though it was only 25 miles it was a 45 minute drive due to the twisting winding roads. I skipped the visitors center and went on in the park. I drove a short way in (which I was later glad I only went a short way in) and discovered there was a boat ride tour of St. Mary Lake. I had arrived about twenty minutes before the ride started so I took a seat on a bench and waited. Soon the boat arrived to off load the other tourists. One funny about that was a lady who got off was wearing two hats. Both on her head! The bottom one was a baseball cap and the top was a huge floppy brimmed hat of Mexican hat dance size which bounced around with each heavy-heeled step she took. With each step it seemed to me that she was momentarily blinded by the brim flopping down in front of her eyes. It was most amusing.

Back to the ride. About 25 people got on the small craft and settled in for a pleasant ride. The young woman who was or guide was a local from the Blackfeet tribe and had started working at the park when she was 14 and loved the area so much she decided to stay. Ten years later she is still in love with the park.

She pointed out some of the landmarks like the small island that could almost be classified a mountain since the lake is around three-hundred feet deep except around this island. There are pockets that are five-hundred feet around it. There is only about 15 feet or so above the water which when you think about it makes it 500 feet tall. The island itself was only around 30 feet wide and 50 feet long carved from the surrounding land by glaciers thousands of years ago. Another interesting feature about the island is the trees. There are around 8 trees of note on it.


Looking at the picture you'll note that the limbs on the trees all grow mainly out to one side. The reason is that the winds there in the winter especially blow at one hundred plus miles per hour. the record was set a few years ago at 178mph. At that point the measuring device blew off and they have not found it yet. Anyway, the limbs on the trees became so damaged by the prevailing winds that the tree adapted by only growing the long limbs on the leeward side of the tree. The shorter limbs on the windward side offer protection from the wind but don't have to suffer the damage that a longer limb would have to.

So going on to the rest of the lake, it was just beautiful. I know I am saying that a lot during this writing but the fact of the matter is that the entire area of that part of Montana is just that!

A side note about the boat we were on. It was a gorgeous wooden craft built in 1926 specifically for doing the lake tours. It can hold probably around 50 people.

We went on to the other end of the lake and disembarked to go up a short trail to see a waterfall. My apologies to those actually reading this but I was not able to memorize all the names of all the mountains and waterfalls that I encountered at this park.

Waterfall at the far end of St Mary Lake


I stayed there a while and took some pictures none of which came out to my satisfaction. I was trying out a new lens adapter that gave ultra-wide angle capability. Well you get what you pay for. The edges all came out blurry and too distorted. Oh well.

The visit to the falls and the ride back to the other end of the lake was uneventful but a wonder to see.

An interesting sight there is the remains of a 36,000 acre forest fire that happened in 2005. I have never seen the effect first hand of what that looks like. There is nothing but a stark remains of the landscape. The trees are ghosts of themselves with the bark burned off and the remaining wood bleached by the sun and weather. But when you look at more than that you see the new growth of small trees and ground cover making a comeback. So under the dead timber is a layer of green that when the light is right on the landscape it shines through the carcasses of the remnant forest. When the fire was finally put out the government allowed the Indians to come in and harvest for ten days the trees that were of use. The rest, as you see in the picture, were left to do what nature would do with them.

After the boat-ride I went to the tourist based shop and restaurant and got some chips/salsa and some water.

I decided to head back to the hotel and given the 45 minute drive it would put me back there close to dinner time around 5 o'clock. It is amazing how time has no real meaning there but it goes by too fast anyway. I had suddenly found that I had been there almost all day.

On the drive back I decided to swing through Two Medicine to find out from a local what time the sun went down behind the mountains there. The two park people I talked to both said around 8 o'clock. I went on back to East Glacier Park Village and checked email then went for some dinner.

Around 7:45 I decided to head on back to Two Medicine to get some sunset photos. With the best laid plans of mice and men I got there about 20 minutes too late. The sun had already gone behind the mountains. I can assure you that every gnat, mosquito and midge had come out and my being one of the only people there they all wanted to feast on me!

Day 7 Glacier National Park Day One

Got out of bed and went to the Whistle Stop Cafe where I had dinner the night before and had an omelet (those seem to be the big thing in Montana) and went to a place called Two Medicine. After paying $25 for a seven day National park pass my first stop was Running Eagle Falls. To get to them you have to walk a few hundred yards in the woods down a trail. Well now I have to pause and tell you that EVERYONE that I had talked to in Montana and Texas too had said "When you go into the park watch for bears!!!!!" So now I am nervously walking down this trail and making all kinds stupid noises to scare the bears away. Scuffing my feet, rattling my keys, clearing my throat which I later figured sounded more like a mating grunt and would do more to attract them than scare them away.

I get to the end of the trail to an open area and can see the falls in the distance. Between me and the falls though is a shallow river but over to my right is a bridge made from trees. Cool! I then see a movement to my left and look across the river to see a black bear cub, then another followed by MOM!!! Every sphincter muscle in my body tightened so tight that there was no chance of anything escaping. I have of course watched all the National Geographic specials and Discovery Channel shows on staying away from bears and especially a mom with cubs as she will be very protective and kill you!

Here are the cubs.
I did not run screaming like a girl in the other direction being sure that I would then become breakfast for mom and a training mission for the cubs. I did however back away and around a group of trees and began fervently taking pictures. Never miss a photo-op! I snapped away getting the cubs and mom until they disappeared into the underbrush on an islet between me and the falls. I went around to the bridge and saw some people coming back and told them of my historic find being of course the first person to ever see a bear in the park! Even showed them one of the photos I took. I went across the bridge and to the side of the river. I saw the bears come out of the brush and they started feeding on what I was later told was probably huckleberries. They fed there for about 45 minutes and then either got full or tired of being watched and got up and left.

OH! The falls. Interesting falls. The falls were beautiful. It had the usual over the top falls but then what could be best described as a mouth below the other falls from which gushed another falls. Very interesting trying to figure out how the earth had been carved away for that to happen.

I took 95 photos of the bears and maybe a dozen of the falls.

Went from the falls/bears on down to Two Medicine Lake to see what was there.
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At this point I have to pause to leave Glacier National Park. I'll pick up again when I get to Billings Later today.
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July 25th
So I did not do anything more here while in Billings as I got a case of the lazies. Now that I am back in San Angelo Texas I will pick up where I left off before all the memories blur.
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I moved on down to Two Medicine Lake which I later found out used to be the high-point of a visit to the eastern portion of Glacier. That is back when the access was by train and then horseback. After "Going to the Sun Road" opened the areas farther in the park became more interesting I guess and interest in Two Medicine waned. Which would explain why the boat ride at Two Medicine is $11.50 and the boat at St. Mary is $22.00 per person.

I did the normal run through the tourist shop and then went to the lakes edge to see what there was. I had seen the mountain from around the trees and in the distance from the village but to round the corner and see this group this close was wonderful. I got my camera up and start taking my National Geographic moments (to hell with Kodak!). I took around fifty pictures from different angles and then wandered around the area a bit just admiring the view of the area.

You have to understand that though I have traveled a lot in my life and have seen many different sets of mountains on several different continents each has its own beauty and uniqueness that can just make you want to sit and stare at them for a while. I will say that even as traveled as I am it is impossible to soak in the full feeling of the area. All you can do is appreciate it and try to feel the impact of it on your soul.

I decided to go on back to the Mountain Pine Motel where I was staying for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday to look at the maps and guide books I had found or been handed. I had not really looked at them yet and needed to do so to get an idea of where all I could go.

Day 6 Billings Getting ready to drive and then...

Really just spent the day getting stuff ready and waiting till 5 to pick up the rental car.

Good story there though.

Went to Dollar Rental to pick up the Dodge Charger or equivalent and as I expected no Charger. But a free upgrade o a Durango! Cool! More room for me to be comfortable. Damn the MPG full steam ahead! Did all the required paperwork and walked the 1/2 mile to the truck. Walked around it and did not notice anything of note. Got in and started it and a low tire warning light came on and the tank was half full. Drive to the desk and told the girl inside the problems. She came outside with me and we found the nail in the tire. Problem with that is that it was after five at that point and no way to get the tire fixed today. She traded me to a Malibu. After folding myself into the Malibu I went back to the desk and told/asked her to find a way to get the Durango repaired and refilled so I could pick it up in the morning. She made a call and the decision making manager was gone for the day. So she told me she would email said manager and let her know what I wanted.

Next morning at 7.15 I called the manager and appealed to her nice side and she told me she would get it done a soon as she could.

I went ahead and packed the car with my stuff and headed out to a place downtown named Stellas Kitchen to get some breakfast. Asked for coffee and OJ to start things off. The OJ was advertised as fresh squeezed and I thought okay whatever. When my waitress (note how I now own her) brought it out it was really the juice of about 3 oranges just squeezed. Amazing flavor. Might have to get a juicer when I get home.

While eating my 3 egg Denver omelet I got a call from Dollar and was told that the truck was ready and I could pick it up anytime. I was surprised since it was only 8.30 and I was expecting it to be at least 9.30 before I heard from them.

Found the downtown rental place where it was and they had washed it, gassed it up and fixed the nailed tire!

Did the paperwork again, transferred all my stuff to the truck and hit the road for Glacier National Park!

520 miles later and after one very brief but strong rain storm outside of Helena and another milder one at Grand Falls I got to East Glacier Park Village Montana. The first rain storm was so intense that I could not see past my hood at one point. So I slowed to 40mph until it cleared a minute or so later. Like I said, brief but intense. Overall the drive was pleasant with the expansive beauty of the mountains in the distance and the drive through the rolling plains of central Montana.

After only making one 50 mile wrong turn (I was busy taking pictures of the town I was supposed to have turned at) I got to East Glacier Park Village and in it found the Mountain Pine Motel. Cute little place with bare necessities, bed, bathroom, small TV - 3 channels - and internet now and then. $67/night. Not bad! I could only stay there Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights.

Now I need to let you know that my plan is to stay in Glacier National Park area from Tuesday the 14th through Monday the 20th. So room availability was kind of important. But I am ever the optimist and knew that I would be able to stay somewhere and not in the truck. As it worked out I had those three nights at the Mountain Pine Motel, then Friday night at the Sears Motel up the street (again $67/night) then I found a Hostel across the street from the Sears motel for $23.50/night! I wish I had known about it prior to coming as I would have booked my entire stay there. The comforts would have been about the same except I had a community bathroom and no TV. No big deal! Only real complaint was the on-again/off-again internet and the one inch thick pillows. Made side sleeping a bit rough. But 2 nights there cost me less than what one night was elsewhere.

Getting there as late as I did I just found food and then relaxed in the room. Making plans for the mornings travels.

Day 5 Billings on Sunday

Did not do much of anything today. Went to Wal-Mart and picked up a suitcase to use rather than try to manage the cardboard shipping boxes I used to send my clothes etc. to Billings from San Angelo.

On that I want to note that I have started shipping my clothes via USPS to my forthcoming location. Yea I know it cost more to do that but doing that guarantees that the airline will not lose my stuff and I can send some things more easily that way that may cause the airlines to strip search the box leaving behind an oh so courteous note saying that for my security they felt the need to open and look through my stuff. It also allows me to send larger things that may not fit into a suitcase like my yoga mat and camera tripod. So mail your stuff to where you are going.

After finishing the WM trip where I noticed that the Montana WalMartians were really not so different from the Texas WalMartians we went back to the house.

Carolyn washed my dirty clothes and I packed the into my new suitcase which can even hold my yoga mat and tripod for the trip home!

Watched the Sunday night line-up and went to sleep.

Day 4 Red Lodge Montana

For those of you reading this that know Fredericksburg Tx. take it and pump some steroids into it and that is Red Lodge. It's about an hours drive from Billings toward Yellowstone National Park which I will get to on another trip. We got there and I promise I saw 300 plus motorcycles there. Turns out there was a poker rally going on raising money for some cause.

DownTown Red Lodge Montana


First thing was food. We went to a place called Bogart's. Had a combination of Mexican and American food. They had four flavors of hot sauce on the table that ranged in heat from mild enough that a baby could have to hot enough that it could melt your teeth or dentures should you wear them.

After eating we wandered the tourist shops and I of course bought some refrigerator magnets. Most of the shops were fun and different unlike some towns you go to and the same thing is in each shop just with a different name out front and often differing prices.

Done with wandering around town we got in the car and headed for the mountains. Beartooth Mountains to be exact. Long drive of switchbacks and the usual thousand foot drop with no guardrail on my side of the car. But the view made up for it. The mountains here in Montana are different from the others I have been in. The ones in Virginia are older and are more rounded and not as tall. The ones in Peru much like the ones in Colorado are tall and rough with little vegitation on the face. The Montana mountains have a more gentle slope that allows for more trees and then above the trees light grasses and small brush grow.

To say the view was wonderful would be an understatement. Each corner we turned gave a new perspective to the beauty. Broad sweeping valleys with a variety of trees and scrub in them and as you looked up the slopes to the tops. As we got higher to where we were above the tree line we stopped and got out to walk in the open fields of grass were there were still some large patches of snow. There are also small mountain lakes. I am sure they were quite cold since they are pure snow melt!

We drove through the various areas in the mountains both in Montana and down into Wyoming enjoying the sights and each others company. We did resist the urge to do naked snow angels in the remaining drifts. Snow balls were discussed and after giggling the decision stayed.

Getting back to Billings dinner was at the local Cracker Barrel. I have now been in them in four states and yes the food is exactly the same as is the decor down to the last decorative "old" looking item carefully screwed to the walls. First time I have had to send my food back though. The chicken fried steak must have still been a little frozen when they cooked it as it was raw in the middle. It was kindly replaced and dinner was good after all.

Went back to Carolyn's house and watched the Friday night line-up of TV.

Day 2 & 3 Around Billings

Started the day with espresso coffee. Not your usual coffee you say Andy? No it was not! I was now very awake and ready to run a marathon and I hate to run!

After getting dressed in record time, due to the COFFEE, we went back to the corral to meet the horses in the daylight. This time I had shoes on.

Kane came up and greeted me like an old friend. Maybe it was recognition or the apple I had I don't know which. But he did seem genuinely interested in talking with me. Another horse, a mare, decided that I was her new boyfriend glued (should I use the word glued when talking about a good horse?) herself to me for the length of my visit. Carolyn said that was not normal behavior. The mare even went so far as to put her head under my armpit. So I could hug her I guess. At least she did not try to hold hands! It was even funnier as she then followed me all around and if I tried to walk past her she would put her head into my chest and not let me pass. So I had to shove her head hard to get past her.

We fed the horse and chatted with them a bit longer and then headed back to the house.

Carolyn, who has asthma, was not feeling as good as she'd like so we went to her Dr's and she got taken care of. So we spent the rest of that day just taking it easy and hanging out.

After starting out on Friday with normal coffee we went to a couple of museums in Billings. One an art museum and the other a western museum that showed some of the history of the Billings area. Ate lunch at a nice place on Historic Montana Ave had soup and a sandwich that were both good. The rest of the time we sat and talked and relaxed.

Day 1 - What a day! 07/08/2009

Leaving San Angelo Texas for Billings Montana was no real problem. Judy had been (unknown to her until later) flexed off work for the day!. YAY! All play with pay-day!

I got to DFW with no problems. Then the 4 hour layover there and believe it or not NO GATE CHANGES!!! Not really. I was to fly out on US Airways so I went to their counter in the "E" terminal and asked why my flight was not posted. He kindly told me that I was actually going to fly on United Airlines located in the "B" terminal. After all I did have 4 hours of layover time.

I should have eaten in the "E" terminal since the restaurant choices were much better for some reason. Had an overcooked hamburger at a sports bar were the female waitstaff did look a lot like linebackers.

No plane changes but there was a short delay while they tried to figure out what to do about a leaking window. I think they put some silly putty on it and then assured us that even though we would be flying at 38,000 feet it would be okay. But they did have it blocked off so no-one could sit there. I was one row up.

Made it to Denver only 3 minutes late. Got off the plane at gate 4. My next flight was at gate 85 out of 90. GATE 85!!!! Why are there 90 gates in the Denver airport? Well okay they can have 90 but why are they in a straight line?? No really! For those of you who have not flown in/out of Denver that airport is one very long building with the gates strewn down the line. It took me all but 3 minutes of my layover time to get from gate 4 to gate 85. And that was using the moving sidewalks! I knew the time frame because they are kind enough to give you a countdown timer on how long it is till boarding.

Got onto the sardine can sized jet and found my seat. 8c, and aisle seat. People started getting onto the plane in the usual milling manner. Anxious but at least gladto have a seat on the plane since some got bumped.

At this point no-one was next to me in the window seat. Then a pretty young women in her early 20's was standing in the aisle next to me. I had noticed her earlier in the terminal. One, because she was pretty and two, because she had some physical problem with her left side. I could only guess that it was from some brain injury from to me an unknown source.

She began by handing me he suitcase sized purse and a shopping bag from some needless markup type store. I happily put them on the floor in front of her seat. I had no room to stand up to let her in unless I knocked her over. So I tried turning my legs to one side but since the seat spacing did not allow it gave her no more room than if I had not moved. Next thing I know she has hoisted her good leg over my legs and proceed to fall, sit, ooze and collapse over me to get to her seat. I later thanked her for my very first lap dance. She laughed and thought that was funny and said that was her first one also.

We chatted a bit on the flight. She is getting a degree in business at Montana State University and then going to Denver to get a law degree. Good for her that she is not letting her (I will not call it a handicap) get in her way and that she will go on to achieve her goals.

The rest of the flight was quiet. I listened to my iPod and looked out the window. and waited to land.

Once we did and got to the gate I was able to get up and allow her to get up without having to give me another lap dance though it may have been good for one more laugh.

I left behind the 106 degree weather in San Angelo to be greeted by 75 degree temps in Billings.

HEAVEN!!!!!!!

My friend Carolyn who I had not seen since high school (35 years ago) met me at the airport. She of course like myself had not changed a bit. She ran over to me and with all her five foot two gave me a big hello hug. We talked for a moment or two and headed out to go to her house.

Driving there I looked at the scenery that is BIllings. So much is the same as most all the cities I have been to in my life. Small and large stores. A mall and stadium and the usual accouterments of all cities and towns.

I did take note of the difference in architecture though. The overall design of the buildings and home are designed for winter weather. The houses that I have seen are taller and for the most part two story or split level. Also the roofs have more of a tilt than the ones back in Texas.

Did I mention that Carolyn is a horse nut? On the way to her house we stopped at the corral where she keeps her horses. One of whom, Kane, is an 18 hand (about six foot at the shoulder) percheron draft horse. While that is a large horse (his head is much taller than me) you have to remember that Carolyn is only 5'2", Oh and she rides him bareback. Well the fun really started when me in my sandles and Carolyn in her boots had to walk out into the pastures to find her pride and joy Kane. It's 55 degrees there at this point. The fields are wet, no, soaked. The owner of the fields is irrigating them for some purpose. So I am walking in my sandles in the mud, water and horseshit with toes that are getting colder as we journey farther out into the darkining evening.

After crossing one field and with Carolyn calling out for Kane he, like a 2000 pound puppy, comes out of hiding from the next field. He is solid black and in the low light I can only made out a huge walking shadow heading toward me. I had sent a worn shirt up to Carolyn a few days ahead of my visit for her to take to the horses so they would know my scent. A smart thing to do on my part since I did not want to be pounded by a one ton beast. As it worked out he came up to me and after getting my smell he allowed me to pet and scratch him and walked with us back to the gate. Me all the while still trying to avoid the piles of horse apples and deeper mud puddles. Kane and I chatted for a few minutes and then said goodnight.

Carolyn and Ken's (her hubby) house faces west sitting most of the way up a hill in the northeastern part of town. Looking west you can see after the houses end about a mile from her house an open prairie with rolling hills and in the far far distance the mountains.

We spent the evening talking and getting me settled in for my visit.