The big sky continued, perhaps even expanded as I continued northward to Glacier National Park. Small towns scattered my drive in and amongst the vast fields of nothingness.
The people in Montana must be a different breed, bred to withstand winters I cannot even fathom. This morning, in the breakfast room at the hotel, the breakfast-lady commented on the Iowa tornadoes being reported on the news. She said, "I can't imagine living in tornado alley, are you from there?" When I explained that we did have tornadoes, she said, "Oh, I really can't imagine! We don't have anything." To which I responded: "You have winter!" The ranger told me that this past winter, they had ten days in a row of -30 degrees and the winds can be well above 70 miles per hour. Not my idea of paradise. However, the view around right now, just might be.
I was even more in awe of the scenery the closer I got, and especially as I entered the park. High, steep, Rocky Mountain peaks dotted with snow, deep valleys with crystal blue lakes and tall ever-green trees.
I was sort of in a rush to get here this morning, as I needed to claim one of the few coveted camp sites before they filled up as my home for the next few days is this blue pop-up tent:
I'm staying in Rising Sun campground basically across the street from St. Mary Lake. The campground has 84 spots, but it is so well designed, that even though it is full, I can hardly see or hear others. Each site has a picnic table, a parking spot and a spot for the tent. Most are surrounded by trees and I'm almost at the bottom of a high peak.
Since I arrived plenty early, I had my choices of campsites. How to choose?!? I wanted to be near a bathroom, but then again, not too near. I wanted to be sort of in the middle, but not right out in the open, thankfully, luck presented itself. My lucky number #73 (this has long been my lucky number, which means I must be a genius, according to Sheldon's theory: 73 is the Best Number), was open and it is just beautiful! Partly shaded, forest in the back and a giant bolder to one side. My car is a few mere feet away and the bathroom is about 50 paces. As Goldilocks would say, it's just right.
This afternoon, I decided to start off easy while still seeing some treasures in the park. Being on my own, I really don't want to hike alone (remember the bears), so I'm planning on taking advantage of the many ranger-led hikes through the park.
I took a short boat ride on St. Mary's lake where, along the way, a ranger told us all about the geological formations of the park, then we took a short hike to St. Mary's falls: beautiful cascading waterfalls that immediately turn from churning white to turquoise.
After the return boat trip and some planning for tomorrow's journey, I used the pay phone (who knew those still existed?!?) to call my parents so they'd know the bears hadn't yet eaten me.
This campsite has, in walking distance, a general store with everything from firewood to Cheerios to wine and a restaurant. Since I can't live on granola bars and goldfish alone, I'm expecting to be eating many meals in this restaurant, no matter the quality of food! My expectations were low, expecting to find a menu of burgers, but after a quick glance over the menu, I realized that even if I eat all of my meals there during my stay, I may not get to try all that I want to! I chose the steak crostini tonight: sun-dried tomatoes, Montana-raised steak and pesto cream cheese all on top of toasted slices of French bread! Delicious! And who cares if my dinner costed more than my lodging tonight!
After a ranger talk at the campsite about Glacier animals that adapt in the winter, I'm now nuzzled into my sleeping bag, hoping that bears don't like the smell of pesto!
Miles traveled: 119
Gallons of gas purchased: 6.5
Hours in the car: 2.5
States: Montana
States: Montana
No comments:
Post a Comment