Big Sky Country

September 4, 2016 Big Sky Country

Our last posting was from Saskatchewan and since then we have been enjoying Montana. We crossed the international border into NW North Dakota then turned westward across northern Montana on the Hi-Line Road (U.S. 2).    If you ever wonder where the flour we use comes from, come see the endless wheat fields of Montana. The terrain is mostly rolling hills and occasional river bottoms with small towns. As we left the town of Cut Bank, we could discern the Rocky Mountains again. Destination: Glacier National Park.

We used Rising Sun campground on the east side of the park for our base of operations for two days. We missed the official 100^th anniversary celebration of the National Park Service by two days and entrance to the park was free when we arrived. We did some hiking and explored the Two Medicine Lake area that we had not seen on our two previous visits to the park (1980 and 1997). Small world experience: a seasonal employee in one of the gift shops recognized Brian from when we lived in Piper's Meadow more than 27 years ago! We saw a black bear cross the road in front of us – too quick for a photo.

St. Mary Lake, Glacier National Park

 

  Baring Falls, Glacier NP

 

 Sun Point Trail, Glacier NP

 

  Running Eagle Falls, Glacier NP

 

 Two Medicine Lake, Glacier NP

 

 

 

We got an early start on the third day to drive Going-to-the-Sun Road to the west side of the park. We reached Logan Pass before 8:00 and snagged a parking spot before the parking lot filled up. We hiked across an alpine meadow below Clements Mountain on the Hidden Lake Trail. We saw a marmot and more than a dozen mountain goats – some walked right up to us (good for us, but probably means they are fed by people). Off in the distance we saw two bighorn sheep. We camped at Avalanche Creek that night.

Going-to-the-Sun Road

Hidden Lake Trail, Clements Mtn.



Hidden Lake Trail over alpine meadow from Logan Pass


Hidden Lake (smoke from fires in the distant valley)

 Hidden Lake

 

 

This little guy was staying out of the hot sun.

A sign that matched my shirt - The Mountains Are Calling and I Must Go (John Muir)

 Avalanche Creek
 

 Trail of the Cedars, Glacier NP

 

 neat tree roots
 

(Note: After the free weekend, we bought a new National Parks Pass since our old one expired in July. We buy one every year and are eagerly looking forward to next February when Brian turns 62 and can buy his lifetime senior pass for only $10. The park rangers see his white hair and ask him if he knows about this great deal!)

We drove around the southern end of Glacier NP across Marias Pass and made a stop at the Theodore Roosevelt monument. We made our way to Great Falls and beyond to Fort Benton on the Missouri River. We ate a picnic dinner next to the Montana State Lewis and Clark Monument, a sculpture overlooking the river where they passed in 1805.

 Lewis, Clark, Sacagawea sculpture in Fort Benton

 

Missouri River in Fort Benton with monument to a local legend, Shep
 

 

 

We returned to Great Falls the next morning for groceries and much-needed haircuts. The camper hatch wouldn't shut properly and we couldn't fix it ourselves. Luckily, there is a dealer for our brand of camper in town and they were able to fix it for only $35.00 – we were “happy campers” about that!. The whole day was not lost so we were able to make a return visit to the Charles M. Russell Art Museum and a short visit at the Lewis and Clark Historic Trail Interpretive Center....excellent exhibits.

 On display at Lewis and Clark Historic Trail Center, Great Falls, MT

 

Between Great Falls and Helena, we stopped for a boat tour on a section of the Missouri River named “Gates of the Mountains” by Meriwether Lewis when he passed through it in 1805. We saw bald eagles, osprey, rare plants, rock formations on the canyon walls, and the site of the tragic Mann Gulch forest fire of 1949.

 

Missouri River seen from an overlook along I-15

 

 campsite on the M. River bank

 

Gates of the Mountains Wilderness Area

 

The "gates" on the Missouri River 

 

 

We spent four days in Helena, capital city of Montana. We had never visited this city of 30.000 people before and it promotes geocaching in a big way. We completed the Helena GeoTour and saw many interesting places in town and in the surrounding communities. We rode the “Tour Train” (trolley) and learned local history of the gold found in Last Chance Gulch and saw the mansion district. Participation in the geotour earned us free admission to the Montana Historical Museum and a carousel ride. We visited the Capitol building and attended mass at the Cathedral of St. Helena.

Sunrise over the Missouri River and . . .

 

      Rainbow at the end of the same day.


 

Montana Historical Museum in Helena

 

 Downtown Helena, Last Chance Gulch

 

When was the last time we rode a carousel?  Can't remember.  This one was free.

 

Montana State Capitol in Helena

 

We gave up our campsite on the river for a motel in Helena when a weather forecast predicted snow in the mountain passes around Helena and cold, rainy weather for Labor Day.

Other fun places:

Antelope, MT ( a geocache was inside)

Cut Bank, Montana

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Canada - Part 3

Canada – Part 3 The Great Plains

Our last posting was all about water. This posting will be mostly about BIG things. As we travel around the U.S. and Canada, mostly on back roads and avoiding cities, we have noticed that many communities state their “claim to fame” in some fashion. Here is a sampling of what we encountered:

Eddie the Squirrel in Edson, Alberta  



Paul Bunyan's Bowling Ball in Drayton Valley, Alberta

 

Huge sausage in Mundare, Alberta 

World's Largest Pysanka (Ukrainian Easter Egg) in Vegreville, Alberta

UFO sculpture in Paynton, Saskatchewan

Canada's Largest Baseball Bat in Battleford, SK

Giant wheatstalk in Prince Albert, SK 

Large Radio Flyer wagon in Dundurn, SK

Snowman in Kenaston (blizzard capital of Saskatchewan)

Giant coffeepot and cup in Davidson, SK 

THE moose in Moose Jaw, SK 

World's Largest Tepee in Medicine Hat, Alberta

Largest Chess Set (verified by Guinness Book of World Records) in Medicine Hat

(Vulcan, AB was too far off our route (and we are not Trekkies) so we did not go to see the large model of the “Enterprise” at the Spock Center.)

Oddball attractions were not the only places we visited. We visited three more Canadian National Parks and a few national historic sites, too.

Elk Island National Park east of Edmonton, Alberta is where we were finally able to watch some beavers. We also spent some time at the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village. Many immigrants from Ukraine homesteaded in eastern Alberta. We saw some old churches and the inside workings of a 19^th century grain elevator.

 

As we were approaching Saskatoon, SK we made a spur-of-the-moment decision to head north to Prince Albert National Park – the farthest north we have been on any of our trips so far. We hiked through a peat bog on a boardwalk and enjoyed a scenic drive through the park. In the town of Prince Albert, we made a quick visit to the Evolution of Education Museum where they had Dick and Jane readers on display (are we really that old?).

 

From Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, we backtracked into Alberta to attend a weekend of geocaching events in Medicine Hat. We met some friendly folks at five different gatherings, including a Flash Mob at the local Farmers Market. The landmark from almost any point in town is the Saamis Tepee and it is a grand thing to see when you are standing under it.

 Cache find #21,000 near Medicine Hat

  Hawk on the prairie

Another BIG thing we stopped to see was “Scotty” the T. rex discovered in Eastend, southern Saskatchewan.

 

The last few days of our Canadian sojourn has been through the rolling hills and prairies and wheatlands. They have their own special beauty just as the lakes and mountains and waterfalls do. Our last important stop was Grasslands National Park in southern Saskatchewan very close to the Montana border. It was too windy to do any hiking and the gray cloudy skies were a deterrent. We did see two black-tailed prairie dog colonies and lots of bison, some sitting on the shoulder of the road.

Prairie sunset

Other photos of interest:

  St. Patrick's Church in Medicine Hat

 Public Library - one of many we visited

  Fort Walsh National Historic Site

  Pooty's Poutine food truck

 Poutine with bacon - YUM!

 Another Saskatchewan sunset
 

Our time in Canada is ending. We spent 34 days and visited 9 national parks and met many friendly Canadians. It has been quite interesting to get their perspective on the upcoming presidential election and to read the local newspapers from time to time, but we won't go into any details about that in this blog.