Last Days At Glacier and Off to Canada

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

I didn't sleep last night so decided to just lay low for a day.  Ted got up in the morning before I got up and drove up to Jackson Glacier again.  He saw a herd of twelve elk at Two Dog Flats and a little further on he saw a black bear sow and her cub.  We guess the east side is where it is at for wildlife.

Elk at Two Dog Flats

That's a Bear in the Grass

Jackson Glacier

We sat outside and read until it got too warm and my i-Pad shut down.  I finished the I-cord on my sweater which now only needs buttons and button loops.  It was a beautiful, calm day and we should have been out on the lake but I just didn't have it in me.  In the evening, our neighbors from Utah invited us over to join their campfire and have s'mores.

Wednesday, June 25 2014

This will be our last blog for awhile.  We are going into Canada tomorrow and will have our internet turned off.

We woke up to a really windy morning.  We are sitting up on the side of a hill and are totally unprotected from the wind.  We were worried about the cover over the big slide that faces into the wind so closed that.  Thankfully, we had no problems with it and will probably leave it closed until after we move tomorrow.

We finally went to the visitors' center to see the film on the park.  We took pictures of the relief map showing how many lights representing glaciers there were in 1860 versus how many there are today.  The lights are a little blurry but it gives you an idea of how many have disappeared in the past hundred and fifty years.

Lights Represent Glaciers mid 1800s

Lights Represent Glaciers Now

After lunch, we drove to the end of the road that is open and I got a better view of Jackson Glacier.  We walked a short path from one parking lot to another seeing another nice piece of stonework along the way.  When we came back up to the road a woman asked if we had seen anything interesting.  We were where we had seen the avalanche mess a few days ago so I pointed it out to her.  A man standing nearby said the avalanche had occurred just last week after the big snow storm.  He said that there were over twenty avalanches that had affected the road, some with major damage, and that is why it was not opened yet.

A Stream Runs Through This Under the Road 

Green Rocks Help Erosion From Stream

We drove down to St. Mary Falls Shuttle Stop and took the 1.2 mile hike to see the falls. There were so many different types of wildflowers along the way that I had to keep stopping to take their pictures.  For part of the way, we could see the end of St. Mary Lake and after that, the St. Mary River.  It was a beautiful hike on a beautiful day with lots of other people on the trail.  

Moss Covered Falls Beside Trail

Indian Paintbrush

St. Mary Lake From Trail

At St. Mary Falls

St. Mary Falls

View From Bridge at St. Mary Falls

A young man that we met on the trail told us we had to continue on and see the other two falls that weren't far beyond the first falls.  Up a steep path but not too far was another spectacular falls where we stopped to take pictures.  I sat there in the mist from the falls while Ted walked up the trail a little farther to see the third falls which was just a narrow gorge in the rocks.  What we didn't find and should have gone another half mile to see was Virginia Falls which I took a photo of from across the lake a few days before.  I'm pretty sure that was the fall the guy was telling us was so wonderful.  Oh well, next time.

Second Falls

Second Falls Looking Down 

Great Place to Rest at Second Falls 

Third Falls

When we got back to the car, we drove to Sunrift Gorge Pullout.  Stairs lead up a path a couple hundred feet to a view of a really narrow gorge with a swift stream flowing out of it.  On the other side of the bridge and downhill from the gorge was a .3 mile steep trail leading to Baring Falls.  I was sweaty and tired but Ted had to do it so I sat by the stream for awhile and he went down the trail.  He was red faced from the climb when he returned.

Sunrift Gorge

Downstream from Gorge Taken From Roadway

Viewing Area Below Roadway

Bridge and Walkway

Baring Falls

Back at the motorhome, we showered, had a beer and went out of the park for gas and something to eat.  We took Kathy's advice and went to Park Cafe where we shared nachos and both had a piece of huckleberry pie.  The pie cost way more than the dinner but was really good ($9.95 for ala mode, $6.95 plain...pie prices not listed on menu).  The place is under new management this year so probably much different from when Kathy and Mary Lou were here.