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The next morning, bright and early and before breakfast,
John and I took a walk to the Apgar Ranger Station (the backcountry permits
office) to obtain our backcountry permit and to hopefully change our scheduled
hike. We got there early in hopes that it would be a quick and painless
process, especially since we had already picked out an alternative hike, in
the Belly River area. When we arrived, fifteen minutes before the office
opened, we were the fourth group in line -- I guess others had the same idea!
The backcountry permit office opened at 7:00 a.m., when the first of the
rangers arrived at the station. She unlocked the building and let us inside.
Then she turned on the computers and began assisting the first group.
Meanwhile, a second ranger arrived, and while he was trying to take care of
the second group...CRASH! The park's computers went down! They weren't able to
access any of the reservations, nor could they check the campsites for
availability. What should have been a stress-free morning became frustrating,
as we were forced to wait at the ranger station. It was nearly an hour before
the computers came back up again.
Our turn finally came, and the ranger gladly assisted us in picking another
hike when we told him that we simply didn't have the experience necessary to
deal with snow hazards. When we told him that we would like to do something in
the Belly River area, he suggested that we camp at Gable Creek the first night
(6.1 miles from the trailhead) then at Cosley Lake the second night (2.6 miles
from Gable Creek). That itinerary would give us plenty of time to go
exploring, especially on the second day. It was also a much easier hike than
the one we had reserved. The entire hike was mostly flat, except for an eight
hundred-foot elevation loss during the first 1.5 miles of the trail. That was
going to make the trail more enjoyable for both of us as we wouldn't have to
work so hard!
Before we could receive our permit, we were required to watch a video about
backcountry ethics in Glacier National Park. For example, backpackers are
asked to use the pit toilets rather than their campsites when nature calls, as
the smell of urine attracts animals. Backpackers must also hang their food in
the designated bear-bagging area, away from their campsites, and food must be
prepared in the communal food prep areas. Although John and I know how to
bear-bag, these rules were new to us; we weren't used to camping in such close
proximity to other people, much less sharing a common food prep area. So much
for being naked in the woods!
After receiving our backcountry permit, which would have to be attached to
John's backpack while hiking -- and on our tent while camping -- John and I
left to have breakfast. Then, we loaded up the car to begin our day's
adventure: our road trip to
Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta, Canada.
Our plan was to take the scenic route by traveling along the outskirts of the
park, along US 2 and US 89. Since we weren't in any sort of hurry to be
anywhere at any certain time, we were free to take our time, to stop at points
of interest or hike a short trail or even play naked on the side of the road.
The first leg of our journey took us along the edge of the Bob Marshall
Wilderness Area, in the Flathead National Forest -- the largest wilderness
area in the United States. Although we did not take the opportunity to
"christen" this wilderness area, we did take the time to admire its thick,
virgin forests and the lush green of its foliage. John also mentioned the
possibility of returning to Montana someday to do a hike in that wilderness
area. I wholeheartedly agreed, because I was already in love with Montana!
Upon reaching the town of East Glacier, we re-entered Glacier National Park
and continued our journey inside the park's boundaries, along SR 49, towards
Two Medicine Lake. This was going to be the trailhead for our backpacking
trip. Although we had cancelled that hike, we still wanted to visit the area,
just to say that we had been there. Despite the threat of rain, John suggested
that we do a short hike while we were there. He had read about the
Aster Falls
Trail, a 1.9 mile long hike that lead to a very pretty waterfall, and he
really wanted to do at least one hike in that area. I said, "Sure, why not?"
Although we didn't have our camelbacks or my hiking stick, it was a short
enough hike that we didn't need our gear.
The Aster Falls Trail was indeed a very easy trail, with only minor elevation
gains. It cut through a thick forest then leveled out as it traversed a
beautiful meadow that was filled with wildflowers of every color. At the end,
we came to a gushing, roaring white waterfall that sprayed us with droplets of
water as we climbed out onto the rocks to take pictures.
More little droplets of water began to fall on us from above as it began to
rain, so John and I took it as our cue to return to the trailhead. John
decided to make a contest out of it by seeing how fast we could make it back.
He challenged me to complete the trail in twenty minutes -- that would be at a
rate of about 5.7 miles an hour. Then, he started to run, leaving me behind. I
did not follow suit, but I did walk as fast as I could. Given that the trail
was mostly flat and downhill on the return trip, I did manage to complete the
1.9 mile long trail in twenty minutes! John was so proud of me.
The next leg of our adventure took us through some beautiful plains as we
headed towards St. Mary's. Unfortunately, we also got stuck behind slow moving
vehicles, bicyclists, and a road construction delay on the way. It was already
past noon by the time we arrived in St. Mary's. Since we had not yet had
lunch, we stopped at St. Mary's lodge and ate lunch at one of the restaurants
-- I believe it was the Snow Goose, or something like that. Their food was
good, and the waitress who served us was very nice...and she was interested in
skydiving. Upon noticing John's T-shirt, she began asking him questions about
where to go skydiving. The obvious answer: Skydive Lost Prairie in Marion, MT,
where their annual boogie was set to start the following weekend.
After lunch, we continued driving towards the Canadian border, along SR 17,
which would go right past the trailhead for the
Belly River Trail -- the
trailhead was just south of the customs station, at the border. We stopped
there to check out the trailhead before continuing on into Canada.
About halfway to Waterton National Park, John was feeling a little amorous, so
he stopped the car and suggested that we take a walk into the woods so that we
could fool around. We were met, however, by a disgusting obstacle: flies! Lots
of flies, buzzing all around us! The area was infested with them! I don't need
to say that the flies killed the mood, so we returned to the car and continued
driving in hopes of finding a more suitable locale down the road.
But it didn't happen that way, because there just weren't any areas where we
could be alone together without all of the flies. Once we entered Waterton
National Park, there were so many people around that we wouldn't have been
able to be alone together.
As we approached Waterton Township, where the famous Prince of Wales Hotel is
located, John and I ran into our second "animal jam". Curious as to what all
of the commotion was about, we pulled off to the side of the road and found
that there was a teenaged black bear out in the meadow, just minding his own
business as he went about looking for food. Wow! I thought. A real live bear!
It's not everyday that we get to see such things in Arizona, so naturally I
was quite fascinated. We watched him for a little while, until the traffic
began to clear. Then we climbed back into the car again and drove into town.
Waterton Township is a quaint little town bordering on Waterton Lakes.
Throughout the town are pretty little homes and cabins -- one of which is
owned by John's teammate Doug -- and wildlife strolls freely through the
streets, much to the amusement of the tourists. While passing through town, a
whole herd of goats ran across the road in front of us; and in front of the
Waterton Transportation Company was a very large buck, with a huge rack of
antlers on top of his head. Tourists came up to him to photograph him, but he
didn't seem to mind.
The town is also home to an enormous waterfall, which John and I stopped to
admire. While watching the waterfall, I found a friendly little chipmunk who
wouldn't sit still long enough for me to photograph him. We also stopped to
take pictures of the Prince of Wales Hotel, which looked a lot like a Swiss
chalet overlooking Waterton Lakes. Then, on the way out of town, we ran into
another "animal jam". On the opposite side of the highway, coming down the
hill, were a mother black bear and her three cubs! Staying close to the car,
in case the bears crossed the highway, I snapped several pictures of the bears
and watched them until they disappeared into the trees. It was a wonderful
sight!
During the return trip to the US, John and I searched almost frantically for a
place where we could "christen the country." Along the way, we found only one
side dirt road, off of the main highway, and we decided that it would have to
do. It wasn't the most romantic situation, but it worked.
Once we were back in the US, we decided to take the shortcut back to Apgar
Village, via the Going to the Sun Road. At that point, John turned the driving
duties over to me, giving me the opportunity to drive the entire length of
that famous road and practice my mountain driving skills. We also got to see a
part of the park that we hadn't seen yet; it was along this stretch of the road, east
of Logan Pass, where we could see Jackson Glacier and Grinnell Glacier, two of
the most popular attractions in the park.
After returning to Apgar Village, it was dinnertime, so John and I cleaned up
and walked over to the local restaurant to eat. Then, we spent the rest of the
evening preparing for our backpacking trip. We would be leaving the cabin no
later than five a.m. - meaning that we would have to be up at 3:30 a.m.! We
also had to make sure that all of our luggage was ready to go as we would be
checking out of our cabin the next morning. (After our backpacking trip, we
would be in a different cabin.) Then, after all of our stuff was ready to go,
we crawled into bed very early and drifted off to sleep.
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