More Glacier

Well after several attempts, I was not able to secure a second night at Fish Creek campsite. But I took the time to backtrack into the park again, and hiked the Trail of The Cedars nature trail, near Avalanche Creek. It was actually a very easy trail partially on boardwalk and through some old cedar trees, to an aquamarine gorge.

Avalanche Creek Trail was closed, again due to bear activity. Apparently there are a lot of grizzlies, and black bear throughout this region. I took several other turn offs to witness other falls and gorges, and spend some time at Lake McDonald, pulling out my sketch book, to capture yet another gorgeous view of this park. The day was pretty much overcast, and only reached the low 60's. I wore several layers and was just barely comfortable while sitting at this lake. I have enjoyed the cooler weather, although I watched others taking swims in the water. Which was crystal clear, like a sheet of glass. It's too bad other water ways, and lakes are so polluted by comparison. I guess you have to go pretty far north, and deep into the forest, to capture this level of pristine.

Well you can't accuse me of giving up, as I made yet another plea for a campsite at Fish Creek. They must know me now on a first name basis, and unfortunately I did not win the lottery tonight again. So it meant that I had to exit the park and find a different spot for camping. I was advised to take the north road, and traveled at least 30 minutes finding one driveway which opened up into what looked like a gravel pit. There were several fire pits, all around, and no one there. But I didn't like the ambiance, and it was Saturday night, so I couldn't help but wonder if it was going to be party central. I continued further down and saw another pull out with several cars. At first when I came in, I wasn't quite convinced that this was the right spot, as well, and went even further down the road until I saw signs that indicated private property, for the next 35 miles. Throughout this particular drive, I was still in Flathead National Forest. So I returned to the previous stop and decided to park in a field area off the road. In the meantime, I saw a woman with a container of huckleberries, and got out to say hello. Lynn, from Maryland, was quite friendly, and indicated a spot near the river. So before driving down, I walked there, and figured that it was doable. I carefully backed into the space, and I'm literally next to the river with a great view of the waters tickling by. It's near the boat launch and there were plenty of boaters going in and out, but once it got dark, it was dead silence. 

I enjoyed an evening happy hour, with Lynn, along with husband, Ted, and two others from Boulder, Colorado. Loretta, from Boulder, also studied ceramics, and lived in New Paltz, New York. Lynn and Ted went to RIT and knew Rochester well. She mentioned buying ceramic pieces at Corn Hill, and Clothesline. We laughed about those coincidences, and I told her to flip the pots over and check the signature. What a small world it would be if it turns out she owned one of my works, ha-ha! I gave her my postcard.

We also met a younger couple who drove from from New York City, who had a show dog with them. I'm not sure of the breed, but asked if they were in the famous Thanksgiving Day dog show. She mentioned that yes, the son of this dog was in the show, and they in fact briefly showed him on TV.

What a wonderful evening getting to know fascinating people, sitting next to this gorgeous view in northern Montana! At the end of the evening, the clouds were finally breaking up as the sun finally came out.
















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