Today’s blog post is dedicated to our moms and dad, who faithfully read our travel journal every day! We’re glad you are with us, even though we are miles apart!
This morning we were once again up at the crack of dawn so that we could get a jump on the day. Of course, there were those necessities we had to take care of before we hit the open road!
It didn’t take us long today to reach our destination: Glacier National Park. Our first stop was the Visitor’s Center, where we learned that we could not drive our RV to the east side of the park, like we had planned. The roads became too steep and narrow for an RV… so Plan B, drive as far as we could, hope we can find a parking spot and take a shuttle to see the sights we hoped to see. The doggies are getting used to us leaving them safely behind in the RV, although this sign gave us some concern about their safety today.
The sights we saw were certainly spectacular!
Like nothing like we’ve ever seen…and worth bearing through the cold temperatures! Up at Logan Pass, it was in the low 40’s.
Brrrrrrr! (Sandy did not pack right!! I wrongly assumed that, in the month of August, I needed mostly summer clothes. So, if you wondering if I just really love my beige coat or if I have limited options, it is the latter…although I do love my CAbi jacket. Isn’t it cute and practical?)
We learned from our shuttle driver that, centuries ago, Glacier National Park had more than 150 glaciers. Now, there are only 25 left, and eventually they will all be gone. So glad, we got to visit before they are extinct. So much to see…one day really doesn’t do it justice. But we have learned a lot in the short time we were here. One interesting fact is that the workers who are employed by the national parks (same thing at Yellowstone and Glacier National) are here for short term contracts. So people from all over the country and the world, sign up for 3-4 month contracts, so they can enjoy hiking/camping in these world renowned locations, and then they move on to their next temporary gig. Sort of a vagabond lifestyle. So these are just free-spirited people in search of adventure…working as waiters/shuttle drivers afford them these opportunities. We enjoyed getting to know these people and learning about their lifestyles.
After our day at Glacier, we learned we had to backtrack to the entrance we came in this morning and drive around the park to reach our home for the night in St. Mary, Montana. Our RV couldn’t drive a more direct route because of the steep/narrow terrain, so we stopped for linner/dunch at the Glacier Grill outside the park entrance and drove through the indian reservation of Browning, and made our way to our ultimate destination, St. Mary KOA RV park. At this point in the day, we’re typically anxious to end our day, and this drive made it a little challenging… at least 10 miles of our drive was on a dirt road under construction. Ugh!! I gotta hand it to my hubby, who is an expert driver. He has not been unraveled by challenges like this and when a cute little calf decided to cross the road right in front of us, Greg handled the obstacle with great aplomb and skill. (Wish I had a picture to show you the cute little calf who waited for us to stop, kicked up his heels then trotted across the street, as if he had a crossing guard giving him the go-ahead.)
We are settled in and none to soon…the sky promises a fabulous light show!! Front row seat to see the power of mother nature!
Tomorrow we leave the U.S (for a week) and head for Canada! Can’t wait!!
Navigating "New" Normals 