This is the [Ranger] Life!

The High Way to Denali

2011-08-02T19:43:00.000-06:00

My trip on the Denali Highway was almost a separate trip than actually going to Denali. I learned a lot about the features that are left over after a glacier recedes, got to spend quality time with my SCA Interpreters, and enjoyed an almost surreal experience engaging with the landscape and it's features. Here follows the pictures of two days across the Denali Highway, in the great Interior of Alaska.

Some of the most beautiful things are just out our backdoor: Mt. Blackburn and the Kennicott Valley

Izzy and Grace with our trusty steed on the Denali Hwy.

Amazing encounters! Pete & his friend biking across the Denali Hwy, our paths cross! Safe travels, sir!

Mountains, Kettle Ponds and Fireweed

Monk's Hood, growing wild!

And grass grows in between. Tangle Lake

Delphinium, I usually see this growing in my Mother's garden!

Must be a gull's feather, along the shore of Tangle Lake.

Pieces of the Alaska Range Mountains, along Tangle Lake.

The Alaska Range from the Denali Hwy:

Amazing reflection and light. Just add a few glaciers and it's complete!

(Mt. Hayes & Maclaren Glacier on the left, Eureka Glacier to the right)

More Kettle Ponds, water features that are left over after a glacier has vacated the area.

According to Interpretive signs, they are blocks of slower melting ice that formed depressions called kettle holes or lakes.

Mt. Hayes, Maclaren Glacier, feeding Maclaren River down below.

Grace cooking dinner at our little pull-off campsite.

Moose track found in our "campsite."

Izzy and Grace enjoying the lovely Alaskan air! Is dinner ready yet?

Beer, an Alaskan sunset, and a Crazy Creek chair....can't get much better.

Maclaren Summit (2nd highest highway pass in Alaska, 4,086 ft)

More Mt. Hayes (13,382 ft.)!

Glamourous Maclaren River!

The scene was so breathtaking, all three of us sketched the scene and sat quietly on the rim.

Grand view of the Maclaren River and the Alaska Range.

Looks tasty, eh?

I really should look these up, but I'm being lazy. Cutiest tiny things, though!

I must have taken 30 of these pictures...but it was worth it! Maclaren River.

Our tent site & view.

The north Alaskan sun sets, well, not quite, at 11:30pm.

The sun sinks low, but it's never quite dark. This is around 2am.

And the sun rises from the east! Jump for joy, another beautiful day in Alaska!

The Milepost mentions that carbon dating aged this mud cliff at 10,000 years old! Thanks glaciers!

Driving to heaven, at milepost 45.1 on the Denali Hwy.

Near Clearwater Creek (which we filtered amazing water from!), we drove over Eskers, a ridge made of silt, sand, gravel, and boulders carried by a stream beneath a glacier. According to the Milepost, these are some of the best examples in North America!

Susitna River flowing in the valley below, moon above.

A marmot eating something: ground squirrel or snowshoe hare.

Susitna River and bridge, a combination multiple span and deck truss, 1,036 feet long. To the right, up trail are mining claims...discovered in 1903, closed in 1995, producing 495,000 ounces of gold!

Looking northwest on the Susitna River Bridge.

Sweet views of the Alaska Range! Where are those moose?

More and more Mountains!

Still no moose at these lakes....

West Fork and Susitna Glaciers...obviously receding alot back into the mountains!

Fireweed!

Izzy and Grace picking Blueberries

Fresh Wild Blueberries

Still on the stem, come and get me!

More beautiful view, lakes and mountain

Izzy and Grace: Are we in Denali yet?

Training Wheels At Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve

2011-06-15T14:44:00.000-06:00

From May 9th to May 20th was Interpretative Training at Wrangell St. Elias National Park and Preserve. Below is a photo journal of those days! Enjoy!

Loess flying around on the Copper River.

Copper River

Ice breaking up along the Copper River.

Willows sprouting

Mt. Sanford

The land ethic of local Slana residents, nicely said.

Our cabin with a view at Huck Hobbit's,

our training base camp.

Beautiful interior of our cabin.

The front porch of our cabin.

Willows at sunset.

Huck Hobbit's main house, the Hobbs family homesteaded here during the last and final homesteading in the US. (1980's)

Their sunroom.

Great idea for a greenhouse, super warm on a cold day!

Sheds and harvested racks.

Wolves and various other pelts...all a subsistence way of life. They make goods and earn their living off the land.

The Alaska Range at sunset.

A training hike down to the Copper River from the Slana Ranger Station...lots of snow still on the river basin.

Keeping warm on a cool, sunny day.

(L to R: Dan, Kristi and Angela)

I had just missed a herd of caribou cross this opening,

right in front of our cabin!

The Rock N Roll homestead, a nearby abandoned homestead. Used to be housed by biker hippies.

The sign for their greenhouse,

they grew more than just house plants!

Nice shot of skull and lure.

Creeks edge, salmon make it all the way up here from the ocean!

Steve Hobbs, homesteader and owner, playing a few tunes.

More antlers on their shed.

Nice purple and pink sunset.

It snowed on the Nabesna Road, and then James locked the keys in the car...oops!

So these guys build a dirty snowman!

(L to R: Grace, Caren, Lindsay, Izzy and Dan)

Travelin in Alaska always lends great photo opps!

Biking up to Lake Louise (in the distance).

About 32 miles roundtrip, here's Lake Louise!

Great road bike trip with Willa!

Training Week 2. Apparently a lot of people ask about the Alaska Pipeline...so here's an interpretive sign to describe it.

The Interp Convoy! Holy smokes that's a lot of cars!

Ms. Moose at Chitina Ranger Station.

A stop on the confluence of the Copper and Chitina Rivers, the local spot of grabbin' salmon as they swim upstream.

The locals use fishwheels to catch the salmon.

Since the water flows down and the fish swim up,

you have to use these to grab em!

River rock.

Copper River with the McCarthy Road beginning just after that bridge.

Lots of local fishwheels.

When they grab the fish, it swings up and dumps them into a bin on the side. Then they are harvested.

Ms. Black Bear on the road. There was a small yearling, too.

Momma bear running up hill...I have a good lense here,

I was NOT that close.

Kennecott Mill Concentration building.

Bridge crossing National Creek

View of the Kennicott Glacier

from the top of the Mill building.

The northern part of Kennecott: Mechanical building, power plant, transformer building, cottages.

The shaker tables inside the Mill Concentration Plant. The limestone shook off the tables in one direction and the copper (being heavier) went another direction.

The finely ground copper and limestone powder. It would then be sent to the Leaching Plant to separate the limestone from the copper, chemically with ammonia.

Kickin' back at Erica's house.

Classy Alaskan cooking: Salmon, Caribou sausage (or Reindeer, however you want to put it), beans, and home-brewed spruce-tip beer (not pictured, but being consumed)! Thanks Erica!

Kennecott looking south

Root Glacier Trail.

The Root Glacier comes in from the right to meet up with pieces of the Kennicott Glacier (to the left of the little hill).

As it pinches Donoho peak, and the edges, it drops a lot of gravel on top as it travels...therefore, that is the glacier in the left corner, too!

Interp folks walking on Root Glacier, in the middle ground.

Interp folks on Root Glacier. It can be pretty slippery.

Anemone

Hmmm, can't remember what this is, but it's cute. Only about an inch long.

McCarthy townsite, looking west.

McCarthy main street, looking north.

The Stairway Icefall! Amazing! Kennicott Glacier in the foreground (grey/brown).

Kennecott townsite is located on the right slope.

Again, Kennecott townsite is located on the slope straight ahead, and the Icefall is just barely visible on the left.

Great views!

Trip North to Alaska!

2011-05-16T00:58:00.002-06:00

Trip North

April 18, 2011 to April 22, 2011

I was lucky to spend an amazing transformation from the lower 48 (The "Outside"), to Alaska (The Last Frontier) with my sweet boyfriend, Dub. We left from St. Mary, Montana and traveled to Glennallen, Alaska. Here follows the transformation and journey in pictures. Thanks Dub for hangin' in there with me while we traveled 2,121 miles, and five days! We stopped in the following places along the way:

Edmonton, Alberta

Fort Nelson, British Columbia

Watson Lake, Yukon Territory

Haines Junction, Yukon Territory

Arriving in Glennallen, Alaska

Enjoy!

My Subbie all loaded down! A little snow and ice added for extra decoration! Including icicles from the kayak.

Alberta farms: colorful and complete

Mile "0" of the Alaska Highway in Dawson Creek!

Wide open road.

Little more mountains.

Northern Rockies.

Cute little Caribou guy (or girl?)

Mountains, Mountains, Mountains!

Amazing alluvial fan.

Bison live naturally in the northern rockies, so cool!

Reaching for the Sky!

Liard Hot Springs! Too cool!

Cooking dinner outside our digs for the night: The Air Force Lodge, and old barracks, in Watson Lake, Yukon Territory

Out back at the Air Force Lodge

Watson Lake's claim to fame in "The Milepost" travel guide to the Alaska Highway. I saw a "Bigfork, Montana" sign!

River's edge

Lunch in Whitehorse...gravy for my fries and all!

Haines Junction view from our hotel.

Haines Junction, Yukon Territory: A Beautiful Place

Dall Sheep in Kluane (Clue-aw-nee) Natinal Park & Reserve (part of our World Heritage Site, with Wrangell-St. Elias NP and Preserve)

Kluane Lake shore

Nice!

Finally!

Caribou crossing the road in the Mentasta Mountains. They migrate from Wrangell-St. Elias NP and Preserve north to calving grounds during the summer.

My daily skyline: L to R: Mount Sanford, Mount Drum, and Mount Wrangell

A good description of the peaks

Dub at Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve entrance sign.

We made it!

I promise I'll try to update some pictures every once in a while. I will be a bit out of touch for the summer: limited internet and phone coverage, so if you don't get ahold of me, just have some patience.

Happy Summer (almost)!!!

A Marathon Race to the Bahamas!

2011-02-21T03:30:00.000-07:00

February 14th, 2011

Happy Valentine’s Day!

We have continued our journey through the Keys. We stayed 2 nights at the Marquesas and enjoyed it! Saw some sea turtles, dolphins and incredible water as we sailed and motored our way to the first night’s stop. An amazing way to spend a 29th birthday! Almost 18 hours of sailing! Beautiful, but long! We spent the 2nd night near the inlet to the middle of the Marquesas. We motored in with the dinghy and saw another power boat in there. A pelican came RIGHT up to us...begging for scraps. We only took pictures of the horribly habituated bird.

We made it back to Key West and enjoyed a few more nights. Jay took us out (with another couple) to Sand Key to snorkel and fish. Really cool stuff! Sharks, lots of Parrotfish and tons of other ones I don’t know. Stayed for a couple more nights and then left out on the 8th to Bahia Honda State Park. Amazing place with perfect views, water and beach! We spent a day getting to know the park, especially the beach.

On the 9th we packed up and went out to Looe Reef to go snorkeling. We ended up lobstering more than viewing. HUGE Baracudas, the size of my calve. Shark and lots of schools of fish. Beautiful, protected place. We took 2 lobsters from near by and motored up to Marathon. We came in at sunset and stole a mooring ball. Not supposed to, but I think it was fine. We grilled 2 lobsters and had it with angel hair and alfredo sauce! An amazing moment. We’ve been here now for 5 days (Marathon, FL). The winds came and went. 20-30 mph winds were forecasted and we barely rocked. We did swing a bit, but it was a GREAT anchorage and harbor. Everything at the marina was set up for cruisers and boaters. The water spouts on the seawall so you don’t have to lift your water cans. A library, TV rooms, internet, showers and bathroom included with your dinghy fee, laundry and even a goody bag! Every morning they had a radio channel devoted to cruisers, the cruisers net. They welcomed new folks, let people ask for help, had stuff for sale, and even a daily trivia question or two ! All great stuff. Laid back town, relatively small, but very friendly, LOTS of boaters.

We spent today renting a car and traveling to Key West. We had to get a “fast title.” Their office is the only one that does it in the Keys. So we got a VW Jetta with a sunroof and drove down in the nick of time. Got a new title and our boat registered. What a relief. We lost our first title in the Montana mail!? We had Willi, the previous owner get another copy and sent it to us. That is our ticket into the Bahamas. We’re looking at traveling up towards Long Key or Islamorada. Then to Key Largo. We’re hoping to jump out to the Bimini Islands and then around the Bahamas a bit. Here we come!!!! Passports ready!

Great Blue Heron in the mudflats at Marquesa Keys

Crazy Habituated Brown Pelican

Mangroves Sprouting anew

Horseshoe Crab, long gone from it's shell

Nice beach flower, not sure the species yet

Relaxing at Marquesa Keys as the sun goes down

Dub fishing off of Jay's boat, headed for Sand Key Reef

Sand Key Reef Light, Awesome snorkel!

Sunset at Bahia Honda State Park

Sunrise at Bahia Honda State Park

Our boat, Jay's boat, and Bahia Honda State Park (US 1 and our boat to the left)

Amazing beach!

Looe Reef

Hand caught lobster dinner at Marathon

Ah, delight!

Our backyard at Marathon

348 Months Down, Many More Ahead

2011-02-21T03:24:00.000-07:00

February 1, 2011

Me, on my day of birth.

Sitting here in the Dry Tortugas, on the Eve of my 29th birthday. Got to thinking about some visitors I saw today. A couple ladies in their 70’s, complaining about how the sand was different than their sand...how it hurt. I couldn’t help but laugh because it never fails for someone to be in paradise and find a fault. I know I can do that sometimes and that’s why I’m vowing to be more positive and (somewhat) risk taking in the future. It’s not like I’m going to do crazy things...its just that I’m going to think twice about a denial to do something. I want to do as much as I can to experience as much as I can in this lifetime. I may be young, but it doesn’t mean I have to wait until retirement years to do what I want!

The reason they call it the Tortugas!

We’re planning on heading out tomorrow morning. Winds will be a bit against us, but I think we can manage. Might spend two nights at the Marquesa Keys, might not. We’ll see how the first night treats us. I’ll be spending my 29th birthday sailing into an east wind. Cheers to that!

A Pelican that wouldn't leave us alone, at sundown.

Dub watching the sun fade.

The beautiful pastels of the sea.

Sunset on my 29th birthday, well worth the wait!

Rock and Water - The Dry Tortugas

2011-02-21T03:23:00.000-07:00

January 30th, 2011

We’ve enjoyed Key West for several days now...its starting to add up, 13 nights. We headed out from Key West yesterday morning at about 9 a.m. We went out the night before to a few bars with Vashe, our Czech friend. He’s a sailor too! Showed us his boat that is a work in progress--amazing beautiful boat. It will be perfect when he’s done. Hope we get to see it! We’ve been re-supplying and stocking, in preparation for the Dry Tortugas. Got more canned foods, few perishables. and eventually more beer and ice. Restocked - Check!

There’s been so many days here at Key West that I can’t remember all of them. We’ve spent several days on the boat, with no motor on our dinghy to travel ashore. We also spent several days dealing with high winds. Since our new anchor (with lots of heavy chain) we’ve felt very comfortable with the higher winds...although you can never really feel comfortable with a CRAZY rocking boat! Most uncomfortable to sleep on! Anywho. We’ve restocked, made a few friends and now is the time to move on to the Dry Tortugas. So we did.

We left out, 9 a.m., and traveled to Marquesa Keys. Good anchorage on the east side. Scenic sunset and grilled out with hotdogs! Yep. Hotdogs! We’re goin’ gourmet! Went to bed at 8 p.m. and then woke up at 4 a.m. This morning we were lucky to have wind and raised the sails. Got movin’ by 4:45 a.m. Took us ALL day at 4 knots. Made it into the Dry Tortugas anchorage at sundown (6 somethin’). The entry was tricky, a new channel was open and one part of it was only about 8 feet in depth and probably 75 feet wide. It felt very tight and shallow, but we made it. Anchored out--here we are to listen to the Terns squawking outside and watching the sun set and rise.

Sunset at Marquesa Keys, trip out

300 degrees, the number I stared at the WHOLE way out to the Tortugas!

Arriving at Sundown.

Black Skimmer

First Night - Sunset

Our boat anchored (second from right)

Brown Pelican

Fort Jefferson Lighthouse

Magnificent Frigatebirds

Royal Tern

Lots of Magnificent Frigatebirds!

View from inside the Fort, looking out at the moat.

Inside the Fort

Amazing masonry!

Dub looking out on the blue water

Lincoln assassination conspirator, and a man who helped with doctoring folks as a prisoner here.

Loggerhead Key dock

Ancient coral beds, Loggerhead Key

Little shell guys!

Our friend, Jay, at the boat house, Loggerhead Key

Little hermit crab

Loggerhead Key Lighthouse

Sunset - Second night

Sunset - Third night

Southernmost Point Continental U.S.A.

2011-01-24T16:05:00.000-07:00

January 19th, 2011

We made it to Key West! We found (somewhat) favorable weather and started off at about 7am on Saturday morning (1/15), with winds out of the NNE - great to push us south! Days before, I was trying not to think about the trip too much. That way I wouldn’t get nervous about the long trip. It was an 80 mile trip total, plus some motoring up and down channels on each end of the trip. At first everything seemed great, smooth sailing, wind at our backs (and in reality is was ok)...but then the wind died back. We found ourselves going back east at a very slow rate. Eventually we were almost standing still. One o’clock and the heat of the day...no wind. a.) it’s hot. b.) we weren’t getting anywhere and c.) it was wasting our time. The forecast didn’t call for “light and variable” winds, they called for 12-15 knots. So we swindled as much air as we could and made our way slowly. We even did a few 360’s because the wind just didn’t cooperate.

Dolphins saying Hello!

More dolphins!

Sunset over the Gulf, no land in sight!

Nothin' but Beauty!

Overall, it was good. No major problems, just long: 37 hours total. Dub brought us in to the Northwest Channel cruising along. Our afternoon consisted of cruising along at about 5 knots...even getting up into the 7 knot range. It kinda scared me because it makes me nervous when we lean over because of the speed (and sails pulling us). It’s just hard to believe the boat will stay upright, but Dub assured me: it’s made for this, there’s 6,800 pounds in the keel of the boat and that should keep us upright. I believe him, but’s its crazy. It’s like your instincts tell you you’re leaning over too far, but you learn that sailboats are all about leaning (and rocking for that matter).

So, we came in and anchored in the dark. We woke up to LOTS of sailboats. Within the vicinity, probably 50 sailboats...in the whole area, probably 100 total. We’re anchored by Wisteria Island, which is just west from Key West proper. It’s quite the paddle, too. About 1.1 miles from our location. We’ve ordered a motor for our dinghy, so we’re prepared for things like this. It will be great for exploring the different places we go. We also ordered 2 Crazy Creek chairs (camping chairs) for lounging about. I can’t wait! We’ve wanted these self-supporting chairs for a while. It’s going to give us a portable, small option for sitting and will be a bit cushioned! We also ordered a dozen Clif bars for extra survival food, just in case.

Lately we’ve been fine tuning our Luxury Yacht (ha!). We found curtains and sheets at a thrift store. The curtains are flowery and Dub’s not crazy about them, but he’s ok with the shade they provide. The sheets are necessary because its warmer lately. We found a twin set of SpongeBob Squarepants. Funny stuff and somehow perfect. We also seem to have a routine down for nights, days and the time in between. Dinners are gaining more variety due to some canned goods. Water and electricity usage is getting fine tuned. I think we’re getting the hang of it, but there’s still some new things.

Some of the views from our boat.

We weathered our first storm. On January 18th we paddled ashore to get ice. We really needed it. It was over a mile and I have to say, not too bad. I wasn’t sore at all. Just hot and sweaty. We got lunch at the Conch Republic Seafood Company-- fish tacos, my new fav! Our bartender gave us two free drinks and we made a new friend. He wants to call us and meet up and talk boats. He has a sailboat on a dry dock and wants to chat about it, I guess. He’s Czech and seemed very nice. We’re supposed to get a call tomorrow and hang out.

Anywho, we paddled back out and enjoyed the steamy day. About 4:30pm we started to prepare for a storm. We set a second anchor JUST in time. As Dub let go of the rode, the wind blew us and the front came upon us. Wind and rain blowing sideways. We barely got inside before it rained on us. About an hour of rain, wind, waves while we watched our movement at the windows. It rocked us a bit at first, but didn’t seem too bad. It moved through pretty fast. We survived!

Sunsets are worth gold!

Today we were awaken at 4 am to some rocking of the boat. We somehow got our rode (anchor rope) wrapped around our keel (the bottom of the boat). We were only able to rock a 20 degree distance and eventually our anchor rope got cut by the boat and movement. We were about to try moving the boat, when we noticed we were free. We dropped the motor and got the other anchor out. We set it and I stayed up reading for a bit, just to make sure it was set. It was. I went back to bed at the ripe hour of 7am. Slept til 8:30am. Sind then we realized the tide and current was moving us around. We went swimming off the boat and we were practically swept away. We had to hold onto the dingy just to stay by the boat. So we researched and found out you can send a weight down the rode, that will hold down the rope, even if you swing around it. Dub put a small anchor down twenty feet to weigh down the rope. We’re going tonnight to get a half gallon of sand to add to the weight. This will hopefully help us out. We’re also going to get a new anchor and rode. Chain works best, but rope is cheaper. We’re going to splurge and get about 40 feet of chain. The chain lays down better and will help hold the anchor in place better (with its weight).

It's all about the Sunsets, here at Key West!

And the moon rises, too!

Overall, we’re fine tuning and cleaning up a bit. We’ve enjoyed a few sunsets from the best unobstructed view in the Keys! People are out here paying for this and we live here! For now.

Full Moon at our Anchorage,

Meet our neighbors.

Generosity

2011-01-24T15:34:00.000-07:00

January 13th, 2011

Generosity

I guess it’s time to catch up again. We’ve spent a fair amount of time anchored and not as much sailing. It’s ok by me, but I start to feel a bit lazy by day three of being JUST on the boat anchored. We enjoyed our time at Cape Coral.

Sunset at Cape Coral, fit with a person on an Ultralight.

A lovely lady name Christa (who worked at the marina) hooked us up with a ride to town to get laundry done and provisions. It was nice to see the hospitality. She and her sister were German...and so continues the trail of encounters with Germans. We’ve run into several German folks along the way (and they’ve always helped us out). No real understanding of why we meet so many Germans, but oh well. Dub wants to get a German phrase book. I think not. We’ll be fine with a few english words and gestures. While we stayed at Glover Bight we went ashore to have dinner and ended up taking a picture for some German folks. Dub gave them a slice of his pizza and we got a free round of drinks! It was very nice of them.

The Resort at Marina Village,

the view from our anchorage at Cape Coral.

We docked our dinghy a few times and walked into town or went to the Nauti Mermaid, the dockside bar. So much walking on cement really does a number on your feet and knees. It’s crazy how I can hike for 20 plus miles, but 6 miles on the concrete is killer! We were pleasantly spending time on the boat and also on land. We spent a full week anchored because a front came through with crazy winds. It’s disappointing to just sit, but it can be a fun way to be lazy and get to know the area. We went to the public library a few times and got pizza at a great italian place. They also had a HUGE italian market...lots of deli and pre-packaged type stuff. Bunches of cheeses, wine, veggies, bakery and general grocery stuff. It was neat, but we didn’t really need anything at the time. Great food, though.

On Saturday, January 8th, we gassed up the boat, got water and headed for the sea! There was a small craft advisory until 5pm and we waited it out. We watched the sunset over Sanibel Island and motored out to the Gulf through San Carlos Pass. Following the navigational markers, we finally hit the last one around 8pm. From here we shot an azimuth on the compass and headed towards Big Marco Pass, near Marco Island. It took us until 6:30am to get there (about 35 nautical miles). There were some slow moments when the sails were luff and we weren’t getting much speed. Sometimes those marine weather forecasts are a bunch of crap! There was supposed to be 10-15 knot winds. It was more like 5 knots. You get what you get, I guess. We came into Capri Pass (which is right by Big Marco Pass), followed markers around to the Marco River Marina. Got some gas and anchored. We were a little worn out to say the least. It’s never a good idea to drink a bunch the night before you plan on sailing all night. I guess we got carried away.

Now we’ve been here for five days and I have to say, Marco Island has impressed me a bit. Being an island (something like 4 miles by 6 miles), it seems everything is pretty close. We went out on Sunday to get lunch and a Tiki place was right next door. On Monday we went looking for general things like grocery stores, liquor store, library, public transportation, etc. It was all pretty close. Much easier than Cape Coral where we anchored last. That was comforting.

Lots of fishing Pelicans at sunset near our anchorage.

By Wednesday we got a feel for the place and got enough opinions of the island that we found a good restaurant/bar. The Sand Bar. We split a blackened fish sandwich and enjoyed some peel & eat shrimp! Yummy! It was destined to be a good night with a seafood meal like that! And we met some folks playing pool, chatted with some ladies from Illinois and they bought us a beer-- Again a good sign of the place and it’s good times. We played Wii tennis, had some brews, and chatted with our new friends Ron and Lena. They offered a place to shower and a bed to sleep in...we decided to take ‘em up on it. All the generosities of good people-We’ll say only good things about the Sand Bar and the folks there!

Pink Sunset at Marco Island where we were anchored.

Last night we stayed at Ron and Lena’s place, enjoying good company, great pasta, beer and a nice warm shower. We really appreciated it! It was great because there was a cold front coming in and 30’s were in order, not to mention crazy winds. Most of all it was nice to meet genuine people and enjoy the night on land. Now we’re back on the boat, hoping for some good weather to push us towards the Keys. Hoping we’ll get out on the seas when the time is just right. We’ll be waiting and watching.

Sunset at Marco River Marina, Marco Island, FL

A New and Beautiful Year

2011-01-03T18:49:00.000-07:00

January 2, 2011!

Another year has passed by... Going to have to get used to writing 2011...with only 1 zero, it’s hard to remember. Guess I’ll have to practice, got a whole year to get it right. We stayed (camped) at Cayo Costa State Park for a night. We went to bed at, shit, 7:30pm, or something. We read and enjoyed the white sand beach and then made dinner. Our neighbor mistook poison ivy for some other vine...oops, Ha! We HAD to tell him. The couple thought that poison ivy had three leaves that all came out of the same petiole. Nope, not really. They were greasy looking leaves, too. She even iPhoned it. It was poison ivy, as declared by the iPhone Gods. He went and washed up and neglected to put away the rope that was still wrapped around the poison ivy. Poor guy. Unfortunately, this was day one of a four day trip. Hope, for his sake, that he’s ok. We enjoyed the time on land.

We then headed for Cabbage Key to stay for two nights. First night was good, docked next to another sailboat with a couple in their late 50’s early 60’s. Good conversation. They stole all the hot water in the shower, though...terds.

Cabbage Key Restaurant & Docks, simple Cracker style house-turned restaurant.

We spent New Years Eve on the boat, cleaning up a bit, walking around the key, getting a “Cheeseburger in Paradise,” and generally being lazy. It felt good. Sun was warm, people watching was good, and we were at awe with the other boats and the people coming and going. Expensive boats, (probably) snooty people, and some funny stuff. We stayed on board until about 6:30pm and then mingled with some other folks. It was like each Captain had to ask about the others’ boat. One of the guys we talked to was an employee for USGS, Dan. He had paddled by all the docks earlier and I said, “Nice Kayak!” He was in a boat that looked just like my Mom’s grey kayak. He mentioned later that he saw our boat and thought... “hum, they’re different...” and he looked forward to meeting us. Apparently in a line of fancy boats, when you see our 1974 Catalina, that’s what you think. We when to dinner and had a filet mignon and crab with shrimp bisque and salad. All topped off with their famous recipe (right...) of Key Lime pie for dessert. Great stuff. A DJ helped us dance the night away. He also decided to nap for a bit, after the huge meal and woke up just in time for the Ball Drop in Time Square. We went back up to the restaurant and had champaign and danced a bit. We met up with Dan and his wife, Liesel, a lovely German woman. We stayed up til 2:30am chatting. I gleaned a few things:

Post cards are good to send out as a small gesture and to inspire folks. (I used to do this all the time, about 5 years ago, but have since lost the habit)
We are inspiring to other people just in our endeavor and spirit. (Just by doing this and being here, talking to people, it’s inspiring to folks to live their dreams or something)

Sunset at Cabbage Key on New Years Eve, looking east.

Key Lime Pie and Corona with Lime, Deeeeelish!

Great Egret that sat right next to our sailboat on the dock.

Great Egret...Up close and personal.

Brown Pelican chillin' on the water

Catchin' the wind. Osprey sail too!

We had a great time and left out on New Years Day. The wind was against us a bit (coming from the south). We got to Captiva Island and set anchor by a channel. A few waves and it was a bit choppy with passers-by, but over all it was a good spot once night fall came on.

Our next day (today) was pretty good. We hit some smooth sailing, but the ICW (Intra Coastal Waterway) was really busy with boats and lots of people out on a Sunday. It kicked our asses with the waves and totally killed our momentum (us only having a 9 horsepower motor, and barely gassing it to save on gas). Pisses me off how fast people go! Anywho...We made our way to the end (on the Gulf side) of the ICW and the beginning of the Okechobee Waterway. Which has a bunch of locks to help folks cut across Florida. I read later that the last section of the ICW was called the “Miserable Mile” which was actually 5 nautical miles long, because it was a very tight squeeze, with lots of traffic, and very shallow on either side of the channel. We hit some BIG waves (wake) from huge yachts and speed racers.

We’re going to stay a few nights at Glover’s Blight, a cool little area surrounded on 2 sides by Mangroves, one side by a marina and large resort, and one side by a channel that leads out. It’s super fancy and we’re sitting here listening to crickets and live music from the restaurant. Should be a good anchoring.

We’ve got chores to do tomorrow: laundry, charge computers, phones, etc. and head for the post office to pick up our generator. Hopefully this will solve some of our electrical/energy issues. We’ve run low, sometimes, on juice to run our lights and our electronics. It’s time to change that.

I’ve felt pretty tired after these sunny days (in the 70’s). The sun feel hotter and probably is. I feel constantly sunburnt or perhaps windburnt. I’m learning everyday that I have new sore muscles. The constant work of pulling ropes, pulling the motor or working it, and most of all, general balance! It’s totally kicking me in the butt! I definitely feel sore in some place, everyday. It’s a good feeling because I don’t get out onto land to stretch my legs or exercise much, no hiking lately. Although, anchoring and going ashore for errands...that’s hiking. That’s what we’ll be doing tomorrow. We’re gonna kick back tonight and watch The Wire (TV show on HBO), and then get up early to run around. Until next time...Good night.

All Nighter

2011-01-03T18:14:00.000-07:00

December 29, 2010

Can’t believe 2010 is almost over! Glacier’s Centennial year! Been sailing (living aboard for 15 days...17 days of sleeping on it. Challenges seem to come and go, but they’re still remembered each time I start a new day. I’m having issues remembering that I CAN do this. In fact, I have! I get nervous when the boat gets going fast. It’s like you have control of a train and if you let go, there could be a wreck or it could just run out of steam.

Haven’t had any major set backs. We had a kinked fuel line, and Dub fixed it just in the nick of time. We’ve spent just about as much time on land or anchored out for a while, as we have been sailing. Dub’s itching to head south, as am I because the weather has been unseasonably cold. Freezing temps almost each weekend. What happened to my warm Florida? Oh well, Patience.

Dub sailing on very choppy Tampa Bay waters (Sunshine Skyway bridge behind him)

Stayed up all night in fairly choppy weather because we couldn’t make it into a channel. Too shallow and the waves were rocking us so much that we were hitting bottom. We headed back out into the Gulf and went south. Not a good idea to try and go into an inlet in the dark. The best idea from there was to head south...and actually head south all night. The wind from the North was blowing us in the right direction, which made for easy sailing south. It was ok sailing at night, just taxing being up and being cold (a freeze warning was in effect...brrr!). I stayed up until 12:30-1:00 while Dub slept. Then He took second shift til 4am. It was ok, just strange to only see lights. You didn’t have a landmark to point at, it was just lights. I never thought I would say it, but I was wishing for more lights. Light pollution is nasty, but they help when navigating. I heard several Dolphins surface for air, 2 or 3 Loon calls and 3 shooting stars! A night to remember.

Near Boca Grande. I never welcomed a sunrise so much!

So we made it to Boca Grande, a beautiful wide and deep inlet near Charlotte Harbor. Traveled about 60 nautical miles from Manatee River outlet (in Tampa Bay) to our new location. We’re staying on the south side of the inlet at Cayo Costa State Park. We’ve kayaked out to this island before, but never anchored our boat and gone ashore. A totally different feeling. It’s nice to be off choppy waters at sea! Camping tonight, Cabbage Key tomorrow!

The beautiful beach on Cayo Cost and the view into Boca Grande, the area we had just sail in from.

A stray, forgotten feather caught my fancy on the beach, scattered among the sand and flora.

Sailboat Pictures

2010-12-20T17:12:00.000-07:00

Knot a Clew

The name fits for now...

The V Berth (great storage!)

Head on the right (bathroom) & a closet on the left

(miniature version)

The Galley

(kitchen area, to be renovated)

The previous owner had a fridge in the empty space and now we need more shelves and counter space!

The Salon

Nice wood table that drops down to create a bed,

and a great bench for day sailing convenience.

The Cockpit

The top slides back pretty far to reveal a great open ceiling. Nice for extra sun or star gazing at night!

The Cockpit has a tiller (not a wheel), so it makes it a bit roomier! Plenty of storage too!

Jamie at Sunset,

First night at Sea!

These are mostly the BEFORE pictures, the AFTER pictures will come soon!

Today I sailed!

2010-12-20T16:32:00.002-07:00

December 16, 2010

Today I sailed

This is officially the fourth night on the boat. We spent two nights on the boat at it’s original docking (where the owner had it at his buddy’s place). While it was there we spent six days cleaning and fixing it up. The motor got fixed and added to the transom. I cleaned the interior a lot. Dub power washed the exterior. We fixed up wiring and added a new toilet. We did ALL kinds of other stuff that I can’t remember and don’t care to. We spent a lot of time and cash to get’er ready to live on.

We motored out of the canals, past houses and many other nice looking boats. We watched the tide, but apparently didn’t end up on the good side of the tide. It was going out and we were sitting deep--keel sticking down about 4 feet. We ran aground. We tried to get her loose, playing around motoring to reverse us. It didn’t work. We waited about 3 1/2 hours. Low tide came and went @ 1:30pm We watched the water coming in pretty quickly. High tide was @ 7 something that night. Luckily about 2:30pm we were free. We made our way around to the channels (we were only a few hundred yards from the channel markers when we hit bottom...so it was torture). Eventually we headed out on the channels West! To the Gulf! We motored against the wind and finally made our way to open water. The gulf is actually very shallow. We ran aground at 4 feet and the channel that is marked was about 6 feet. The “deeper” areas (2-3 miles out) are 7-10 feet. Not too deep. We decided to anchor up at sunset. Not a cloud in the sky. Probably the clearest sunset I’ve ever seen! It was a good night’s rest.

We woke to another crystal clear day, which isn’t all that good when you need wind to sail. This time there was warmer weather (upper 60’s). Mother nature delivered. Only thing was, not much wind. It came and went all day. Eventually it came up quick and a bit stronger than before. I got a bit scared because the boat leans (heels) a lot and you start to go almost 5 knots (about 6 mph)---which is actually kinda fast, for a sailboat (a 27 footer, at that). Water splashing and sounds you’ve never heard before...but it was cool.

Tonight we fall asleep a bit shy or our destination (Anclote Key). We’re just northeast of it, by maybe one nautical mile. Not too bad for crappy wind. I swear the water was like glass.

I’m feeling like a lot of realities are hitting me. Our distance from land. Our motor (which is currently not working...to be continued), the strength of the boat, how reliable it is (and all it’s parts, rigging, mast, sails, keel, tiller, etc.) When we started going fast I wasn’t sure I trusted her. “Knot a Clew” was roaring, but would she hold? I expressed to Dub how I felt and we pulled one sail (the jib) in a bit to reduce the speed and pull. That worked and we played with the sails a bit more. I was sailing! It felt great at a slower speed and I was excited. We switched on and off all day. Dub spending a lot of time in low wind and me cleaning the remainder of the cabin. I put our food in order and organized some things. Pretty simple day with it’s challenges and over-comings. Hell, I’m staying positive, but this is a bit scary sometimes.

Good night.

New Adventures!

2010-12-20T16:25:00.000-07:00

December 4th, 2010
New Adventures Part I
It's December and we've had a huge change in plans. Since it's not that enjoyable to write about failures, I haven't written much lately about our experiences...We started off biking (full gear packed) from Dub's Mother's house. It was a good start, we rode 43 miles that day. Unfortunately, the wind and a bit of denial were against us. 20 mph winds pushed us back in time and when we finally decided to stop we were still about 2-3 hours from our camping destination for the night. We called Dub's family and they picked us up in the dark about 8 o'clock pm. Dub's knee was hurting excessively from tendonitis and we came to the full realization that this wasn't going to work.

Over time we decided that this weather was only going to get worse, and healing tendonitis was now the goal. We focused on Florida. Back up plan #1 was to head south and buy some R & R time at our family home in Daytona Beach. So that's what we did. Here we are, over a month of rest and relaxation, still in Daytona. We've had some great experiences learning to scuba dive, play with surfing, rescuing a green sea turtle, swimming with manatees, diving wrecks and reefs, and generally enjoying the Sunshine state!

Long story short, we have jumped head first into our sailboat search. We've now embarked on another adventure of a different kind. We're going to master the wind and water.

Our search began months ago when Dub was working for the Grand Canyon and scanned the internet for sailboats. It was hard to look face to face at any sailboats when you're land locked. Now we're fully able to travel and check 'em out in person. We left out on Monday afternoon, for Fort Lauderdale. We stopped in on a gentleman from New York. He was selling a California 27 boat. The boat was in pretty good shape. Nice and clean, nice layout. Gallery on one side, benches on the other. Very, very clean. We said we'd talk about it. Asking price was $7,000, but he'd take $6,500. That’s about our limit on the budget, so who knows.

We lined up another boat just in time for the "no-see-ums" to come out and eat us alive! At dusk the guy came up and we had already seen the "Stars and Stripes" boat. Quite the fixer-upper. No thanks. That evening we dinned at a seafood place ad somehow in the commotion we forgot to pay our bill, oops! We'll be sending them an envelope with some cash. Should cover the Dolphin/Mahi Mahi sandwich, 10 shrimp and the 2 Coronas. It was good-Tack's, I think was their name.

We spent a few hours looking up a place to camp for the night...nothing. Then we thought about a hostel. Nope, $70. So there we sat on the side street in Miami Beach, trying to decide where to stay...
-Hostel and go explore the Miami Beach night life?
-Drive around for a hotel that we could afford?
-Find a cheap hotel near the interstate?
-Drive about 2 hours to the Everglades and save some money camping.

Ok, the plan was to camp, so we took Route 1 through ALL of urban Miami, down to Homestead. All the while questioning where to stay. We're poor decision-makers sometimes.
We pulled up to Lone Pine Campground at about 11:30pm. It was sprinkling. We decided to quickly put up the tent. Rain picked up and we froze still: should we put up the tent or sleep in the car--one more decision..couldn't do it! We put the tent up in the only 20 minutes of rain all night! Here we are: soaked from the waist down, hoping to craw into bed. Well, we dried up and slept soundly in the sticky humid Everglade's air.

The sun woke us up at about 7am. By 8am we need to get OUT of that tent. Humidity and dampness were not our friends with the sunlight. We doused ourselves in repellant and braved it outside. Now, more decision-making --boo. We packed up and went back to Miami and saw another boat #5 (this was the fifth boat we'd seen). A Catalina 27, 1970's or something. We got our kayaks out and paddled to the boat. Christina and her friend were whistling at us and we made our way aboard. Little did we know, she was living aboard. Kinda interesting. Boat was nice and we seriously thought about getting it. Now more decisions...buy it, don't buy it? Stay in the area for another night? Head home? Visit folks in the Everglades? In Tampa area? OK- We headed west to look at more boats. Stopped over at Shark Valley Visitor Center and asked for my friend Eric from Glacier. By luck, we found him - with out using cell phones or any other modern conveniences. We grabbed some beers and enjoyed the warm evening in the Everglades.

The next day started with a great breakfast of Bagel with Peanut Butter, Fruit and nut muesli with Pineapple, Banana dried cranberries and dried apricots with Pine nuts. TASTY! We made our way west towards the Gulf Coast. We zig zagged up to Fort Meyers and dodged a closed Interstate. We were headed for Boca Grande. We heard through the grapevine from some folks up in King’s Bay that there was a man by the name of Danny who had a nice sailboat for sale. They told us... “Oh just ask for him at the Hudson’s General Store.” So we risked embarrassment and asked for him. No Luck. Then we went looking for a marina. No luck. We found some parking next to a few private docks and saw about 6-7 sailboats anchored out in the channel. We parked across from the Pink Elephant Restaurant. They allowed 2 hours for parking. Dub got his kayak off the car and went to ask if anyone knew Danny. Jackpot! We found him-- I call it luck, for sure! Dub climbed aboard to look at boat # 6. No thanks, but it was a fun man hunt!

We wandered north through marinas and small waterside towns, headed for Seminole, Florida. We arrived to Brooke and Mike Certa’s house at about dusk. Nice place! We met the new baby, Eddie! We went out to eat at this amazing Tapas place (not to be confused with topless). Lobster, humus, smoked artichoke hearts, ceviche, and lots of wine--even a bottle hand picked from Napa Valley. The corking fee allowed us to BYOB. We stopped at Sloppy Johns’s Bar on the way home- crazy place with a lot of junk- even a mountain goat on the wall. They had a fire going inside too- crazy! We enjoyed ourselves!

The next day we got up, headed to an open market, with arts, crafts & food and visited Tom Whitworth. It was nice catching up and then we headed to see our next boat, #7. One hour north to Hudson, FL. Found our way to the place, checked it out (Catalina 27, 1974). It looked good! An interesting owner who’s Austrian and living here in the U.S. Good guy, little paranoid. He’s our age, so it was neat to see someone who could afford a sailboat. So we left to head back to Daytona. We made it home in the evening and talked about all the boats we saw. #7 will do! Needs some cleaning up, but we can do it!

New Adventures Part II
Reality Sinks In

We decided to “celebrate.” In a way we were really excited about the purchase of a new sailboat (only new to us, not really new). Then we started to realize what this meant. The cost, what to do with it when the summer season came along, where we’d go, how much we knew, etc. Let’s face it, our experience level is Novice! We’re definitely the newbies and we’d be happy to admit that. So, we did...to ourselves. Then we got scared. A light bit of regret came along and before long, we were coming down from our celebration high. We continued the mantra...We can do this, right?

The Great Divide

2010-07-16T10:25:00.005-06:00

Today I sit here, looking out my window, green fills my view. I've waited patiently for summer's peak to arrive. I sat here months ago and viewed colors of grey, white, brown and black. The plants have quickly grown and burst into color. The wild rose is in full bloom next to the black cottonwoods in my backyard. The grass is still un-mowed and is gaining height. Summer is here with it's full blown strength. Life and death is now apparent on the landscape, as the spruce budworm fills the Douglas Fir trees and threatens their life. Life is evident in the new shoots of the chokecherries outside my door. Green is everywhere.

View from Divide Mountain

The next month or so, here in Glacier National Park, is the best time of the year. The mountains are shrugging off the remaining snow, glaciers are being discovered as the snow from last winter is melting, and mountain passes become accessible for hiking.

Tiny alpine plant: Purple Mountain Saxifrage (a new flower for me!)

I took the opportunity, a few weeks back, to climb a mountain. I became a mountaineer for a day. I risked scuffing my hands, a few scrapes, and gained everything. On June 27th, I left work on time...which was a feat in itself...! At about 6:15pm, I was starting my climb up Divide Mountain. Some Blackfeet tribal members say this peak has more significance than the sacred Chief Mountain that is well known for its spirit quests and spiritual values to several tribes. I agree that Divide has more significance than Chief, especially for me.

Sunset in the St. Mary Valley from Divide Mountain

I view Divide Mountain as a very real dividing line between the Blackfeet Indian Reservation and Glacier National Park. I view the mountain as a strong hold of the edge of the mountain range (as it sits the farthest east in a chain of mountains in the St. Mary Valley). I view Divide as a separation between waterways, as it starts the Hudson Bay Divide and sends water to the Gulf of Mexico (to the south) and to the Hudson Bay (to the north). I also view Divide as a comfort of coming home. It welcomes me from afar and I can see it for several miles before I actually reach Glacier. In the begininning of my season, upon arrival, I look for Divide to mark where I'm going and it calls me in.

Jake and Michelle on top of Divide Mountain, taking it all in!

The view at the top is perfect...I only wonder what it looks like during the day. We hiked up, leisurely, on the western slope or the "scenic" route.

Stopped at the old fire lookout on the shoulder of the mountain. Then made our way up, up, and away.

We watched the sun set and let our eyes grow accustom to the darkness on our way down. We safely arrived at our vehicles at about 11:15pm. What a trip! The photos speak for themselves. I plan on hiking this again, several times! The scrapes and torn up hands are worth the reward.

Me, on the top of the world!

View to the north

Brutal Blessings

2010-07-08T22:18:00.004-06:00

I don't have much to say, just a few quick thoughts about Glacier and it's blessings and hardships. It can be beautiful, breathtaking, bountiful and blessed. But it can also be brutal, bruising, and breaking. When you're here, you walk a fine line. I feel strange every time I have to talk to a group of visitors about safety...how to deal with bears, how to walk on a trail that's uneven, how to stay away from slippery rocks near waterfalls, and to watch every detail possible. I also feel wonderful telling visitors how the park's beautiful and amazing. Fine line that you could cross. Are we destined to break all the rules we set for ourselves? How do we straddle that line and not fall over the edge? It's a wild world out there and we want to explore it...How is it that I'm lucky enough to survive through the brutal Glacier and view the beautiful Glacier?

A Series of Short Stories

2010-05-30T20:41:00.008-06:00

I would like to share with you a few short stories. Each story has at least one photograph that relates to the story. My no means have I planned which stories to share here...it's by chance. A chance of actually capturing these photographs in the first place. A chance to share the short stories of how I was lucky enough to get the photographs. And a chance to share them both with you.

1.) The first story is one of pure magnificence. As I traveled to catch a flight in Kalispell, I hurried along Highway 2. I speedily passed cars and zoomed around them...silly slow drivers. After passing Essex, I came upon a section with Lodgepole Pines lining the roadsides. I saw a swoop of white dip down and then back up again. Oh my god! That was an Eagle! SCREECH! I stomped on the breaks and even backed up a little bit to get a view. The majestic Bald Eagle sat on the top of a pine. It looked around, as if oblivious to my presence. I decided to take a risk. I got out, grabbed my camera (all while still on the side of the road), and changed out my lenses. At that time, the cars (I had previously passed) came zooming by. I crossed my fingers, hoping that the Eagle would stay perched. It did. I snapped. And I snapped. And I snapped. Oh what pure luck. I watch him through my camera lens and soaked it in. And then swoop--I snapped.

Thee most majestic photo I've ever taken!

Bald Eagle near the Middle Fork of the Flathead River

Bald Eagle perched near the Middle Fork of the Flathead River.

2.) The next story brings out the wild north country...as if the Bald Eagle didn't. I was paddling on the Swiftcurrent Lake in the Many Glacier Valley. A cool day, a light breeze passing by, and the sun peaking through the peaks and passing clouds. I took my time paddling across the lake, knowing that it might not be possible to go beyond the stream outlet and up to Lake Josephine (it wasn't). Not paying attention to the main part of the lake, I paddled along the shoreline, exploring every nook and cranny. I noticed a few small flowers in the shoreline grass. I noticed moose tracks in the sand and rocks. And finally, as I turned my boat towards the Many Glacier Hotel, I noticed a black bird floating on the water. It was a LOON! No, not a crazy person. A Common Loon...one of the most iconic north country waterfowl. CRAZY! I have to say, I love Loons. They are so amazing. I also have to say, I had NO idea it was Loon Day in Glacier. But, my luck, I saw a loon on Loon Day...unplanned. It dove down and I'd paddle a little closer. It surfaced and I sat still. This process repeated itself over and over. At one moment, the Loon dove down and I thought for SURE I was going to surprise it or something. When it resurfaced, I was almost 25-30 feet away---eeek! I was also surprised. So much that I didn't even take a photo. I looked at him/her, and it looked back at me. I felt like I was looking into the soul of an ancient, wise creature. And I was.

The Many Glacier Valley on May 15th

The beautiful Common Loon, seen on "Loon Day" in Glacier!

Everyone gets a little Loony! I love Loons!

Even the Barrow's Golden Eye looks a bit Loony!

3.) This story begins with text messages.

EB: "2 Dog Flats. u k now ur welcome 2 join me on lake if u want u can find somewhere out there..." Meaning: Wanna paddle, meet you there, somewhere!

Me: "Where do u think u will paddle?"

EB: "Thru narrows then follow shoreline round n right."

Me: "Cool, I think you've inspired me. I'll pack up quickly & c u out there!"

I quickly packed up the car, and headed west up the Going-to-the-Sun Road. The St. Mary Lake was calm and clear. I paddled out and I soon saw a long yellow kayak paddling my way. It was EB! We met and headed towards Wild Goose Island, one of the best paddles in the whole park! We decided to paddle around and then dock on some rocks. As we looped around---HONK, HONK, HONK! A Canada Goose comes rushing out, honking. And what do ya know, it came off of a nest! Geese are nesting on Wild Goose Island! AWESOME! We cheer out loud and continue paddling around the island. We dock up, get out and head for the "special" place to snack on the FIRST Glacier Lilies of the season. As we walk up the rocks---HONK, HONK, HONK!! Oh My! ANOTHER Canada Goose! And what do ya know, there was a ANOTHER nest! Not only are there Canada Geese nesting on Wild Goose Island--There are TWO nests! We snuck by and snatched up a few Glacier Lilies, enjoying the sweet goodness for the first time this year. It's gonna be a good year.

Paddling at Wild Goose Island at Sunset, Priceless.

4.) AP and I decided to go into Kalispell early Saturday morning. We even got up early so that we could catch Ironman 2 at it's first showing, 12:15pm. It was great. We went to the grocery store, McKenzie River Pizza, and then to the movie. Thoroughly enjoyed the "city" life. Then we turned our attention to the wilderness. The great wide open Glacier National Park. We headed to the North Fork area of the park. Complete with a back roads drive down the North Fork Road from Columbia Falls. The dust kicked up and luckily the rocks stayed away from my windshield! We made it up to the Polebridge Mercantile. Our eyes were set on the gooey goodness of Polebridge cookies! We went inside and got the usual, Baker's dozen, random choice of the attendant...with special emphasis on the Mocha white chocolate cookies! We added a tasty beverage to the order and we were golden. With a long road ahead of us, we decided to enjoy the classic river's edge and then head back home for the night. We savored the flavors while the wild river rushed by!

The Polebridge Mercantile with my Subbie out front!

She Christened the North Fork road!

The North Fork of the Flathead River and a Waxing Gibbous Moon

5.) A bit of freezing ice crystals can build up rather quickly, in these parts.

And so it did, last night.

Snowfall in the Springtime

Hit the Ground Running

2010-05-23T21:36:00.004-06:00

I was able to enjoy the beauty and power of Glacier today. Partaking in the second hike of the season (I know, I haven't been out much...I blame the weather), Sun Point to Virginia Falls, in the St. Mary Valley. It was breath taking and full of it's own breath--wind!

Sun Point

The weather was in the 50's, partly sunny and winds gusting to 25 mph. Sun Point was amazing with clouds and squalls moving through the valley.

St. Mary Falls

Myself and four other rangers hit the trail early afternoon and enjoyed several wildflower species blooming: Arrowleaf Balsamroot, Mouse-eared Chickweed, Shooting Star, Glacier Lilies, Indian Paintbrush, Clematis vine, Oregon Grape, Serviceberry, Red Twinberry, Calypso Orchid and several others.

Glacier Lily

Virginia Falls

Arrowleaf Balsamroot

I let Glacier soak into my stressed body and it relieved me. I was relieved of my worries, stresses, and lack of hiking lately. When I returned home I actually forgot my worries. It only took one phone call to bring back reality. Reality that the season is starting in FULL force!

Next week our new staff members arrive and I will get to meet the people that I hired. It's very interesting to see the process in action: resumes, reference checks, paperwork, and finally meeting the person! I hoping there will be a great sense of relief when my thoughts are redeemed: These people will be awesome interpreters and rangers!

Almost everyone will be arriving for their new job on Thursday morning. We'll have an exciting "orientation" of the administrative area and then hike to St. Mary Falls in the afternoon. Friday will be more of the same. In fact, hiking is planned for several of our training days. I'm happy to see that!

Baring Falls

Soon our returning staff members will arrive and help us staff our busy (ha!) Visitor Center. We did get over 200 visitors on Saturday! So, it goes without saying, I'm hitting the ground running. Here goes! The 2010 CENTENNIAL Season is starting!

Best of luck to everyone and Here's to a great Interpretive Season! Be Careful out there, Everyone!

Full Circle

2010-04-03T09:39:00.007-06:00

I moved in on a Friday night, late and dark, and climbed into my bed. I felt comforted by something that allowed me to lay flat, still and calm...anything that wasn't a car or moving. When I awoke, the wind was howling outside...another day with a wind advisory. No problem, I'm used to that, right? I decided to spend the morning preparing the house for "moving in." I cleaned for almost 3 hours and got the place good as new. With new wooden, double-paned windows, new doors, a new kitchen counter and sink, and new bathroom necessities...I did feel like it was new. New to me, anyway.

St. Mary Valley in the Afternoon, Glacier National Park

In the afternoon I went for a walk in the woods. I took my trusty bear spray and headed west. I hit the trail at a brisk pace and quickly sunk into rough snow. The freeze and thaw had created a hard bit of snow to walk over. But it was comforting that I had snow at all, being that the snow pack is so much less than average this year. I hiked fast over the snow and felt my knees slowly give in to the tenseness of hiking over an uncertain surface. I would probably be sore the next day, and somehow that was comforting. I passed by meadows with dormant flowers, into forests that are nearly 500 years old.

Douglas Fir Cone

I saw many elk paths weave through the forest. I'd never noticed them in that area before...interesting. I continued hiking, calling out "EEEEoooooHH!" and "Cooooomin' Through." The instinct of calling out for bears came back instantly, as did the fear of seeing a bear when I was by myself.

Beaver Pond

I tromped through forest, prairie, and burned areas. I passed the "Beaver Pond" and for the first time I had seen it, it frozen over. I usually sneak up on this area, preparing myself for viewing Mergansers or Barrow's Golden Eyes. But nothing was stirring and I continued on. At the trail intersection (where I was to turn back on another trail), I inspected the bear "Rub tree." Last year they put up barbed wire to collect the hair samples that would tell us "who was who." I didn't see any bear hair snagged on the wire, but I slowly traced the five scratch marks that adorn the tree...you guessed it, bear claw marks. The bear permanently left it's mark on the tree.

I turned back east and looked down the old road bed. This road bed tells a story, a story about young rugged rangers and fire fighters traveling back and forth. There used to be an old fire tower that sat on an open bald. If you hike out to it, you can still see the foundation blocks. Near the end of the road there were a few cabins. I've heard that you can still find it today, if you know the old trail. At the beginning of this old road was a ranger station. It was one of the first staffed stations on the east side of the park (probably second to East Glacier's Ranger Station). Now called the 1913 Ranger Station, we've decided to dedicate a restoration project to it, as well as exhibits and programs about the Good Ole Ranger days. Days when families were practically on the payroll, and days when horseback was the way to travel.

I turned down that road and headed towards that cabin and saw three white-tailed deer. Their tails went up immediately, but then they paused. One took extra care to watch me as I approached, closer and closer. The others had already run away and it still stared me down.

White Tailed Deer

I walked around a grove of Douglas Fir and spotted them again. This time they didn't mind as much and let me walk by slowly, at a distance of 30 feet. They used caution as they nibbled on grasses and watched the horizons. I used caution not to fall as I took photos, zoomed in. It was interesting to watch them, as they watched me. It was like we had an agreement, an understanding, and we did. I left them alone.

White Tailed Deer

I made it back down to the lake's shore, where I found willows budding out, in all their fuzzy glory. The beautiful red and yellow stems of the water’s edge intrigued me. I took some more photos.

Willows Bursting out with Buds

I completed my loop and made it back to where I had begun, both on the trail and here at Glacier. Full circle, and better for it.

St. Mary Lakeshore, Red Eagle mountain as the most prominent peak.

The Big Exhale

2009-06-26T08:51:00.004-06:00

Friday, June 26, 2009

The big exhale....Ahhhhh. It is both a sigh of relief and a large gust of wind that characterizes the St. Mary Valley. The relief is that the Blackfoot Confederacy Conference is over. It was an exhilarating ride, but it's nice to be back focusing on our job again. It seemed like everything was paused for four days and now we are back to playing the role of interpreter again. All the interpretive staff are getting their first jitters. They are so excited and so professional that they appear stressed. It's nice to see everyone working hard, but the bottom line is, we all need to have fun too! I think this week was a little of both stress and fun!

I also talk about the characteristic wind of the St. Mary Valley...it's back. In early June weather reports were stating that the winds were less than average. It was true, there wasn't enough wind. Can that be true? The mosquitoes were bad and the days were hot. It's almost a relief now to have the steady 15-20 mph winds and the strong 30-40 mph gusts that keep the mosquitoes away and the days cool. We also had a very chilly day on Monday. It left a dusting of snow high in the mountains. That's a big exhale for the glaciers...they'll get one more little layer of snow to protect them during the warm summer months.

I guess the big exhale really is just the fact that the season is starting...the interpretive season. Our job is just beginning and it's almost July. But, it's a big sigh of relief to have everyone in a schedule, doing what they need to do, and allowing the lead interpreters to organize again and focus. It's a good feeling.

Oh, and by the way, the entire Going-to-the-Sun Road opens today at 10:30am. It feels early, but I think it's just in time. We get LOTS of questions about the road and LOTS of frustrated visitors. So here's another big exhale....we can answer this question with yes: Is the Road open? YES! Summer must really be here now!

Here are some photos from the Blackfoot Confederacy Conference and a flower photo from my first Ranger-led activity this year: St.Mary Lake & St. Mary Falls trail.

The Color Guard:

I spoke with these kind gentlemen for about 20 minutes while we all waited for show time. Monday was so cold and windy, we hosted the opening ceremonies in the auditorium.

The "Warriors" Riding in from the East:

At the end of the transfer of the straight-up headdress ceremony, the Warriors came riding in from the east.

The Chiefs of each Blackfoot band, after the transfer of the Straight-up headdress ceremony

Sending Down Roots: The Blackfoot Confederacy Conference Lodges & St. Mary Visitor Center

The Continental Divide and St. Mary Falls Trail: A Garden of Flowers

Weather: 40's-50's at night, 50's-60's during the day. Sunny!

Blackfoot and new roots

2009-06-20T17:56:00.005-06:00

Sunday, June 21, 2009 - Father's Day
Today is Father's Day, a great Thanks goes out to all those awesome Dads out there...and perhaps those potential Dads, too!

I went into work this morning at 8am. It was a good thing I did, we were hosting a Cultural Awareness Training in the Auditorium. Why you ask? Because the Blackfeet are hosting the Blackfoot Confederacy Conference right here in Glacier National Park. This is both good and not-so-good. Good because we get the chance to experience the culture of the neighboring Blackfeet Indians. The Blackfoot Confederacy Conference is held annually to address and assess issues and news with all 4 bands of the Blackfoot Indians (in both the US and Canada). The local Blackfeet tribe is hosting it this year with the theme "Glacier National Park on Blackfoot Land." Without going into it too much, I'll just say, this is still their land, it just happens to have a National Park on it. Anywho...it's good because I've already learned a bunch about out neighbors.
Another good thing is, we get overtime! Yeah, Money! Today I will have worked 10 hours of overtime...this is an exceptionally good day because I'm supposed to have the day off, but I'm working. It will be good to get some extra spending cash!

It's not-so-good because it throws a wrench in our smooth interpretation operations. In other words, we are pushed to the limits on staffing. This seems to happen at least once a year here in the park. But, we are fully staffed, and hopefully, prepared for hosting this event on park property. There was some great forethought to this season and we decided early on that we would give everyone an extra week to prepare for their interpretive programs (guided hikes, etc). Well, that was the best decision we could have made!! Thankfully, we are only giving about 7 or 8 programs this week.

That brings me to the "new roots" part of the title of this blog. Everyone on our staff is growing new roots in the park. They have learned about the park resources and therefore started to shoot roots into the ground. Now they are growing deeper and deeper into the park and taking hold of their interpretive programs and abilities. Soon the little green shoots will come up from the ground and burst into the light of day! It's so exciting to see everyone grow in confidence and clarity. I can't wait to see their programs.

Last, "new roots" also refers to the plants that are growing FAST! Many flowers are already in bloom and I can't believe it! The water is roaring down the falls to feed those flowers and the snow is melting at Logan Pass to feed those falls! Check out some of the photos below.

Round-leaved yellow violet

Blue Penstemon

Mariposa Lily

Beautiful St. Mary Falls

Logan Pass sidewalk, much less snow than usual. This is about typical for July snow.

Missing Feathers,
I found these on the sidewalk separated from their host, the Mountain Bluebird

Path to Hidden Lake and Mt. Clements in the distance

Many Glacier Valley June 10, 2009- Interpretive Training

Procrastination and Building Character!

2009-06-08T18:16:00.004-06:00

Monday, June 8, 2009

You know when you have a deadline, and you try to find everything else to do before completing that deadline...well, that's what I'm doing. I'm giving a presentation tomorrow during our Interpretation training. I'm assigned to report and "flesh out" the results of the Visitor Voices Project. I was deeply ingrained in this project during the time of my Master's school work. I worked with my lead professor to develop and carry out the research project that would assess what comes OUT of an interpretive program...in other words, what does the visitor take away with them. It's pretty interesting if you're into research and the finer details of interpretation...but to the lay person, it's just statistics. I'm hoping to turn it into an enthralling presentation with useful information and fine photos. It's mostly done, but I've got to tweak it a bit. Until then, I will procrastinate and write here!

It's been a busy week here at Glacier. Each week is filled with more and more questions, amazing knowledge, and fun experiences. The last two Monday's have been a rush to complete all the tasks that we ignore during training, such as, payroll, scheduling details, emails, phone messages, and broken things at the St. Mary Visitor Center. It's amazing how much stuff can happen in one week. Can't it just run smoothly? Does the heat have to stop working in our Auditorium? Do light bulbs and door locks have to break? Ahhhh! I think it's the finer details that get me frustrated. In the grand scheme of things, the Visitor Center works fine...it's only when you look closely that you see the mistakes and tiny imperfections! I think it's all part of building character...the more imperfections, the more mistakes, the more character you have. It's like an old leather jacket, the imperfections are what make it beautiful and interesting, which make you love the jacket that much more.

The weather here has turned a bit chilly. We've had several days of rain clouds holding down low in the valley. Also, it rained/sleeted/snowed today...as is the usual for St. Mary. It's comforting to know that June lives up to it's expectation of being the rainy season, mixed with some (sometimes) surprising snow. That means the glaciers will live a little longer into the summer season. They will be protected with another layer of snow, as an invested insulator. Hopefully, the glaciers will see less melting this year...but the precip levels need to rise a bit...and every little bit helps, like today! We had Bear Training at the St. Mary Visitor Center and everyone heard the little snow/sleet pellets hitting the metal roof. It was a calming sound, surprising to some, welcomed by others.

That's it for my procrastination. I've finished half of my glass of red wine (a new ritual for me everyday), and it's time to make a pretty presentation, POWERFUL! I promise to post some photos soon. I have an incredible backlog of neat photos, that are dying to be published online! I'll get to it, one of these days! Until then, it's off to Interpretation Training, for another 4 days!

Weather: Mostly cloudy, multiple types of precip. Highs in the 40's-50's and lows in the 30's. It's June, what can I ask for..

It's been a long time.

2009-05-26T17:39:00.003-06:00

Tuesday, May 26, 2009
I realize it's been a while since I wrote. It was my best intentions to continue with an everyday update, but I don't think that is possible. I keep planning my blogs, but never find the time to upload pictures and type everything out. So, from now on, I will try my best to update things as soon as possible...which may be a few days. No biggie.

Today, I made history...
Perhaps it was just my own history, but it still meant a lot. I applied for my first permanent National Park Service job. I applied for a GS-7/9 (supervisory position level), Park Ranger- Interpretation job at Everglades National Park. It is a term position, technically not to exceed 13 months, but they are hoping to extend the position to 4 years. I'm not sure how I like the 4 years thing. I've never been locked into a position before and I'm not sure how I feel about that. I'm some what hesitant to do it, but I might as well drop my resume in the batch. I'd like to see how I do when I compete against other similar people....Ok, I want to know how I match up. Can I get an interview? Or can I even qualify? How will I rate? Either way, I'm somewhat looking forward to the results.

There is also the issue of: When is this job taking place? When would it start? Do I get time off?(to work a summer season?) These questions I hope to ask the hiring official tomorrow. I contacted her today, but only received a voice mail about the job details...crappy cell phone coverage for some reason. Tomorrow I will know more answers.

It's like a rollercoaster here. Our interpretive staff are arriving left and right. The stress of handling training materials, preparations, plans, etc is starting to weigh down. I'm not worried, but I still have so many details I want to figure out before we hit the ground running during training. It is thoroughly exciting, getting to meet everyone for the first time. I think we are going to have an AWESOME season...I can tell already.

Wish me luck! We officially start training on Thursday! One more day til then!

Weather: Cool, Partly sunny, 50's

Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!

2009-05-21T14:12:00.002-06:00

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Bears, bears, bears. Every time I’ve seen a bear outside my apartment, it jostles me just a bit. I’m usually sitting on my phone and all of the sudden I say, “Oh my god, there’s a bear…can I let you go.” It’s not a frequent phrase you hear on the phone, so I’m sure my boyfriend gets a kick out of it when I use it, THREE OR FOUR TIMES! Last night at about 8:40pm, I saw a black bear, of cinnamon color just sauntering across the street.

It didn’t seem to mind that there was a car there or a trailer. It just moseyed around for a bit. I grabbed the camera and snapped a few photos before I yelled and chased it off. It ran behind the trailer and into the bushes. THEN, it came back around the trailer and walked along the brushline. I continued to yell and holler to chase it out of the housing area. It ran parallel to the apartment buildings and into the brush. At this time we had about 5 people hollering and trying to get it out of the housing area. It went around the back of the apartment building and we continued to chase it out of the housing area.

In full motion, running away.

Da Bear!

Now I thought the bear was gone…but NO! About 5-10 minutes later, the bear re-appeared. This time it was walking towards my apartment door. I freaked out because I only had the screen door between me and him. So I tried banging on the metal bottom of my door, and the bear ran for the tree in front of my apartment. I banged and banged and nothing. He peaked around to see what was going on.

Eventually, it ran out to another tree in the center of a circle drive, and treed itself.

In the tree. It was starting to slide down it too, loosing grip.

Now here’s where it gets complicated… An NPS employee arrived and told us to move back to our houses and after the bear comes down—we’ll ambush and chase it off. It kinda worked, but the bear still went toward the housing compound. I chased off with a few employees (all in my slippers). We tried our best to chase the bear up and over a hillside, but he did NOT want to go!

In Glacier National Park we have some management directives that tell us how to deal with bears. The St. Mary housing area is OFF Limits to bears. They can use the Divide creek corridor to travel, but should stay away from housing. In a normal situation we would NOT have chased the bear or even tried to haze it. It is up to specific bear rangers and even on up to the Park Superintendant to decide how to haze a bear. They can collective haze bears by yelling, use rubber bullets, bing-bags, catch and release, but very last euthanasia. Unfortunately, the Indian reservation doesn’t have the same policy. If a bear gets into trash just once, they can euthanize the bear. I’ve lived here in September when a bear family was euthanized on the reservation. It was sad because there was a momma bear and two cubs. Even with hazing and extreme precautions, the bear got into garbage on the reservation and all three were euthanized. I just don’t want to see that happen again…with any bear, anywhere.

Weather: Warm, partly cloudy, but sunny, mid 50’s.

I Will Fight for my iPod!

2009-05-20T06:59:00.000-06:00

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Last night we had a “ladies night.” Which only consists of a handful of women bringing food dishes and beer together to hang out and chat. It was great. I took some hummus and bread for hors d'oeuvres. We also had salad, goulash, chili, veggie burgers, and ginger muffins. It was great! This is one of the signs that almost everyone is back. We had about 7 ladies show up. I remember when no one lived near my apartment…and now it’s bustling with 10-12 cars and employees. It’s somewhat comforting to know that I’m not all alone in this apartment building!

We had some stimulating conversation about climate change, why not to buy an iPod…which I don’t agree with. The argument was this: People in 1^st world countries rely upon 3^rd world countries (or “developing countries” if you want to be politically correct) to build and produce these devices…and before long they are replaced with better, newer versions…and causing more waste than necessary. Well, boo. I don’t think so. I buy less CDs, therefore less waste because of packaging. So I’m saving landfills from filling up. It takes no shipping, so I’m saving fossil fuels. And I’m using a paperless form of purchasing my songs and albums, iTunes. I really enjoy my iPod and I’ll fight for it!

The Park Formerly Known As Glacier National Park

2009-05-20T06:41:00.002-06:00

Monday, May 18, 2009

Last night was so warm that I snapped this photo of my thermometer at about 5:30pm.

My thermometer, @ 72!!!

I can’t imagine how warm it was earlier in the day. I even put on a dress! It is nice that we have warm weather, but it’s also very scary. The glaciers in Glacier National Park are few and far between. There are about 25 or 26 glaciers left in the park. Now these glaciers are only alpine glaciers. The have nothing to do with the naming of the park. When they disappear, the name sticks. We will not change the name to “The park formerly known as Glacier National Park.” I get so tired of people asking me that. We are named that because of the beautiful formations that remain from the huge continental glaciers from the ICE AGE!!! The U-shaped valleys, the Aretes, the hanging valleys, the strings of small lakes—Nothing to do with the glaciers we see now. In fact, the glaciers have melted all the way before…so it only seems right that they would melt again…I guess it all depends how you look at it.

The glaciers are said to be “gone” by 2020. “Gone” meaning they will no longer be considered glaciers…they will be too small or too thin to be “moving.” Think of a glacier as a conveyer belt: the snow gets piled on top, it adds up, it gets so thick that it’s own weight forces it to move like a belt…then the bottom part of the belt spews out rock, debris and water as it melts and moves. These are some of the most destructed forces on the planet, and they’re in my backyard—A-MAZ-ING!!

Weather: HOT! Sunny with a pleasant breeze!

WINDY!

2009-05-20T06:40:00.000-06:00

Sunday, May 17, 2009

I can’t say there was much to remember from this day….it was another day at the St. Mary Visitor Center. I guess the biggest thing was the wind. It’s always windy in St. Mary. Because the Continental Divide risen so high to the west, all the wind dips back down the valley on the east side. Then it hits the St. Mary Lake and gains full force all the way down the lake. Our visitor center is lucky enough to be at the end of that lake. So we get all the force of that wind. It’s like a funnel that forces everything into a tight space and then bursts strongly towards our building.

One of the reasons I mention the wind is because of our flags. We have two flag poles, one for the USA flag and one for the Blackfeet flag. Don’t ask me why we fly these two, I suppose it’s because we are bordering the Blackfeet Reservation, but I still don’t really get it. Anywho, we put the flag up for half the day on Friday, the whole day on Saturday and today. By the time we lowered the flags the US flag had a 2-3 foot long tear through the stripes. It was crazy! The flags were only up for 2.5 days!! The ends of the flag were shredded, too. It’s also a major pain to crank these flags up and down every day. The wind keeps you working hard to raise the flags, and then blows them when you are trying to let gravity do its work to bring them down. Oh well, perhaps we will we all get huge arm muscles by the end of the summer!

Open for the 2009 Season!

2009-05-20T06:38:00.000-06:00

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Today we opened the St. Mary Visitor Center for the first day of business of the 2009 season. It was thoroughly exhilarating! The Canadian holiday, Victoria Day, caused our visitation to increase…we ended the day with 170 visitors. That’s a pretty good number considering the park has very few services. Speaking of services, local businesses are opening left and right. Everything at the St. Mary Lodge and Resort is open: Bears Den bar, Lounge, Restaurant, Coffee Shop, Gift Shop, and Rooms are available. The word is out about the Park Café opening on May 28^th! Only a few more days and I’ll be enjoying a Gypsy Burrito and a slice of sweet pie! I haven’t decided what flavor yet.

Everything went smoothly and we were happy to announce to our visitors that the Going-to-the-Sun Road was open for 14 miles of visitor use. This is sorta a big step. The road closure was at Rising Sun, which is only 6 miles up the road…now they can see Jackson Glacier Overlook, Sunrift Gorge, Sun Point, Wild Goose Island and all the mountains along the road.

Myself and another interpreter took an evening cruise up the road and viewed all the huge piles of snow. There was an amazing avalanche shoot that newly ripped through the mountain side, on down over the road, and below the road. It was just above St. Mary Falls Trailhead. It was crazy how many trees were taken down. The easiest way to describe how many trees there were, is to describe how many chainsaw cuts I saw…probably 50-60 cuts. Huge trees and little trees were dragged over the road. The avalanche came off of Goat Mountain, “jumped” the cliffs and blew through 3 fan-shaped shoots. It’s amazing.

Weather: Sunny and warm! 60's-70's!!!!

Wildlife Calling

2009-05-15T21:14:00.004-06:00

Friday, May 15, 2009

There were so many things I saw today that I don’t know where to start. I packed up early and headed to Many Glacier to paddle Swiftcurrent Lake. It was amazing. There were so few people, it was awesome. I’d like to give a list of what I saw today:

An awesome view of Lake Sherburne,
a solitary big-horned sheep ewe (females),
the Many Glacier Hotel in all it’s grandeur,
a group of roughly a dozen big-horned sheep ewes,
tracks that could have been someone’s dog…but could have been a bobcat, coyote or a mountain lion, I'll let you judge. My guess is a coyote. Here is a comparison:

an aspen tree freshly eaten by a beaver,
lots of moose tracks,
several Common mergansers on the lake,
the Many Glacier dock…docked on the other side of the lake,
ice on Swiftcurrent lake, I even got to kayak on it! Ice Kayaking, a new sport! Just kidding.
a big-horned sheep ram (male),
a big-horned sheep ram sniffing a ewe’s butt…funny I know, but it happened,
about 25 mountain goats sitting up high,
and a grey jay sitting on a picnic table.

This is all proof that spring is here! The wildlife are out, the ice is melting and the sun is shining!

Weather: Partly cloudy, low 40’s, wind 10-15mph (roughly), the wind and cold temps together almost convinced me not to paddle the lake! I’m really glad I did paddle!

The Sanctuary of My Country

2009-05-15T09:31:00.002-06:00

Thursday, May 14, 2009

I don’t mind living on an Indian Reservation. Technically I live in the park, but just across the creek (within viewing distance) is the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. There are some sore subjects between the park and the Blackfeet. I don’t want to go into detail, but in some ways we are inhabiting their land. The U.S. government purchased the eastern side of, the current, Glacier National Park. Since the Blackfeet (& all their different bands) have lived in this area for nearly 10,000 years, I don’t feel like it is really the park. They still have certain rights for hunting and entry into the park. Other than that, they live next to the park. The Blackfeet have given this area the name: “Backbone of the World.” It describes the mountains of the continental divide and it fits nicely.

The only thing I have a slight problem with, is the way outsiders are treated. I have a Toyota Corolla, with Illinois plates. When I drove up to Teeples IGA in Browning, I automatically looked like an outsider. It didn’t help that I still had my kayak strapped to the top of my car…that tends to draw attention. I met kind people inside the grocery store. The cashier kindly asked where I was from. I told him I work in St. Mary, but I’m originally from Illinois. They quickly found common ground—Chicago & the Chicago Blackhawks hockey team. I’m not from Chicago, but I know the hockey team. The grocery bagger began to tell me that his team was Chicago, and the cashier told me that his team was the Pittsburg Penguins. They continued to have a conversation about how there were only 3 original teams left, Chicago being one, and another team that Chicago might get to play. I don’t follow hockey closely, but it was neat to see the way they found common ground to talk about.

When I got outside, it was a different story. I had a gentleman standing against the wall right by my car. It only took a few seconds for him to come over and ask for “help.” At the same time, a younger gentleman came out of no where to ask for “help,” too. I’ve seen beggars in Browning before. They are usually at the liquor store begging for a drink. The liquor store is an interesting cultural experience. The store is part bar and part liquor store. The store is really just a small room on the end of the building with shelves of liquor, protected by bars and a sales person behind the counter. I know there are stereotypes of Native Americans, but I’d like to think of a better life. So, it was hard to have beggars asking me for money at the grocery store! Some people have cash ready for situations like this, but I just can’t. The first gentleman had a cane and he looked like middle class. The second gentleman smelled like booze and looked a bit disheveled. I wasn’t going to give money to either of them…so I didn’t. I climbed back into my white-American-girl-car and drove back to the sanctuary of my country.

I wanted to talk about this story because I felt a sense of guilt. Guilty that the U.S. government has come into their lives and changed so many things. I eventually feel better, because not all Blackfeet Indians are doing poorly…some do quite well. I just think U.S. citizens forget that we moved into this land, that was already inhabited. I just want people to remember that these Native Americans are still alive and living their lives.

Crooked Elk

2009-05-13T21:11:00.004-06:00

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

I was happy to share a quick drive down the road with another lead interpreter, to view the elk herds. We saw a total of nearly 100 elk!! The Two Dog Flats area had about 46 elk hanging out, peacefully grazing. The next meadow to the west had about 40 some elk grazing and bedding down for the night. The next meadow to the west had 9 elk grazing in a small group. There were also several others we saw in groups of 2. I’m sure there were more than the elk, so that’s almost 100!! Crazy.

The Rocky Mountain Elk on Two Dog Flats.

I took a photo of one elk that was really pregnant. I think I saw the baby’s leg sticking out from her belly. It’s no wonder that she was staring at us!! She probably couldn’t run very fast from any predators! I didn’t notice she was that pregnant until I downloaded my photos. It inspired me to research elk and their biology.

The very pregnant elk...I think I see a leg sticking out! She was "mid-chew" in this photo!

Elk are one of the largest mammals in North America. They are the second largest in the deer family, only proceeded by moose. In 2004 they found that Elk are almost genetically identical to Red Deer in Europe. I guess that proves Pangaea existed! Amazing. Their range is below:

Only male (bull) elks have antlers. They are made of bone and can grow at the rate of 1 inch per day! A they can have eight or more tines (or points) on each antler and the number has little to do with the maturity of a particular animal. That surprised me! The formation and retention of antlers is testosterone-drive. In early winter, the drop of testosterone causes the shedding. The testosterone level is effected by the drop in pheromones in the environment. I’ve heard two Glacier stories of a bull elk that still had his antlers in the spring—very strange.

During the rut, females (cows) gather around a dominant bull elk (usually around 8 years old) in a group of 20 or more females, called a harem. The estrus cycle of a female elk is very short, only one or two days. Wikipedia says there are often a dozen or more failed attempts. Similar to a Grizzly Bear's delayed gestation, the elk reproduction is effected by their weight. Strangely, reproduction most likely occurs when the cow is 450 pounds. That's a pretty heavy animal! They should be having their young very soon. When they do, they will isolate themselves from the herd until the calf is large enough to escape predators. I’m wondering if the elk that were by themselves were about to have (or had) calves? Mother Nature is so cool! It all takes place every year without any human interfering! That’s awesome!

This one was smelling us from the truck!

I feel very fortunate to experience the wildlife first hand! Thanks Glacier for being protected!

Weather: Mostly cloudy, 40's (Sometimes I wonder if my thermometer is broken, it stays at 40 degrees!)

Chaos Blizzard

2009-05-13T21:10:00.000-06:00

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Is today really Tuesday? It seems like Thursday or some day that is later in the week—it feels like I’ve done more work this week for it to be a Tuesday. Either way, it’s Tuesday. It was a good day, too. We had a jumbled mess of employees showing up at the St. Mary Visitor Center. We had backcountry rangers, information technology guys, bookstore folks, media contractors, revegetation crews, and a few of our seasonal interpretive staff. By the afternoon things settled into a more calm disoriented mess, but we still got things done. It’s really hard to calm everyone down and get work done, when there are new things happening. New things are happening and new people are arriving. It was a good Tuesday.

The weather did prove to distract us a bit from our work. It decided blizzard a bit. In the St. Mary Valley it’s pretty easy for a rain cloud to come down the Continental Divide and carry snow blowing. The wind comes from the St. Mary Lake. It only makes sense that a sudden drop in elevation from the Continental Divide down to the lake creates a huge tunnel of flowing air. I looked outside and saw the snow blowing horizontally. It stuck to all the post and metal poles outside, but not too much on the ground.

Those were the two big events today: chaos and blizzard…it was a good mix.

Weather: 40’s-30’s Snow, rain and wind. Some random sunshine, too.