Hello from the East Side or what they (the locals) call the "wild side" of Glacier. Rugged terrain, spectacular views, and wildlife to boot. After breakfast at the Park Cafe, which was pretty darn good, we drove up the GTSR and it began to rain a bit so we decided to drive over to Chief Mountain. Chief Mountain is similar to the Devil's Tower monument. It holds big medicine for the Blackfeet Indians and even though there were some back country roads to take, Tam and I decided to respect their beliefs about the sacredness of the area and take a long look at this massive rock formation standing there tall and proud.
Afterwards we drove up to the US/Canadian border. The park is just as wonderful there I should think. There was a tree marked with several colored tags - indicating that the area had been frequented by grizzly bears. Just knowing that gave me the sense that we were truly in a wild place, unforgiving of mistakes.
On to the Many Glacier area. This area is dubbed the wildlife viewing point for the park. We had supper at the Ptarmigan Restaurant. It was very good and would recommend it. They are in the middle of renovations in the dining room. The old ceiling is being removed to expose the original beams and rafters! We got to go back in the area and check it out. It is going to be a show place. Hey! Another reason to come back - they keep piling up!
With supper done, the sun was beginning to sink low in the sky. We toured that area again, looking at the mountain goats and sheep. On the way out we spotted a black bear forging in the brush. Took a few pictures but the bear was pretty well hidden in the brush. Finally we started again on our way out and I spotted what I thought was a sheep in the road ahead - Tam with binoculars in hand pulled them up for a view and announced - grizzly bear!!! I could barely see it's back and had to agree with her. We drove slowly up to the rise in the road where we saw the bruin and she was long gone. I did notice, and it might be my imagination, the bent over grass, brush and twigs where she disappeared into the woods. A great finish to a great day.
Sorry for no pictures - it is a real chore just to get online - Plus we do not have cell phone service out here either. Another part of the East Glacier Wild Side!
(on that note, we will not be back in cell contact until Saturday so if you need to get a message to us, best way is by this sketchy internet that comes and goes for us to check email).
Catch you good folks tomorrow -
Jim & Tam
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