An early April hiking window opens: Holter, Glacier

 

Holter Lake with the Sleeping Giant in the background

  

Plenty to point out on our Holter Lake traverse

Two Med Lake is already largely clear of heavy ice

  

We found this scroungy young moose browsing willows on Pray Lake shore

  

Impressive colored rock below Running Eagle Falls

We've just had two of the most beautiful April days for hiking that I can remember.

And, I've taken full advantage with hikes to the Holter Lake area in the Big Belts and the Two Med in Glacier Park.

I'm still testing that left foot and can report it's performing beautifully. 

At Holter, we started the hike at Juniper Gulch, hit a high point, and traversed a ridge on a long loop.

Along the way we got breath-taking views of the Sleeping Giant and Oxbow Bend in the Missouri River and enjoyed a surprising number of early alpine flowers:  Pasque, prairie smoke, kitten tail, yellow bells, larkspur, douglasia, phlox, vetch, shooting stars, two kinds of biscuit root (lomatia) and rock cress.

The fabulous views of a glass-like, mirror Holter Lake were enhanced by bright blue skies and a light breeze.

The weather encouraged us the next day to go to Glacier National Park's Two Medicine area for a hike up the road to Two Med Lake.  The road is blocked at Running Eagle  (Trick) Falls making the trek a round-trip four-miler.

There were only patches of snow on the sides of the road, and no ice or snow on the road.

The north and east faces of the mountains had good snow up high, but there were open slopes on south and west slopes.

After going to the lake, we walked its shore back to Pray Lake where we spotted a scroungy looking young moose browsing willows and unfazed by our presence.  The road in the campground was also clear.

We normally make a late March-early April trip to Two Med Lake, but usually on skis, snowshoes or Yak-Tracks.  Some years at this time of year the snow is piled up well over our heads and cover the restrooms at the lake;  the campground is nearly impassible. 

Because the weather was so clear, Two Med attracted a crowd, many, we found, from the West side.

As we drove through East Glacier Park on the way to Two Med we saw the remains of several wind storms, the most recent March 19, that knocked down thousands of trees.  Many were piled in front of businesses.  There were some areas where formerly tree-covered patches were now reduced to dirt.  The trees in front of the East Glacier Lodge took a big hit and many were stacked in piles.  

I can't imagine what the backcountry trees or the Continental Divide Trail look like.

  

 

A painful way to start 2026

Katie with the late Josy McLean in 2022 off trail hike to Glacier's Margaret Lake

The late Mike Smith on our Highwood Center Ridge hike in 2025

  

Me on Bomback Hill in Helena

A selfie on Mount Helena, where I tested my post-operative foot

I thought things were bad in December after my surgeries and hospitalizations.

Those were nothing compared to what happened to Katie shortly after.

On Jan. 4 she was on her way to lead a Montana Wild snowshoe hike at Flesher Pass, when near the turnoff to the Lincoln Highway on Montana 200, a big truck crossed the center line, slamming into the car that was carrying Katie, killing Mike Smith, the driver, and backseat passenger Josy McLean and severely injuring Katie, who was in the front seat and Kayla Paisley behind Katie in the back.

Katie and Kayla were airlifted to St. Patrick's Hospital in Missoula.  Katie broke 13 ribs and her sternum and had multiple bruises and contusions and spent eight days there before I was able to get her home.

Then, for the next two months, Katie slept in a rented hospital bed I put in the front room and started the painful healing process that continues to this day.  Her body will heal, but there's been emotional damage from the accident and the death of our friends.

She's finally up and around with hopes that she'll be able to return to hiking sometime this summer.

In the meantime, my foot and gut have been healing and I've started to hike.  Having a healthy foot within five months seems like a miracle.  I'm still adjusting to some digestive issues now that I don't have a gallbladder. 

I've been taking it easy, starting with neighborhood walks, graduating to River's Edge Trail, and now hikes on Priest Butte near Choteau, Mount Helena and Bompart Hill in the Mount Ascension area in Helena.  We've also enjoyed the annual snow geese and tundra swan migrations at Benton Lake and Freezout Lake wildlife management areas. 

Needless to say, for the first time, I didn't back country ski.  This might have been fortuitous, as it was an unusually dry and mild winter. My friends complained about the lack of snow. 

I was sadly fortunate not to have signed up for Katie's snowshoe hike because I was recovering from my surgeries.

I need to honor Josy and Mike who died in the accident.  

Josy, 61,  was a frequent back country companion, because of Katie's hiking group, of which Josy was a member.  She was a cheerful and strong hiker, the strongest woman I have ever met.  

Mike Smith, 67,  was relatively new to Great Falls, a Montana native who spent most of his working career out of state, he returned to Montana upon retirement.   He was a delightful companion on the few hikes when he accompanied me.  The last such hike was the off-trail Pioneer Ridge hike in the Little Belts last September.  He was always good energy to be around.

Such a painful way to begin this new year.  

 

 

 

My foot surgery full of (upleasant) surprises

My left foot after surgery

 This has been the sickest month of my life.

I went to Missoula for the minimally invasive foot surgery on my left foot's large bunion and hammer toe on Nov. 6, and my entire world turned upside down.

The surgery went as planned and we returned to Great Falls the same day, but that evening and next morning everything became dystopian.

As I sobered up from the anesthesia, violent and painful acid reflux developed.  I began to vomit blood, which I later learned aspirated into my lungs, causing pneumonia.  

Then hiccups followed, at 2.5 to 3 second intervals that lasted day and night for four full days.

Luckily for me, Katie rushed me to the Benefis emergency room, which took me directly to ICU.

That became my home for the next six days as staff tried to tame the hiccups.

I was told later that the hiccups triggered a "type 2 myocardial infarction (heart attack)" because they deprived me of sufficient oxygen.  No real damage, but real scary. 

I was taken in for an endoscope to see what kind of damage the reflux had done to my esophogas.

Drugs and IVs everywhere.

I was not only off solid foods for five of seven days in the hospital (not that I wanted any), but the hiccups wouldn't let me sleep.When the drugs seemed to eliminate the hiccups I was discharged home, but returned to the ER within hours because they came back and I couldn't breathe.

Finally, though, some rest at home.

That didn't last long, though as I developed severe belly pains and Katie, once again, took me to ER.

That was Thanksgiving Eve.

At about 10:30 p.m., the ER doctor informed me that my gallbladder had died, was full of sludge and gangrene and would have to be removed.

At around 5:30 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning I was in a Benefis hospital bed recovering from gallbladder surgery.  It actually felt good:  no hiccups, no bellyache.

I could eat.  I could sleep.

The unfortunate casualty in all this was what started this cascade of ailments:  my left foot!

I'm now at home nursing that foot and  anticipating endless doctor and therapy visits.

Katie and I wonder if a sick gallbladder triggered by anesthesia was the cause.

I feel pretty good and am optimistic about my recovery. 

   

Cooper's Lake larch finale as foot surgery looms

Cooper's Lake at the height of the larch color

We were surprised to see gorgeous ground cover this late in the season

 

 

My left foot:  why I'm having surgery

My hiking, and most probably back country ski seasons are over.

I sit here writing this before I leave for Missoula for long-overdue left foot surgery.

The surgery is to repair an injury suffered six years when I struck a rock while hiking.  It didn't take long for a large hammer (second)  toe to develop that has bedeviled me since.  I can't get hard-topped shoes and most boots over the top of the toe.  I thought I could dodge surgery with wider boots and silicone sleeves to deal with the rubbing on the top of injured toe.  Then, a big bunion began growing and pushed the hammer toe over the third toe creating a sort of toe "sandwich."

Needless to say, hiking, even walking became problematic.

I chose a Missoula surgeon who is offering a minimally invasive technique that will drill into my toes through small holes where the toes will be straightened, shaved and secured with small pins.

I'll be off my feet completely for two weeks, unable to put a shoe on for six weeks and unable to hike or ski for 12 weeks to six months, depending on how I heal.  There will be some swelling during the healing process.

I'm hoping to have a hiking and backpacking season next year. 

In the meantime Katie and I got to enjoy my season-ending hike at Cooper's Lake near Ovando near the west end of the Scapegoat Wilderness.

We managed to time it for the height of the larch.

The deciduous tree that has needles like a pine, but turns a brilliant yellow and gold in the fall and drops those needles, was brilliant with color.

I'll do an update after my surgery during the healing process. 

 

State Parks, Rodgers Peak twice, Mount Helena, Beartrap Gulch

 

Gordon Whirry on a CDT precipice below Rodgers Peak

 

Scarlet huckleberries lit up the Rogers Pass Trail

The Painted Rocks as Katie walks across the top of the state park dam

We've been chasing October's spectacular colors as well as making progress on Katie's state parks project.

We visited grandkids in Salt Lake City and hit two state parks on the way there and four on the way back.The parks included:  Painted Rocks, Bannack, Clark's Lookout, Beaverhead Rock, Traveler's Rest and Fort Owen.

A week later, two more in the Missoula area, Council Grove and Frenchtown Pond and the St. Mary's Mission (not a state park, but it should be)  in Stevensville, as well as. 

That brings to more than 30 the parks Katie visited this year out of the 53, leaving 27 to go. 

We hiked at each of the parks and then over the past three weeks I climbed Mount Helena and Rodgers Peak on the Continental Divide Trail (twice) .

A highlight of this traveling frenzy was joining the Helena Outdoor Club for an exploration of the Beartrap Gulch trail near York. 

I had noticed the trailhead on our yearly visits to the Trout Creek Canyon at Vigilante Campground in the Big Belt Mountains of Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest, and when  the Outdoor Club offered it, I jumped at it.

It follows a tight gulch through a heavy forest of Ponderosa and Doug Fir that opened occasionally into grass.

It was an up and back hike of 9 miles that gained over 3,000 feet in elevation.  We got occasional views of limestone spires that mark this area adjacent to the Gates of the Mountains Wilderness.

Bob Bukantis of York (bearded) was our trip leader

The hike was led by Bob Bukantis, who lives near York and at age 76 has devoted himself to leading hikes in the York area.

I don't think I've seen a better trip leader.  He evenly paces his hikers, keeping them tightly together and grabbing their interest by sharing his deep knowledge of the Big Belts. 

The Beartrap Gulch is interesting in that there was once a road for a distance up its gut that has been converted for a way on a trail that parallels the hikers' trail, to accommodate mountain bikers. 

Despite this being the opening of rifle season, we encountered no hunters and only one other couple, who was known to our party of eight.

The Painted Rocks State Park was the most unusual of the parks we saw during this period, an impoundment of the West Fork of the Bitterroot River.  The "painted rocks" are bright green and yellow vegetation on the headwalls surrounding the canyon and lake.

The drive down the Bitterroot River from Lost Trails Pass was breathtaking for fall colors and wildlife.

We encountered herds of bighorn sheep and near Darby large herds of elk.  Likewise, going up the West Fork we saw numbers of elk that were quite casual about our presence.

I figure I've done Rodgers Peak about seven times this hiking season.  This past week there was good snow on the peak and adjacent bumps on the CDT.  The trail down to Rogers Pass was lit up in spots with scarlet huckleberry bushes. 

The state parks tour with Katie would fill a book, so I'll keep it now to the destination hikes. 

The courthouse at Bannack State Park

 

 

 

  

 

 

The best of Fall: Our Lake, Police Outpost (Alberta), Firebrand

Huckleberries are even better in Fall color

My favorite mountain on the Front, Walling Reef, on our drive to Glacier

We hit a large patch of orange color on the Our Lake hike

At the U.S. border from the Alberta side at Police Outpost Provincial Park

It's real Fall, colors and all.

We hiked to Our Lake in the Front, took a day trip to Police Outpost Provincial Park in southern Alberta, and caught spectacular huckleberries in full red color at Firebrand Pass Trail in Glacier Park.

We've been slowed by Katie's struggles with her blood cancer.  My hiking season will be over soon when I get surgery on my left foot's hammer toe and bunion that will put me out of commission for months.  Sadly, I'll lose the ski season for the first time in more than 50 years. 

Bringing summer to a close: Falls Creek colors, Glacier's Piegan Pass, Mount Aeneas in Jewel Basin, Cold Lake in Missions

Falls Creek

The Garden Wall at Piegan Pass

The Jewel Basin's Mount Aeneas summit ridge

This billy tried to block the top of Mount Aeneas

The huckleberries really showed off on the Mount Aeneas Trail

Brilliant fall color spangled the Mount Aeneas Trail hillsides

Lots of hiking in this final week of Summer.

Katie was organizing and pushing.

I was along for the ride, testing my left foot and its large bunion and hammer toe, that will undergo surgery in November.

The surgery will put me out of commission for 16 weeks to a half year, if I understand my orthopedic surgeon.  Healing for a guy my age takes more time.   I deeply regret that I'll miss the backcountry ski season.

With any luck I may be able to put on snowshoes at the beginning of Spring, and do some moderate hiking when the weather melts the snow.

 We were delighted by a very short hike to see the waterfalls on Falls Creek, and were surprised by the early show of autumnal colors.

It look as though the parking area for Falls Creek is undergoing a major upgrade that may include some camping or picnic spots.  

Then, we took off for Glacier and a 9-mile, 2,000 feet elevation gain day hike to Piegan Pass.  I'm always stunned by the beauty at the pass with the Garden Wall thrusting its jagged points to the sky.  Coming down there are sweeping views of the glaciers around Mounts Jackson and Blackfoot.  Going up ---- Piegan glacier and its several waterfalls.  We saw two immense bighorn sheep.

Instead of going home, we headed for Swan Lake and a two night stay at the Laughing Horse Lodge, a favorite, quirky getaway.  We saddened to find out that the owner, Kathleen Moon, is saying this is her last year of serving meals and may do tapas and cocktails in the future.  She's ready to sell this charming place.

The next morning we traveled to the Jewel Basin, where we hit the Mount Aeneas trailhead for the 7-mile, 2,000 feet, climb of Mount Aeneas that looms above the many lakes in the basin below.  We were greeted by five mountain goats below the summit, a treat that climbers have experienced for many years.  Unfortunately, wildfire smoke obscured some of the views towards Flathead Lake, but Glacier and the Swan Range as well as Hungry Horse Reservoir, were hazy, but viewable.  The ground colors ---- spirea, huckleberry, red osier ---- were outstanding.

On the way home we took a stab at hiking the Cold Lake Trail in the Mission Mountains Wilderness, but only went up about a mile, tired from our multiple days of hiking.

The week was a superb ending to Summer. 

A week's worth in Glacier: Sperry and Belly River country

 

Katie at a Sperry Glacier remnant

Above Comeau Pass

We saw tons of mountain goats

At one of the tarns below Comeau Pass

Getting to the top of the pass was tricky

We had two special trips in Glacier Park designed by Katie:  two nights at Sperry Chalet and three days in the Belly River Valley on a backpack trip.

Both were magnificent trips.  We reached Sperry via the nearly 14 miles route from Jackson Overlook through Gunsight and Lincoln passes.  We used the Chief Mountain trailhead to reach Lake Elizabeth head and foot for overnight stays and a day hike to Helen Lake.

The highlight of the Sperry trip occurred on the second day when we hiked to Comeau Pass to  view the Sperry Glacier.

The highlight of the Belly trip was Helen Lake, something I had only seen from the Ptarmigan Traverse, high above, and the Helen Lake Overlook on the Highline Trail.

We dealt with heat and smoke on both trips, but both abated enough that the hikes were enjoyable.

I had visited Sperry about a half dozen times in the past and had stayed there only one time, in 1985, in the old chalet before it burned in 2017. In my younger years I had done the 20 miles through-hike from Jackson Overlook to Lake McDonald and don't remember much trouble with it.  This time, however, I barely made the chalet because I had so badly dehydrated in the withering heat.  Or maybe becaus

e I've aged significantly since my last try.  I had also been there on a climb of Mount Edwards with the Glacier Mountaineering Society.

The chalet has been beautifully rebuilt in its original style.   The stay there is expensive:  $222 per night, per person.  The food was plentiful, but not particularly delicious. 

The trail through Gunsight Pass looking down on Lake Ellen Wilson is a must-do as it flanks Mount Jackson and offers exceptional views of the many-striped and colorful Gunsight Mountain.

 But it is hard to beat the trail construction on the way up to Comeau Pass that culminates in a stairway cut into the rock headwall.

On top there are amazing views of the glacier, its remnants and mountains in all directions.

The 6-mile hike down 3,600 feet to Lake McDonald is through an old burn and not terribly interesting.

As usual in Montana we bumped into people we knew at the chalet:  Jake Bramante, the Glacier map maker and hiker who climbed Edwards the day we did Comeau;  the woman who runs the Granite Park Chalet, who remembered us, Kathie Larson Aasheim;  and a former colleague at the Great Falls Tribune, Kathy McLaughlin and her sister Beth.  Kathy went on to become a foreign correspondent in China.  Beth was Montana's Supreme Court administrator.

The Belly River ranger

The packs were oh, so heavy

Katie in Helen Lake below Ahern Glacier

We had a group of seven of us on the trip into the Belly.

 It seems as though the Belly has become a regular backpack destination. 

 Smoke obscured our views going into the Belly and a light rain coming out.

I had backpacked into Lake Elizabeth at least a half dozen times in the past 40 years, but had never gotten into Helen Lake.  There are tremendous views of Many Glacier's Mount Wilbur and Iceberg Peak and Ahern Pass.  We hiked just below the mighty Mount Merritt with its Old Sun Glacier and its many waterfalls , viewed Ipasha Glacier on the side of Mount Ipasha and saw Ahern Glacier emptying into Helen Lake.

I was particularly thrilled to see Merritt from this angle, a peak I had climbed from Mokowanis Junction more than  25 years ago and the famed, adjacent and unclimbed Lithoid Cusp shard. 

It was fun to pick out the high mountain goat trail that is the Ptarmigan Traverse high above us.

I was quite pleased I could still handle hikes and backpack trips like this at age 77.

The waterfall melt off Merritt Peak's Old Sun Glacier

 

Below Mount Merritt and Old Sun Glacier

 

 

 

 

Moving too fast to post: North Dakota surprises us with great tourist stops, Two Med away from crowds, Black Sand State Park, Brush Lake State Park, a Front geology tour, Pilgrim Creek and Pioneer Ridge loop

The Des Lacs Wildlife Refuge in Kenmare, ND

The Peace Garden north of Bottineau, ND reminded me of Versailles

The Peace Garden featured an unusual display of cacti

A trip highlight was St. John's University in Minnesota with its fantastic architecture

 The highlight of our recent trips were the tourist stops in North Dakota as we traveled to visit grandkids in Minneapolis.

We had exceptionally good and scenic experiences at the International Peace Garden on the North Dakota-Manitoba border, the adjacent Turtle Mountains State Recreation Area, the town of Kenmare, a picturesque and out of the way town on gorgeous Des Lac Wildlife Refuge, and Rugby, the geographical center of North America.

Unfortunately Canadian fires' smoke fouled the air and affected visibility. 

Since I attend the University of North Dakota I had always wanted to see the Peace Garden and Turtle Mountains, which rise about 800 feet above the treeless plain around them.  I was surprised by the lush vegetation and varieties of trees in this pocket range.

The Peace Garden was established between Manitoba and North Dakota in the 1930s and is a symbol of friendship and cooperation between the US and Canada.

The garden is open entry and you can wander into Manitoba on trails that continue from North Dakota.

The garden itself is reminiscent of the layout of the Versailles gardens in France and is beautifully planted.  

Katie at summit of hiking trail at Black Sands State Park on Hauser Lake

Black Sands State Park/BLM White Sands Campground

 This was a quick trip as part of Katie's quest to get all the Montana state parks.  This is a short distance away on the banks of the Missouri, reached from Hauser Lake.

 

The highlight of this trip was a short hike from a beachfront campground to a high point on a nice trail with great views of the Hauser impoundment.  The campground was wall to wall hard-sided campers, but still pleasant.

  

We followed with an extremely steep hike to the ridge above the White Sands campground adjacent to the Black Sands State Park.  The area was virtually empty.

 

We dealt with high heat and some wildfire smoke. 

 

Katie on trail off Looking Glass Pass in Glacier Park with Two Med in background

Two Med off the grid at Looking Glass Pass

We had a pleasant group hike on both sides of Looking Glass Pass in the Two Med area, going to the former BIA lookout site atop the Two Med Ridge on the Blackfeet Reservation, and then walking an old, rutted road on the other side into Glacier Park through a barbed wire fence to a spot above an unnamed lake at the foot of Spot Mountain.

 

Along the Teton River Canyon on Geology Tour

 Front Geology tour

Nicely lead by the Old Trail Museum, with a ridge walk at the Nature Conservancy's Pine Butte Swamp, usually off limits to the public.

 

I hadn't realized there was an A.B. Guthrie Trail that offered incredible views of Ear Mountain.

 

The trip took us to many places I had already seen, but it was well curated.

 

We crossed Pilgrim Creek several times on our hike

Crossing Belt Creek to reach Pilgrim Creek

Pilgrim Creek in Little Belts

 Very scenic hike not far from where the Sluice Boxes State Park hike ends at the Logging Creek Bridge.

 

It had been years since I had hiked deeply into this area, once included in a Montana Omnibus Wilderness Bill that was pocket vetoed by President Reagan.

 

The trailhead is reached on the Logging Creek Road opposite the Raynesford turnoff on US 89.  It is a 7 miles ride on a narrow and tight rocky road.

 

The trail passes below high cliffs before it drops to Belt Creek, which must be crossed to access Pilgrim Creek, that flows through a very narrow and heavily forested valley.  Pilgrim Creek is unusual for its solid limestone bottom.

 

Outside hunting season it is rarely used.

 

I've backpacked the length of creek to its Divide Road source.

 

We went in three miles and turned around on a scorching, hot day.

 

Very isolated and quiet trail.

 

Pioneer Ridge loop

I took first-timer Mike Smith on this 5-mile, sometimes off-trail loop that I often do when I don't have much time.

We follow the trail near the Neihart Ranger Station for a couple of miles to the ridge line, about a 2,000 feet gain.  We then find remnants of what must have been a trail, but which the Forest Service abandoned to a rocky outcropping high point and then steeply down to an open, grassy elk meadow that circles back to our trailhead. 

 

 

Catching up with a busy summer: Our Lake, Patrol, Bitterroot, Northwest Montana state parks

Visiting with Patrol Mountain lookout ranger Samsara Chapman Duffey

One of my favorite views ---- looking down the ridgeline from Patrol Mountain

 Summer weather has defied my expectations of fire and smoke.

Yes, it's been abnormally hot, but we've experienced periods of cool and wet to off that.

That has allowed us to hike more than I thought possible including recent trips to Rocky Mountain Front/Bob Marshall Wilderness favorites like Our Lake and Patrol Mountain, visits to more Montana state parks in Northwest Montana with an opportunity to enjoy an early and generous huckleberry crop.  And, there's been the pursuit of wildflowers like the bitterroot.

I particularly enjoyed my annual trek up Patrol Mountain, a 3,000 foot - 11.4 mile climb to visit Samsara Chapman Duffey, who is spending her 29th summer as lookout over vast stretches of the Bob Marshall and Scapegoat wilderness areas.  I think it was my 26th visit her and her dog, Mae, on a gorgeous and lightly smokey afternoon.  I got to the top, which included wading Straight Creek, in about 3 hours 10 minutes.  I've been climbing this mountain yearly (and sometimes more) for 44 years.

Classic Our Lake scenery

I was surprised to see snow at the bottom of the Our Lake approach waterfall and in the great gully on the lake's south flank.  We tested the snowfield in the gully and found it too icy to ascend.  I make a mistake thinking I could immediately upclimb the adjacent hillside, wasting time and ruining our opportunity to do the Our Lake-Headquarters Pass traverse.  It was still a great day of hiking.

Katie put me on the road to tag Northwest Montana state parks starting with Milltown and Beavertail.  The Milltown Park, in particular, is a fascinating history lesson on dam removal.  Beavertail is really a quiet camping spot just east of Missoula on the Clark Fork.  Despite being high summer we found few folks at either spot.

One of the Buddhas

At the center of the Buddha garden

Then it was on to a couple of U.S. 93 attractions:  the Garden of a Thousand Buddhas and the St. Ignatius Church.  The Buddhist site is quite spectacular, and a real oddity for Montana, not to mention its placement on an Indian Reservation.  I'll return to this spot and spend more time.  There's much to learn here in a large area dominated by Buddhist statues and prayer flags.

Up the road at St. Ignatius we stopped at this mission church, a place I hadn't been in nearly 50 years, and marveled at the more than 50 murals in the church done by Brother Joseph Carignano, a self-taught Italian.

The St. Ignatius altar piece with murals

Then it was on to our overnight stay at Quinn's Hot Springs Resort, a beautiful and pricey spa where we had a spectacular meal and enjoyed the canyon scenery not far from where the Flathead flows into the Clark Fork River.  We had a nice rest.

Onward the following day along the Clark Fork River, we stopped at Thompson Falls State Park with its lovely camping area, sand beaches and tall Ponderosa pine trees.  In the city we also enjoyed the interpretive dam park. 

Katie at Thompson Falls State Park on the Clark Fork

We stopped at the earthen Noxon Rapids dam and power plant  and then, it was on to Libby up the Bull River Valley beneath the towering Cabinet Mountains Wilderness Area.  The driving here made me a tad uncomfortable with dense conifer and cedar forests right up to the road.  I was fearful of animals jumping out in front of the car.  It was a lovely drive, though I've concluded I prefer the open East Side of the Divide.

I had forgotten how sparsely populated this area of the state is.  All the hype is on the rich out of staters moving in, grabbing up land, blocking access, constructing mansions and sending property values into the stratosphere. 

We got a run down motel in Libby, but had a nice meal in a local brew pub.

The Kootenai Falls cascades

The Swinging Bridge over the Kootenai River

Our final day we hit the Kootenai Falls and swinging bridge county park to stretch our legs. Then we stopped Logan State Park between Libby and Kalispell, not much more than a campground and a gorgeous lake.  No real hiking here.  There was a brief spot at Lower Bitterroot Lake, where Katie's folks once owned a cabin.

On the way home we visited in Pinnacle and friends, enjoyed a great lunch from their garden produce and were introduced to this tiny settlement just west of Essex.  Tons of huckleberries, the best crop I've ever seen, waylaid us.

We rested in East Glacier Park at Serrano's for a Mexican meal and then back home.

We had covered 725 miles over these three days.

We had seen so much it will take me time to absorb it all.

Yes, I enjoyed the trip.

The bitterroot bloom near Rogers Pass