I booked the campground for five days and figured we would have plenty of time to see the park, therefore, I spent day one doing repairs. The trailer's nose piece was separating again and I had to drive into Columbia Falls about 15 miles away to find a hardware store. I got the repairs done and we went to the park the next day, Sunday.
The late morning sun was warm. About 90+ degrees warm. It was actually 103 degrees the day we got in so I was dressed in my usual tee shirt, shorts, and flip flops this day.
We parked at the Apgar Visitor's center and I prodded Doreen to let us take the shuttle system to the various points of interest in the park.
I just did not feel like driving and she was very anxious on the bus. This was the proverbial case of getting back on the bus (horse) after it throws you. The ride to Logan Pass Visitors Center was two legs- the first a large shuttle to Avalanche Pass and then a transfer to a smaller shuttle to Going To the Sun Road to Logan.
Going to the Sun is an engineering marvel. Built on the side of the mountain rising 6646 feet at it's highest.
Scenery along the way.
Our destination was Logan Pass where views of the glaciers are spectacular. As our shuttle driver approached the parking area of Logan she was diverted from the entrance and informed us of an emergency situation in the parking lot. She checked with the park police and we were cleared to debus.
As you can see here it is getting a little chilly. The clouds and the elevation have dropped the temperature to about 60 degrees.
Well, come to find out all traffic was stopped coming in and out due to an air ambulance ready to land in the parking lot for a medical emergency.
The line for the return shuttle back to Apgar Village was growing because of the delay. No traffic was coming into the parking lot while the evacuation was in progress. Also high winds were a concern and an ambulance was on standby in case the helicopter could not navigate in the high winds.
We took a quick look around and did not want to get stuck in the ever growing line.
The helicopter finally takes off into the gloomy, ashy sky and the crowd awaits their shuttle.
As fate would have it the shuttles became stacked up waiting to get in and the first half of the line eventually got carted away quickly when the traffic was opened up. Unfortunately we were in the second half of the line. We would have to wait for the shuttles to return. A round trip would take how long?
Now lets do the math: 45 minutes from Avalanche Pass to Logan, 30 minutes from Avalanche to Apgar- best case scenario was the shuttles would be back in about two hours.
At first I was just chilly. I could tough it out. Only 60 degrees, no big deal.
Two hours on line and I was shivering. I would periodically seek shelter from the gale force winds in the nearby restrooms, peeking out to see if the shuttle was there.
About 8 PM the next convoy of shuttles arrived and we were on board. The sun was setting on the Going to the Sun Road and I relished the heater on the shuttle.
As we rode our shuttle back to the Apgar area we went by Lake McDonald, which earlier in the day we saw smoke billowing from the north end of the lake.
Now the area was ablaze.
We were bearing witness to the Howe Ridge fire which would cause evacuations and the closing of Going to the Sun Road from Apgar to Logan Pass. Apparently a lightning strike started the fire Saturday evening and had spread due to the high winds on Sunday.
We were screwed for more park visits the rest of the week. Once again wildfires played a prominent role in our travels. The only way to see any of the park would be to drive around to the east entrance at St. Mary's, a two plus hour drive. I wouldn't mind a two hour drive but, to drive that far and see smoke ensconced glaciers was reminiscent of Crater Lake. I knew that visibility was going to be limited.
Our view of the road going to Glacier:
We made the best of it. We found an establishment with a name ending in "ery", as in distillery this time:
Nothing like a whiskey tasting flight at 1 o'clock in the afternoon.
We popped into Glacier just for something to do, but with the road closed we only went to Apgar Village and the south end of the lake.
After enjoying what we could, we moved on to Hardin Montana. The ride took us through the Flathead National forest and, as usual, the ride was very scenic (but smokey).
Hardin Montana is near the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, formally the Custer Battlefield Monument. Coincidentally the 100'th anniversary of the Crow Nation fair was underway as well. Custer did not fight against the Crow, but the Sioux. The Crow were actually employed as army scouts and received pay equivalent to a private in the army, about $14 a month plus 40 cents a day if they used their own horse and saddle.
The most famous story of Custer is the "last stand". Last Stand Hill is a monument to the troopers and officers of the 7'th cavalry where each fell during fighting on June 25, 1876 along with Lt. Col. G.A Custer.
No one is sure of the exact circumstances of the deaths of he and his entire command. The bodies were interred where they were discovered after the battle. Custer infamously split his forces into thirds and no one was sure of his whereabouts until it was too late. Overwhelmed by superior numbers of Sioux warriors the entire detachment of 220 men were annihilated.
Throughout the park, white, marble markers indicate the spots where soldiers were felled during battle.
A national cemetery also occupies the grounds and was filled to capacity by 1973.
A very interesting portrayal of the battle along a five mile drive with an audio tour via cell phone is well worth the time.
Next up was the Crow Nation Festival.
The tipi capital was correct. The entire fairgrounds were inhabited by tipis like these:
This was an actual Indian reservation and we whites were definitely a small minority attending. The festivities started off with a color guard and presentation of the participants for dances and other programs.
The participants were all attired in traditional costume and very vibrant.
All ages participate and the Crow people are very proud and patriotic.
I was moved by their love of country considering the history of the native Americans and the US government.
Now I am really caught up. We leave for North Dakota tomorrow and the Midwest beyond that.
