MWRT – 2025 – Day Two Columbia Falls

Glacier National Park – so excited to finally enter this national treasure!

I have literally been thinking and dreaming about coming to Glacier National Park for years. Think about the name itself, what a name! Glaciers are icebergs on portion of the continent gauging mountains and valleys into the earth over eons. It’s quite an amazing thing when you take a moment to think it over. I’m hoping to see a glacier in the next few days, if we are able to hike into the way way interior of the park. It will be quite a physical accomplishment, especially with the back injury I’ve been recovering from for the past three weeks.

Today was a good test as we hiked about five an a half miles today on the Cedars Trail and the Avalanche Lake trail. We started the day with a bite of left over cold pizza from the night before where we went to the North Fork Pizza joint in downtown Columbia Falls. Soon we were at the entrance to Glacier National Park where we asked a man driving a 3/4 ton Chevy Truck to take our picture at the entrance sign. This guy as a splitting image of Peter Dinklage, the star of the hit HBO series, Game of Thrones. If you have seen this series, Mr. Dinklage played the dwarf mastermind whom served as the brains behind the throne throughout the series. Anyway, I digress. Here is the photo he took for us.

This day was a overcast as a rain storm has drenched the area over night and continued to hang around throughout the morning and into the afternoon until it finally let loose again just as we had made it back to the trail head. The trail wound up along a stream that ran very strongly and had obviously cut into the stone over the centuries leaving cuts and curves all the way along. We followed the Trail of the Cedars, about 1 mile, and then continued on with the Avalanche Lake trail, about 5 more.

The day was such a wonderful time. I hadn’t been around my cutie for a few weeks so we had the chance to reconnect and enjoy each other’s company for a five and a half mile hike. We made a few ham and cheese sandwiches and loaded our backpacks with food and water, and headed up the trail. Our first experience with this wonderful park will be hard to beat in the days ahead, we will have to see what unfolds. I was actually sort of relieved on this day because I didn’t have any plan to attack a casino and play Blackjack. No more Blackjack for the next week until we travel to Black Hawk Colorado and meet up with my sister Sandy and her husband John.

Interesting fact, back in 1981, the year Kathy and I got engaged in Abilene at the Royal Inn Steak House, Kathy and I went to my parents house right after our engagement dinner where I gave her the engagement ring to announce our pending nuptials. My sister Sandy happened to be visiting that very evening so she was there for our announcement.

What is really fun is that when Sandy heard our announcement that we planned to wed on August 8th of that year 1981, she immediately was like, “no way my little brother is getting married before me”! Of course, she and my brother-in-law John had been planning there own wedding date for awhile. So what did Sandy do? My sister who never let me win a game of Monopoly or Uno, or double solitaire with an opponent which we called Demon? Of course, she told John that they were getting married August 1st, one week before Kathy and I!

Back to Glacier, we were able to capture some great photos even though the day was kind of dreary the whole time.

The Avalanche Lake was a great little spot surrounded by tall mountains with streams racing down the sides plummeting into the lake. It was about 2.7 miles from our parking spot. There was quite a few people already gathered at the initial entry point to the lake so we wandered on a little farther in to find a spot to stop. I brought a Beorne Chargers throw blanket to picnic on so we looked for a spot of grass to spread it on but found only wet soaked grass along the water edge. We selected a benched cut from a split cedar log to land on and take a rest. We had a really nice view.

I had never actually used this Boerne Chargers throw blanket. It has been sitting on a shelf in the closet for the last 12 or so years. But, before embarking on this epic road trip, I imagined Kathy and I in a secluded wooded grove on the edge of a little lakeshore, having a nice little picnic. So, I packed it and put in my back pack this morning with the hope of using it. Well, we didn’t find a nice grassy spot so instead I just laid it down over this old cedar bench. Nice.

This was the moment when Kathy and I really connected. All our lives together since we were 16 years old, we have laughed together because our interaction together has always been full of stark examples of how completely opposites we are. So as I was gathering up my little Boerne Chargers throw blanket I said “you know, I’ve never actually used this blanket before”. And what did sweet Kathy have to say to that? She objected and stated very directly, “of course you have, you just used it here today”! I cracked up and made fun, and she laughed at how I was so amused and how she found my point of view to be pretty funny too. Great day to be together in Glacier Park.

I finished my ham and cheese and made ready to make the two and a half mile hike back to the car. I noticed I had made a couple of new friends who invited themselves to share my lunch. Those slugs are kind of disgusting 🙁

Kathy was ready to go and I had to capture the colorful persona she brings wherever she goes.

We made it back down the trail as the rains became heavier. People were still heading up the trail. You don’t come all this way to visit Glacier and not plow through the weather ups and downs. We drove back to our cabin, picked up some provisions, and planned on some spaghetti and and bottle of wine for dinner. We will visit Logan’s Pass on the morrow.