Journeys of a kayaking dancing potter: Ridiculous Road Trip #1, Part 22

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June 13-15
When we were in Seattle at the beginning of the month, we managed to get reservations for 5 days at Yellowstone National Park. We had 5 days until we could check in. So we added some extra miles by heading north to Glacier National Park!

We crossed into Montana and stopped in a little town called Hot Springs. Our breakfast had been pretty sparse and we were starving, so we stopped at a little diner called PJs. While we ate, we were highly entertained by the local old gents who were holding court in the corner of the restaurant. There were stories about getting caught without their "shorts", and I was very sad that I had missed the beginning of that story. Then there was a convoluted tale about demolition derbies and the how the derbies had been ruined by the cheaters in the next county over. It was awesome.

As we started to drive out of town, we were lured by the chance at trying out the local hot springs, and on the advice of a local, we ended up at "Rose's Plunge".

After a nice relaxing soak (and thankfully the sulfur smell went away as we dried off). And then the skies opened up and it poured all the rest of the way to Glacier Park.

As usual, we managed to snag one of the last spots available in the campground. And with the rain, I wanted to put up our awning/canopy. Doug wasn't sure it would fit on our site, but I was convinced it would. It did, but just barely. Then it rained for the rest of the day, so we played board games all night.

The next morning, Doug took a shot at hiking up a mountain, braving stern warning signs about bears and big cats. When he returned back to camp, he sai that this particular trail judged the weak and unworthy...and Doug was judged unworthy. He came back to camp in time for a nap and lunch. After a nice relaxing afternoon, we opted for a different hike around Lake MacDonald. It was sunny and gorgeous.

And the bear grass was in full bloom.

The next day was a little damp and overcast. We decided to drive out to Goat Lick Overlook at the south edge of the park. It was sadly lacking in goats.

Goat(less) Lick Overlook

We stopped for lunch in Hungry Horse, and finally got some Huckleberry ice cream.

After lunch, we decided to drive up to Going-to-the-Sun road, at least to the point were it was still open to traffic. We hiked along the road for a bit, then hiked the Giant Cedars trail. Doug decided to take the uphill hike Avalanche Falls, as I finished the Cedars trail.