Don't Know Where I'm Going...: Due North

Every weekend I have managed to pack a bag, the bike and tent, chuck 'em in the back of the car and head to a recommended place. Having no set plan has worked well for me with road trips; there's no expectation, and so far it's never been a let down. So about 3 weeks ago I figured I should head North, it's an easy route on the American highway system and you can't really get lost. I set my sights on Glacier National Park. Glacier is known for pristine forests, alpine meadows, rugged mountains, and spectacular lakes. This was a sure bet. Despite end of season closure having no information centers open, I would be missing the hordes of camper vans, tour buses and people being in my frame during photo time! Yeah...road trip!

With 325 miles ahead of me, I made an early start, got to see the sunrise on a pretty frosty morning. Sunrises are magnificent in the right area and a great way to start the day. So, get your booty out of that bed!

Sunrise at Deer Valley

Skittish Cows

Skittish Antelope

While heading north on I15 for awhile the boredom was relieved when I decided to hop onto route 287 and then finally route 89 which took me straight to Glacier. What a magnificent drive the whole way, Flathead National Park to the west which rolls into Glacier, sugar coated peaks the whole way and hardly any traffic along the road.

Heading to Glacier

St. Mary's Lake

The majority of early European explorers came to this area in search of beaver and other pelts. They were soon followed by miners and, eventually, settlers looking for land. Railways eventually came along which allowed more people to enter into the northwest and smalls towns emerged. Around the turn of the century, people started to look at this area differently. For some, this location held more than minerals to mine or land to farm, they began to recognize that the area had a unique scenic beauty all to its own. By the late 1800s, some influential homies pushed for the creation of a national park. It took some time and funds but eventually President Taft signed the bill establishing Glacier as the country’s 10^th national park. So there you have it, a brief history on a unique National Park.

Top of going-to-the-sun road

Dusty peak

Glacier National Park is not named so much for its small glaciers, but for the effect of larger (and I mean massive) glaciers in the past. Ten thousand years ago, the topography of Glacier looked pretty much the same as now. Before that, enough ice covered the Northern Hemisphere to lower sea levels 300 feet. In places near the park, ice was a mile deep. That's a lot of frozen water!

Glacier National Park's diversity of habitat types creates opportunities for a wide range of animals. Everything from elk of the prairies to the snow-white mountain goats that roam the rocky slopes. Predator species such as the grizzly bear, gray wolf, elk, lynx, wolverine, cougar, mountain goat and bighorn sheep. These animals are more frequently seen than a grizzly bear, gray wolf, lynx, wolverine or cougar, but alas I did not see anything! Glacier does provides the core of one of the largest remaining grizzly bear populations in the lower 48 states. All these creatures and more are the keystone to a healthy ecosystem. The only thing I got to see were a few ground squirrels who can be noisy and nosy in the camp ground!