Barbara's Birthday and the FFFFFF

August 18-21, 2015

 

Front: Jules, 2nd Row: Barbara, Jane, Raven, Marybeth, Debbie, 3rd Row: (Terri's daughter), Terri, C.J.

Debbie was going, and Jules, Terri, Raven, Marybeth, and maybe Christina if she was back from the Bay Area. I could come along as the token male. There was some concern about the smoke from all the summer fires, not to mention the heat, but we were definitely going to attend come fire or low water.

18 Aug, Tues - Although C.J. was really busy trying to write two articles for the October magazine, we got off fairly early with a load of food, flying and floating gear. After all it was at the beginning, the FFF gathering. The intention being to do a Float on the Rogue, eat Food on the deck of the Galice Store café and then Fly the glassoff. After the usual slowdowns to get gas at Covington and Roseburg, we got to the yurt sometime after 1700. We figured we'd be the last to arrive for dinner at 1800 but no one was there but Barbara. Debbie, the dinner organizer, had gone directly to Woodrat to get in a flight and didn't get back until 1830. So I got some dry cornhusks and twigs and managed to get the Weber charcoal grill fired up. We threw on the unhusked corn and some zucchini slices as soon as Debbie arrived, which was shortly after Raven and Forrest and Jane, a pilot from Bend got there. We moved the veggies aside and added the salmon filets and soon dinner was ready. Throw in a loaf of C.J's bread and it was a feast. Raven had brought a tres leches cake for dessert. By the time dinner was over the temperature had cooled off nicely and the fan was hardly needed in the yurt.

The pirate raft

19 Aug, Wed - Right up to an hour before we were leaving, we weren't sure if C.J. and I were going to join the rafters to make six, or if we were going to try our untested skill in the Sevylor Tahiti. When Terri and her daughter Meghan opted in, the raft was full. I pumped up the rubber duckie and tied it on the roof rack. We all met at the Applegate Store and carpooled from there. Marybeth rode with us and kept us entertained with her tales of traveling  in Australia. I had to stop and add a tie to the
front of the kayak to keep it from folding up - it was definitely

That's us in the rubber duckie

not as rigid as our fiberglass boat. It was almost an hour to our put-in point downstream from Indian Mary CG (Josephine County) at Ennis Riffle even taking the shortest route. We stopped at an overlook above Hellsgate to see a swarm of yellow inflatables rafted up waiting to go through a rapid. At Ennis, we put the seats in our boat and Jules helped get the two hardshell river kayaks ready for her and Debbie. Everyone else loaded the blue raft from outfitter Ferron's Fun Trips - more F's to add to the FFF. Apparently no one in our group had ever run this section of rapids above Galice. All we knew was that they were Class I-II. It wasn't until we were most of the way down to Almeda that we found out that Ferron had provided the raft with a basic guide to the rapids in the form of a simple map. [If  I had had access to the internet the previous night I would have tried to find description of the rapids online, but that wasn't going to happen way up Humbug Creek at the yurt where even cell phones have no service.] Anyway, C.J. and I knew enough to avoid the big rocks and holes and to look for the V. Jules, who is a very experienced river runner also pointed out that we should aim for the white peaks rather
 than the

Jules

Wet Debbie below the rapids

Debbie getting everybody else wet

hollows. Debbie was not as lucky as us and flipped in the first big set of waves and lost her GoPro which she was wearing on her head. There were maybe a half-dozen sets of rapids interspersed with nice, flowing water - good for splashing and supersoakers. We stopped for a break and a swim on a beach in an eddy below Galice after avoiding a particularly big hole, and then we reached Almeda, another Josephine County campground and boat launch. Ferron met us there with a van and a flatbed trailer to shuttle us back to Ennis. By then it was after 1500 and definitely time for some lunch. We ate on the deck overlooking the river at the Galice Store. The food wasn't memorable but the company was lively. Hoping for a glassoff flight at Woodrat, we returned to the yurt to get our wings and then to meet the rest of the pilots, and Marybeth who was going to drive, at Longsword. As we passed Hunter's LZ on the way to mid-launch we could see the windsock showing N and so it was no surprise to find Rick packing up and heading off to chase Norm and Nathan who had gotten to 8500 a bit earlier and had flown to Applegate Lake (Norm to the far end). Debbie launched to the NW but she got worked so hard that no one else showed any interest in taking off. Paul Murdoch showed up as well. [C.J. returned a call to Rich Hass and found out that the article she had been working so hard on for the past several days couldn't be used for reasons of liability.]  After hanging out with other pilots at Longsword with wine and beer, we went back to the yurt and enjoyed some more of Raven's cake.  It had been a pretty long day.

20 Aug, Thu - After breakfast with Barbara and Debbie, we headed in to Longsword to try to get a flight before it got too thermally. Barbara had a dermatology appointment in Medford at 1400 so she wanted to fly before 1130. Jane and Marybeth drove everyone up and we all got to fly, even Jules who hadn't flown for several months. I flew for only 12 minutes landing in the bailout LZ where I was joined by Dan Wells and Jules. Barbara came over and shuttled me back to Longsword so I could get my car and return to pick up Jules and Dan (but Dan got a ride with Marybeth). C.J. and Debbie got good, long flights. So did Norm, Nathan, Rick, and Jane who got to fly to Longsword for her second time. Most of us ended up going to the Honeysuckle Café in Ruch for a tasty lunch; I had a 3-tortilla tostada and C.J. had a banh mi Vietnamese sandwich, but we shared. C.J. and I went back to the yurt but around 1700 we thought we ought to go to Longsword in case Barbara wanted to fly (we had her gear). She showed up but didn't have any interest in flying. We called Kevin Lee on my phone (C.J.'s phone had no service for some reason) and arranged to drop off her non-transmitting PTT at Christina's Air B'n'B. We visited with Christina and Jane for a while and then decided to see if we could get hold of Consumer Cellular before we got out of cell range back at the yurt. After a 30 min. wait on hold we started back along Rte 238 and halfway there we finally got through. It turned out that C.J.'s new iPhone5S was not on the AT&T system but had a T-Mobile sim card. Apparently there's no T-Mobile service around Ruch. Consumer Cellular mailed a new ATT sim card to us. Back at the yurt C.J. whipped up a stir fry with a few eggs for dinner with Barbara. Then we finished up the last of the cake. I did some packing so we could leave in the morning.

21 Aug, Fri - We had breakfast with Barbara and Debbie, packed up and cleaned the yurt and hit the road between 9 and 10. We didn't have enough gas to be sure to make it to Roseburg so we got $20 worth at Arco in Grants Pass. We had contacted Mark F about C.J.'s intermittent transmitting problem and he said to come by his workplace and he'd take a look at the radio and give us a tour. His tests seemed to indicate that it was a blown front end (whatever that means) and he could get a part and fix it. Then he showed us around Korvis which was pretty interesting especially the 3D printers and the DNA genome mapper. We continued north up Rte 99 then east to Salem where we wound around to the Costco gas station on fumes. There was the expected traffic slowdown going through Portland so it took 45 minutes. Then we stopped for dinner in Chehalis at Quiznos. We were home around 2100 (sundown is now at 2015...summer is winding down).

Rat Race - 2015

12-21 Jun 2015

This is the thirteenth annual Rat Race and C.J. has been to every one of them. I made it to the first one which was held over a long weekend (Memorial Day?) or maybe after school was out. Then I missed the next few due to work schedule. C.J. must have already been retired from teaching and working as the editor of  HG & PG magazine by then so she was able to attend. Thanks to Barbara Summerhawk we've had a place to stay in her yurt for the last ten (?) years which has made the whole trip much more pleasant. This year was the first I can remember that had eight flying days in a row - no time off to recuperate from the gaggles and long hours of flying.

12 Jun, Fri – Got started around 0815 figuring that it was going to take eight hours to reach Rat Race HQ in Ruch, OR. We stopped for gas at Costco in Olympia and hit the rest rooms at Fred Meyer. Just before the Columbia River bridge at Vancouver, we ran into slow traffic that went away as soon as we got into Oregon (but the traffic was backed up in the other direction all the way to Portland). We stopped to fill up with gas again at Costco in Eugene. The GPS suggested getting off I-5 in Grants Pass but we went another 15 miles or so to Gold Hill and took the route that goes through Jacksonville. We got in just exactly at 1700 which was when the volunteer meeting was supposed to start. Eventually it got going with many fewer volunteers than usual and ended around 1815. Meanwhile, C.J. had registered so we were ready to head for the yurt and the special dinner that Debby V was preparing. There was corn, asparagus, skewers of shrimp, scallops and onion, plus garlic bread and Martinelli’s cider. We ate on Barb’s deck. Chris A was missing because he had stopped in Portland to have his newly replaced front suspension checked at Les Schwab. We got to bed around 1015 and it was already getting pretty chilly.

13 Jun, Sat – Up at 0630 – Brrr! I set up the Coleman stove on the porch of the yurt and prepared oatmeal for the three of us (Chris had arrived around 2330). We headed over to the HQ shortly after 0830 and sat through the usual practice day meeting. Around 1100 we got on the school bus and went up the hill. I helped the guy who was preparing hamburgers by manning the cashbox and collecting the $5 until noon. After the pilot meeting I helped David Le check people out as they geared up for launch. It was after 1500 by the time everyone had been processed. Later I drove down in the Civil van with David to the HQ. I got a shower and hung out until the required pilot meeting at 1800 (late as usual). The meeting was followed by a meal; Gail had made several pans of “Mexican lasagna”, very good, lots of salad and a big batch of brownies (some were “Aztec brownies” with some spiciness). I served the vegetarian lasagna (and a pan of stuffed peppers which were available only to people requiring a gluten-free entrée).

14 June, Sun, Flag Day – Another pilot meeting (and a third reminder about the “no-land LZ’s, especially No.5 for which Mike Haley had received a registered letter and the pilots had to sign a roster indicating they had been informed). C.J. and I rode up with David Le and others in the Civil van. I did a little fluffing with the SuperClinic and then helped check in the pilots. I videoed C.J.’s launch (good) and her return to Woodrat after making the other turnpoints. The goal was out at Phils on the Applegate on the way to the dam and she made it almost there landing at Camero. She could not reach any retrievers so hitched a ride back to HQ. I met her there after riding down with the retired Navy guy who has been cooking hamburgers on launch and driving the Penske truck with our wings to launch. We heard that Jared had thrown his reserve and landed in a tree and that someone had landed in the No-land LZ5! (both true) Dinner was provided by a catering service and was a benefit for the charities that the Hunter family support – Magdalene and Godfrey from Mali. There was BBQ chicken or pork, potato salad and a mixed greens salad. Later we went to Brad Gunnuscio’s mentoring session on reserves, speedbar, and other techniques. We were back pretty early to the yurt.

Pilots meeting and Brad's hammock on  launch

15 Jun, Mon – The 0900 pilot meeting was optional but we went in early anyway since I had forgotten to empty the garbage. We also stopped at the Ruch Store to use the ATM but there was none so the owner let us get $50 using our debit card for $1.45. After the meeting we got a ride to launch with David Le in the Civil van. I listened to the “task” for the Superclinic (fly to Rabies then to Longsword, repeat) then launched early at 1115. I sank down to mid-launch and then was able to scratch enough to eke out 21 min before landing in the NW corner of the LZ. I got a ride up with some Superclinic guys and spent the rest of the day fluffing wings in the increasingly windy conditions. Back down at the LZ I was talking to Susan Brockway and she said she had heard that glassoff was not going to be good, so I crossed that off my list of possibilities. C.J. and I got (overcooked) burgers at HQ for dinner. When we headed back to the yurt we could see a whole crowd of people skyed-out at the glassoff (so much for the forecast!).

16 Jun, Tues – Same as the previous day but I launched a little later and it was soarable. After working several thermals I realized that I was not enjoying the experience anymore. I crossed partway to Burnt but I was only at 3500 when I did, so I had to turn back before hitting any lift on the slope. It now looked a long ways back to the LZ and I wasn’t sure that I’d get there or have to land near the feedlot. But I ran into some zero-sink and then into some lift along the east edge of the field. At the same time, the whole herd of 100 cows were being moved from the LZ field to the feedlot, many bawling loudly. I had enough altitude to land in the NW quadrant again, not far from the north fence and packed up in a little patch of shade. I didn’t have to wait long for a ride to the top in Steve’s (from Minn.) white rental van. Almost everyone had launched by the time I got to the top so there wasn’t much to do. Around 1500 George McPherson sent David down the hill with the Civil van to pick up some people at Hunter’s. When we got to Longsword David was supposed to go east to pick up someone at 3959 S Stage Rd near Jacksonville. He didn’t know the area so asked me to go along. We stopped at HQ and I grabbed my GPS from the car and a radio and we headed out. No one was at the address but we got Tom Moock nearby. Then we drove toward the Race goal of Emigrant Lake. Along the way we got the van's mobile radio working and were able to hear pilots calling from Ashland. We picked up three there and then met up with Sarge and transferred his load. We drove back to Talent and off-loaded our pilots to the Paravan which Star was driving. Paul was there too. Since Sarge was getting everyone at Emigrant (only a few), we headed back to HQ via Stage Rd while Paul took Pioneer Ave. We didn’t sweep up anyone else and got back shortly after 1800, in time to get to Red Lily for an excellent dinner of four kinds of BBQ meats, potatoes, salad and fruit. Cheesecake/chocolate mousse/sheet cake for dessert. [Today a Race pilot was seriously injured in China Gulch when his wing collapsed and spun him into the ground. It was one of the Chinese pilots and he was extracted to the hospital by helicopter.]

17 Jun, Wed – We went to the breakfast sponsored by the RVHPA at 0730. I did not bring my wing to launch thinking that I’d fly later at glassoff. David Le left the checkout job to me and went off to fly with the Superclinic pilots. I checked everyone out and then drove down with Paul and hung out at the HQ. C.J. completed all but the last turnpoint on the Sprint task and landed at Longsword, the goal. Back at HQ there was the usual chips and salsa, water and lemonade, plus the beer truck with four taps of microbrews. But then Gail brought out a pan of the Mexican lasagna we had Saturday night. Wow, no further dinner was necessary! We hung around at HQ for a while then at 1800 I hopped into a truck that was taking mostly Superclinic students (and Kari) to mid-launch for glassoff. There were a number of people already there including Barbara. I got ready quickly and launched right after Barbara and before most of our truckload. It took me a while to get above the bump behind launch to where I felt comfortable going back along the face of the bowl below Woodrat launch. After getting over launch level and up to maybe 4300, I continued flying straight west hoping to make it to Longsword. It was very slow going into the wind (5-8 kph) but the GPS showed that I needed only 5:1 glide ratio to make it. It was really not a problem and the trip speeded up some as I pushed on my speed system. I was one of the first to land from our group (0:56) and I celebrated with a bottle of Kiwanda Cream Ale from the refrigerator in the tasting room ($3). Eventually the parabus showed up and we got a ride back to HQ. We didn’t hang around much longer but went back to the yurt where C.J. was glad to collapse into bed early after a long day.

18 Jun, Thu – At the abbreviated meeting Mike told us that the bus had overheated while taking the Superclinic up to launch and had to drop them off at the Y in the road to walk the rest of the way. The plan for the rat-racers was to pack the available vans full and go up as soon as we had made lunch. We’d meet the bus on the way up and the vans would turn around and return to the Sterling Creek Road in case the bus overheated again and they needed to ferry the bus riders to the summit. It all worked out somehow and everyone got up. I had not brought my wing and I worked with Tom (Chesnut) and Pete ("Reaper") helping people lay out their wings on launch. After most folks launched the wind picked up. We could see people very high up over Mt. Isabel and we could also see lots of people landing at Hunters hardly moving forward in the wind. George MacPherson sent me down with Mike Hancock’s van; I picked him up at Hunters where C.J. had landed (well, across Bishop Cr Rd from Hunters, anyway). I got a shower and then drove into J-ville to get gas ($3.199) and another infusion of cash, $60, from the Chase ATM. Back at HQ C.J. put me to work editing the August mag articles which she had already finished. When that was done she worked on her article (about the USHPA Film Festival) until almost 1900. Then we went over to a new winery (?), or venue or something, at WellesLand on Hamilton Road. There was a two-man band doing folk/folk-rock on stage in front of a nice little amphitheater. There was a bar and a food-serving window. We got pulled pork and a shredded chicken sandwich ($16) and stayed for more than an hour before heading back to the yurt where C.J. worked on finishing her article.

Music Venue at Wellesland

19 Jun, Fri – David decided not to leave until the evening so I worked on launch as a fluffer while he did the check-in. I got to drive a Hummer, Dave Palmer’s, down to HQ – interesting. Jug had asked me to run a package into town and mail it express from the PO so I did that and had an ice cream at Rays ($.99). Later I observed and helped Jug repack his reserve. I thought he had been able to find his deployment bag and handle but he had brought a spare with him – a good idea. Mike offered a shuttle ride to Mid for the expected glassoff and a bunch of us went up at 1830 after C.J. and I had grabbed a nice, juicy burger and a salad for dinner at HQ. Conditions were different – light on launch with light cycles – and I had several attempts before going to the back of the line and waiting to try

Susan B with oak branch from a near miss during glassoff

again. It took me a couple more aborts before I finally got off launch. It was not smooth, glassoff-like conditions and I felt several bumps as I flew near the trees. After my first pass, I felt like my wing was not flying well and when I studied the lines I could see a knot high up in the B- or C-lines. It wouldn’t come loose until I gave it a really big jerk (which I found out later broke that line (b4)). The glider flew okay afterward but I didn’t enjoy the flying as much as on Wednesday so I flew out along the S end of Hunter’s LZ and when I got down low enough landed to the north. We loaded up on the big shuttle bus but it had battery problems so we ended up taking the Civil van back to HQ. I grabbed a quick shower before heading back to the yurt with C.J. who had been waiting patiently for me.

20 Jun, Sat, last day of the Rat Race – After the usual short meeting, we went up as usual on the Civil van even though David Le, the driver, had left to attend a memorial gathering for a Portland pilot who had died in a mini-wing accident at Cliffside. I had brought my Alite chair up so the wait until the Race group was ready to check out was relatively comfortable. I manned the check-out station with help from Paul Murdoch until everyone had gotten through. I watched C.J. have another good launch and get up after sinking down a bit. Then I could leave; this time I drove Orv’s truck down and dropped it off at Longsword (after giving the check-out book to Ismael who was running the Spot check-in). C.J. had already landed there and was being plied with wine, so I left her there and got a shuttle back to HQ. A while later I drove our vehicle over to pick her up. It was still early but there were snacks, beer and margaritas at HQ. Dinner was served around 1800 – baked potatoes with all kinds of toppings, including tsatsiki (sp?) and salads. At 2000 Mike and Gail presided at the awards ceremony handing out clear glass, engraved vases to Sprint Women, Sprint, Race Women, Race Sport, and Race winners. A special award went to Ed, president of RVHPA. All the top winners present got tossed in the pool including CJ Brockway, top Sprint woman. After sheetcake and bread pudding, I did my last garbage pickup and we went back to the yurt.

21 Jun, Sun – Chris got in around 0300 after a night on the town (Medford). Nevertheless, we got up about 0600 to pack and clean up the yurt. We were going to breakfast in J-ville at the Mustard Seed 2 but first we had to stop at the Crash Pad to pick up Susan Brockway’s gear. [She had driven down with Kayoko who was also in the Superclinic, but she left early and there wasn’t enough room in CJ and Derek’s car.] Breakfast was very good and Susan paid for all of us! Then we stopped at the fruit stand and got three pints of delicious strawberries. Eight-and-a-half hours later we arrived home with stops for gas at a new Costco in Roseburg and in Covington (plus some slow traffic on I-5 near Chehalis and Ft. Lewis).

22-29 Jun – C.J. was exhausted from eight days of flying at the Rat Race and took almost a week to recover. I had a blood draw on Monday and a consult with Dr. Johnson on Friday – no changes to my health. I asked for a referral to Snoq Vly Eyecare for a retinopathy exam.

Chelan XC Classic – v.2015

1-4 July 2015

1 Jul, Wed – We left around noon so we could meet                               who lives in Peshastin, for an interview for an article C.J. is working on. He said something about milepost 111 so we were looking at the road markers as we hit US 2. It turned out that he was actually referring to a brewpub called Milepost 111 located just across the bridge in Cashmere. We had a beer in the air conditioned pub and talked for an hour and a half. By then it was getting on toward 1600 and it was still hot with the thermometer near 100 deg F. I decided to go for gas at Costco ($2.959) in E Wenatchee as drove through Wenatchee itself to see the extent of the Sleepy Hollow fire which had burned the hillsides as well as a couple dozen houses and some businesses. With a full tank we headed toward Chelan along the west side of the Columbia since we hadn’t used that route for a while. Lori wasn’t in when we arrived but she showed up not too much later and invited us to join Tom, Aaron Rinn and Maria for dinner. Fortunately C.J. had brought salad makings and snap peas to share. It was hot at night but an oscillating fan helped keep it cool enough to sleep.

2 Jul, Thu – We drove up the Butte early to get there for the nominal time of the pilots meeting (1100) and got a briefing from Meet Head Lenny Baron for our launch director job. It really wasn’t much of a job with only 30 pilots in the meet. The PGs launched early and the HGs went later. There were a few free-flyers, but no hassles. After everyone had taken off, we checked XCFind.com and saw that there were big flights from Rampart: Owen and TJ had gone SSE to Quincy (123 km), and Brian Franklin had headed E and then NE and had passed Leavenworth and was heading for Chelan! We drove down to the Chelan Falls LZ and were there (along with Jeff and Cherie Slotta) when Brian arrived. He was dehydrated and headachy, but very exhilarated by his flight. His driver, Chris Irish, arrived within minutes and after packing up, they headed back to retrieve Brian’s car at Rampart. We went directly to the house Lenny had rented for the Baron clan and joined the other volunteers for a tasty dinner of BBQ skewers, salads and drinks.

3 Jul, Fri – Same schedule, same job. After getting everyone launched conditions still looked doable so C.J. got her wing out. But shortly after, the wind picked up and she packed back up. We drove down to the soccer field LZ to try to give Aaron, the scorekeeper, his computer so he could get started scoring the last day’s results. He was still out flying a good triangle (which would have given him first place if Jeff Beck hadn’t flown 10 miles farther ending up just beyond the Idaho border in Rathdrum). To kill time we went over to the north end of the Chelan Falls Park where the Dog pilots hang out and got in the relatively warm, but fast-moving water to cool off. Later we gathered with the rest of the CXCC folks for a taco dinner and award ceremony at the picnic shelter. Lenny stretched the awards out overly long so everyone who didn’t leave early (most of the PG had left) missed the Chelan fireworks. We caught the end of them around 2210 as we drove through Chelan. Lori had hooked up a portable air conditioner in our room and it worked very well – we had a comfortable night.

4 July, Sat – We were on our way by 0930 and home shortly after noon. We rested up and C.J. made the ice cream “batter” for use in the old White Mountain hand-cranked ice cream maker. Around 1600 we drove to Susan and Reed Brockway’s house on the E shore of Lake Samammish to join CJB in her quest to blow up everything that floats. There were lots of guests and only a few were pilots but we got to meet lots of new people, especially when C.J. got the ice cream maker cranking. (Unfortunately, either we didn’t have the right mixture of ice to salt, or the container was too full of the batter because the ice cream never got to the thick and frozen stage.) As it began to get dark fireworks displays could be seen all up and down the lakeshore and across the lake. This despite the city ordinance prohibiting fireworks. No one came to arrest anyone as CJ and her fellow ordnance experts blew up several small boats, a large model of the Shell drilling rig, and a large three-masted model. We left around 2300 and when we got home fireworks were still being shot off. No fires, thank goodness!

Glacier National Park

 Late Spring 2015

Some of our RCI points were expiring during June. If we wanted to get some use out of the points generated by the Verde Ridge property, we would have to use them before the end of the month. We had already discussed a trip to Glacier this summer but this seemed like a possibility. Checking with RCI online we found that there actually was an RCI resort near West Glacier so we signed up for a week. After the fact, I checked with GNP and found that they were still working on clearing the Going-to-the-Sun Highway and the earliest that it would be open was mid-June. Uh-oh. Hopefully there would be things to do that would not require a trip across the park! At that point we didn’t know if we should bring snowshoes and skis or hiking gear. It wasn’t until we were almost ready to leave that GNP posted a video on Facebook showing a drive along the road to Many Glacier and there was no snow except on the high peaks. Okay, so we would take boots and trekking poles…and our sea kayak. There were some long, narrow, fjord-like lakes on the west side of the park that might be fun to paddle.

22 May, Fri – We got up earlier than usual in order to get on the road around 0700 for the 500 mile drive to West Glacier. My rule of thumb is that we average 50 mph on every long trip so it would take ten hours, putting us in at 1700 for check-in. We didn’t get going until 0720 and then realized that C.J. was lacking a rain jacket and pants. With a little use of mobile data we figured out that we could hit the REI in Spokane and take advantage of its spring sale for some new rain gear. C.J. also found a new, lightweight daypack on sale. Next we stopped in Coeur d’Alene for gas at Costco ($2.499, much cheaper than the

Glacier Wilderness Resort cabin

$2.839 at the Iss. Costco). In addition to those two stops, we had to undergo two boat inspections – one in Idaho and one in Montana [Plus there was a self-certification process for the kayak at GNP, as well.] All those delays put us close to 1830 by the time we pulled into Glacier Wilderness Resort. New owner/manager (?) Christy checked us in and then sent us on a short hike to see the waterfall just a few hundred yards upstream. We paid for our cleaning fee ($25) and for wifi ($15) which is only on during the day. Back at our nicely appointed two bedroom log cabin, C.J. whipped up a pasta, ham and pesto dinner.

23 May, Sat of Memorial Day weekend – Up around 0700 and out by 0850, we drove the eight-plus miles to the West Glacier/Apgar entrance to GNP. Our plan was to do the Avalanche Lake hike, an

C.J., Avalanche L Tr.

easy five-mile round trip with only 500 ft of elevation gain. We drove the fifteen miles or so along Lake McDonald and McDonald Creek to the trailhead…and the end of the Going-to-the-Sun highway. We weren’t prepared for the crowd of bikers who filled the parking lots on both sides of the road. They were going to bike up the now-cleared road as far as Logan Pass; some were carrying skis, intending to climb up to some good spring-skiing. There were plenty of hikers as well for the Avalanche Lake Trail, not quite a steady stream but we were rarely out of sight of one group or another. The first 0.4 mi were on the boardwalks or pavement of the Trail of the Cedars nature trail, then we started climbing alongside the gorge of Avalanche Creek. The trail was mostly in the forest but at one point a large landslide from a mountainside to the north had smashed through the trees and opened up a view.

Results of avalanche

When we reached the lake the views were excellent, but the crowd of people lounging around the outlet end of the lake detracted somewhat from the wilderness ambiance. After taking a few photos, we continued around the lake to the far end, about 0.5 mi. There we found a log on the beach near one of the inlets, a good place for a scenic lunch break without the crowds (and without the plague of chipmunks) at the other end of the lake. After some crackers and cheese and a cookie, we headed back along the same trail. There were, if anything, more people on the trail than there were at ten or eleven o’clock. Back at the trailhead C.J. and I walked the rest of the nature trail which had some interpretive signage done as haiku on watercolors. On the drive back to West Glacier we stopped several times along the cascading McDonald Creek to walk to various viewpoints (once, a footbridge) for pictures. Then we skipped McDonald Lodge to go to Apgar Village where we found an ice cream shop ($6.25) and checked in at the Visitor Center to get info about kayaking – the ranger thought Bowman was just as good as the farther-in Kintla Lake, and that the p.m. wind was down lake (from the NE) (unlike what we observed around lunchtime at Avalanche Lake). We stopped for gas in West Glacier (2.599) and then drove back to the resort. The wifi was working and C.J. was able to check the weather; I downloaded email. Later C.J. roasted a big chicken, baked a potato and prepared some veggies for dinner.

24 May, Sun – Saturday night we had agreed to hike to the Apgar Lookout not far from the west entrance. The guidebook said that the sun would be in our eyes looking toward the scenery east of

C.J., Tr to Apgar Lookout

McDonald Lake, so suggested the climb be made later. That didn’t seem like a good idea considering the fact that the whole trail was located in the 2003 Roberts Fire and there was little shade to be had. We got away from the resort by 0915 and started up the trail at 0945. Unlike the day before, this time we had an elevation gain of 1800 ft in 3.2 miles. The first mile or so of the trail climbed along Rubideux Creek through young lodgepole pines no more than 4-5 ft tall, plus some low alder liberally festooned with tent caterpillars. Once we reached the first long switchback the slide alder appeared to have been sprayed as all the leaves were dead. Three switchbacks crossed the entire face of Apgar and made for a relatively gentle but unrelenting climb. Although there had been only five cars in the small parking lot at the trailhead, we were passed by several parties both ascending and descending. We made it to the fire tower just before 1245 and the view north to the snowy mountains along the continental divide was excellent. We climbed to the small wrap-around deck of the tower for the view, somewhat obscured by the broadcast TV tower and the trees, then returned to the ground to find a place to eat with a reasonable view. Others arriving after us settled on the deck to eat. We continued to meet people who were on their way up as we descended although that couldn’t have been pleasant as the temperature had increased, particularly in the sun. Later the clouds grew enough to provide some shade. I had not carried enough water and sucked my Platypus dry before we reached the only water near the trail, not far from the trailhead. Once back at the now almost full parking lot we headed for West Glacier where I thought I could get a good mobile phone signal and contact Consumer Cellular [I have not been able to receive calls for at least the last two days]. We parked at the West Glacier Mercantile but there was one bar or none for cell reception. We looked to see what was available in the Mercantile – not much, and all priced for low supply, high demand. Back at the resort around 1600 we showered and then tried some of the Blue Moon varieties we had brought with us, along with some chips and onion dip. C.J. threw a bunch of sweaty clothes in the washer so we could start fresh on Monday (although the weather is sounding less promising with rain or thunderstorms in all the forecasts).

25 May, Mon, Memorial Day – Another beautiful morning so we got packed up and out by 0900 heading east on US 2 for the other side of the Park. We stopped at Essex to drive up the hill to see the Izaak Walton Inn, thinking that we might stop there for dinner someday. Just a short way down Rte 2 we stopped at the Goat Lick Observatory even though the parking lot entrance was gated. No goats were licking so we rolled on through increasingly magnificent scenery. We stopped again at the summit of Marias Pass where there was a replica of the Washington Monument dedicated to Theodore Roosevelt. Heading down the other side we came to East Glacier Park and turned north to get to the entrance to the Two Medicine area of Glacier. We stopped to check conditions at the small Ranger Station and then drove to the boat launch. The lake looked calm and the sky had only a few clouds so we quickly set up the kayak and paddled off. We headed for an obvious point on the south shore, and when we got close C.J. spotted two moose – a cow with a very young calf. We got some good photos as we drifted by them. We reached the west end of the lake in about 45 minutes and caught up with another kayaker who had left just before us but had missed the two moose. C.J. and I pulled our kayak up in front of the Adirondack-style shelter near the boat dock and changed shoes for a walk up

the trail about a mile to Twin Falls. I felt kind of naked without my pack and trekking poles, but I did have the bear spray

Young Moose at end of Two Med. Lake

(which we have carried on all our hikes). Meanwhile the weather was changing and we heard a couple of rumbles of thunder. There were a few other folks on the trail who had hiked along one side or the other of the lake and most were stopping at Twin Falls and then continuing another 1.3 mi to Upper Two Med Lake. Just as we got back to the shelter, two young moose appeared across the stream from us. They were too busy stripping the leaves from the willows to care that we were taking their pictures, and then watching them as we ate lunch. Eventually they moved off along the trail to Twin Falls, and we re-launched the kayak and headed downlake with some wind in our faces. Still it took us only 45 minutes again to reach the boat launch at Two Med. We got some help lifting the kayak back onto the car then we drove over to the campground to see what the sites looked like; they were all pull-through, very

Mtn Sheep in Two Med. Campground

convenient for our small trailer, and some had great views of the mountains. Best of all we encountered a small herd of mountain sheep wandering through the campground, some even eating whatever was left in a firepit. We made one more stop to hike 0.3 mi to Running Eagle Falls (once known as Trick Falls) which has an upper stream flowing over the top of the falls and a lower stream coming out of a large cave. As we left Two Med it started to rain and it rained pretty hard until we were out of East Glacier and back on US 2. At Marias Pass we stopped to drive through the USFS Summit CG – all sites suitable for small trailers, $10/night, about 5200 ft. It was really too early to stop for dinner at Izaak Walton (1700) so we returned to the resort for some drinks and snacks before a meal of homemade chicken soup. We discussed plans for the next day and decided on going to the North Fork area of Glacier and paddle Bowman Lake. We thought a dawn start would give us the best chance to see critters (but then we found out that we would have to leave at 0400 to get to the launch by 0544, dawn. We’ll see if we can get going so early.

26 May, Tue – We woke, as planned, at 0400 and were on the road before 0500. The Camas Road was paved all the way from Apgar to the North Fork Road (outside). Surprisingly, about half of the

Bowman Lake campground and boat launch

North Fork was paved, too; maybe it was just the part through privately-owned land. At Polebridge, the tiny community that is home to the Polebridge Mercantile and Bakery, the road became not only unpaved but narrow and much rougher. [A sign at the barebones NPS ranger station at Polebridge explained that the road condition was kept that way on purpose to keep the area as wilderness-y as possible.] We had no trouble with the six miles of the Bowman Lake Road but we also felt no need to exceed the posted 20 mph speed limit. It was about 0615 when we reached the campground and boat launch, about 30 minutes after sunrise. The lake was still calm; the air wasn’t too cold but the water was frigid. I switched my lightweight pants for some fleece and added a layer of fleece under my PFD. The surrounding mountains were shrouded in fog and clouds and we could see none of the snow-frosted mountains that would appear later as the

By 0845 the clouds had lifted

clouds broke and the fog burned off. It was probably 0700 by the time we were on the water and paddling up the north side of the lake. There was one other boat on the water and a few people in the campground, nothing like the more-accessible Two Medicine. We stopped for a break after an hour (and about three miles of paddling) then continued to the end of the lake (a bit more than six miles as the crow flies) and backtracked to the backpackers’ campground. We rested for a while and had a snack then headed across the lake and down the south side. C.J. said her feet got so cold while getting into the boat that they didn’t warm up for an hour. Eventually the sun broke through and by the time we were making the last crossing back to the boat launch, we were wishing we had removed at least one layer of fleece. Back on land around noon; after unloading the boat we had some lunch in the sunshine and then hit the road for home. We stopped at the Polebridge Mercantile to get one of their famous pastries ($4.75), and thought we might go to Columbia Falls to replenish our fresh veggie and fruit supply. When we reached the Camas Road, though, we stopped to walk the

Great reflections on a calm lake

Huckleberry Nature Trail which was mostly about the 2001 Moose Fire (although there were no informational booklets to go with the numbered signs on the somewhat long and up-and-down trail). We stopped for a few more roadside exhibits, then C.J. noticed that she had four bars on her phone. Since I needed to cancel my June 1 VA dermatology appointment, we stopped alongside the road and I dealt with that. Next I called Consumer Cellular because my phone was not able to make or receive calls. We got both things straightened out but in both cases there were long waits for a customer service agent. By the time I was finished we were both ready to head directly back to the resort and crash with a cold drink and some snacks. On the way back I stopped to fill up the gas tank (still $2.599) at Conoco in case we might be heading across Marias Pass on Wed. Around 1800 it rained hard for several minutes – glad we weren’t out on the lake or on a trail.

27 May, Wed – Thinking that we would be tired and sore from 12 miles of paddling, we planned a very low-effort day. We got up sort of late, had bacon and eggs for breakfast and then did computer

Hungry Horse Dam through burned trees

stuff until around 1100. I had been checking on the Museum of the Plains Indian at Browning on the east side and thought we might go there and maybe up to St. Mary or Many Glacier if the weather looked good. Radar showed rain squalls sweeping through Browning so we headed instead for Hungry Horse Dam just a few miles west of the park entrance. [On the way we stopped at the Glacier National Park Conservancy housed in the old train station in West Glacier. We found a neat Christmas decoration made of a red, metallic cottonwood leaf with a bear design ($17).] The dam was moderately interesting even though the visitor center was closed for staff training. We walked across the dam to an informational sign and the huge gantry crane, then drove into Hungry Horse where we found a helpful person in the big Forest Service ranger station. She pointed out some places to hike and kayak around the 30-mile long reservoir. We went back to the dam and a couple of miles along the reservoir road to FS 895H which took us up a rough road toward Doris Ridge where there was supposed to be a trail. We didn’t get that far but stopped for lunch three miles up the road where we had a good view of part of the reservoir and the peaks of the Great Bear Wilderness which separates Hungry Horse Res. from Glacier NP. Afterward we continued up the road another five miles until we spotted a lake on the car GPS, and a trail on the side of the road. Later we found out that the lake was either Alpha or Beta [Google Earth shows that it was Beta.] and was only a few hundred feet from the road. Since we had already put on our boots and slung our packs, we decided to follow a herd path around the lake. It was easy going at first with the trees that had fallen across the trail chain-sawed to provide access. By the time we reached the end of the lake, however, the trail had petered out. We clambered over fallen trees, walked carefully across patches of snow and fought our way through tangles of slide alder (or willow?). Eventually we found traces of the trail again as we neared the place we had started. Back at the car we descended the eight miles to Reservoir Road then drove back into Hungry Horse intending to continue on to Columbia Falls to get some groceries. But we saw that there was a Family Grocery in Hungry Horse and their reader board was showing some good sale prices so we stopped there ($13.13). If this small town had such good deals, maybe Montana wouldn’t be such an expensive place to live (both gas and food have been cheaper than back in Washington). On the way through Hungry Horse when we had first arrived several days ago we had seen a tourist trap called the Huckleberry Patch and now we had time to check it out. We got some ice cream ($6) and looked at all the things made with huckleberries that were for sale – fudge, honey, hand cream, pies, tarts, etc. – plus the usual t-shirts, hats, plaques and stuff that visitors buy. As we headed home, we ran into heavy rain but it let up before we got to the resort. Todd met us at our cabin and let us know that power was off (except in the lodge which has its own generator). He also told us that guests for the past two weeks had seen bears, sheep, goats and more in the Many Glacier area, so that may be where we are headed on Thursday depending on weather. I picked up a bundle of wood (usually $5, but free when power is out) in case it got cold. We ran our computers (no Wi-Fi, of course) until our batteries were down to almost nothing. And then around 2000 the power came back on and C.J. could prepare dinner on the electric range. We had a fire anyway while we ate dinner.

28 May, Thu – C.J. woke up pretty early so we got a reasonably quick start even though the weather

C.J., Tr to Apikuni Falls

did not not look too promising. Unlike almost every other day during our week here, the sky was overcast in the morning. We drove straight through to Many Glacier stopping only for a few minutes at a pile of rocks north of Two Med  where two marmots provided our first critter sighting of the day. We got to the St. Mary GNP visitor center just as a bus load of fourth graders arrived for a field trip. By now it was starting to rain lightly. We asked a ranger there about where the best bet would be for seeing wildlife, especially bears. He told us that Many Glacier had a reputation as a place to see moose and bears. He also suggested a short walk to Fishercap Lake, about five minutes up the Swiftcurrent Pass trail. When we got to the trailhead it was raining pretty hard so we sat in the car for
a while donning our rain pants and jackets. By the time we got out the rain had slackened to a persistent drizzle/light rain. It really was only five minutes to the little lake although the trail sign indicated 0.7 mi (or maybe it was km). No moose and

Apikuni Falls, Many Glacier

definitely no bears. We decided to go with our backup plan and hike to Apikuni Falls, about a mile and a gain of 700 ft. We met a few other people on this trail but at least it never rained hard. The falls were high and had a lot of volume. Still no wildlife, but there were some wildflowers. It looked like we were going to be skunked since our next stop was the Plains Indian Museum in Browning far from the wilderness. However, just before the entrance station we spotted a big bear cross the road. It spent some time feeding on some roadside plants, and then a baby cub appeared. Wow! Mama Bear didn’t return to the cub even when it disappeared back into the woods. Moments later we could see the black cub climbing a cottonwood and another cub, this one brown, racing him up to a high crotch in the tree. Staying in the car (unlike some clueless tourists behind us) we tried to get photos through the thick foliage. Whether our pictures came out good or not, we were really excited to have finally, on our last day in the Park, seen not one but three bears. After that even the best museum was going to be a disappointment, but the Plains Indian Museum turned out to be really well done, and the price was right - free until June. We drove directly back to the resort from Browning and got in around 1700. The weather was sunny around the resort so we loaded up our kayak and as much other stuff that we would not need so there would be less to pack in the morning.

29 May, Fri – Got started around 0840 then had to turn back to find the radio antenna that had rolled off the roof (I unscrewed it from its mount before loading the kayak.) It was on the highway and hadn’t been run over too many times. After getting gas at Conoco (still the same $2.599) we took the slow route from West Glacier through Columbia Falls and then down through Kalispell. Other than that, we used the same route that we used to get to Glacier last Friday. We stopped near Paradise at a fishing access site to use the outhouse, stopped briefly for the Idaho watercraft inspection, and got gas again in Coeur d’Alene at Costco (price now $2.579). We made one more stop for an ice cream at Red Door Café in Moses Lake which we found by using Siri, Google, and Yelp (although they all were out of date, calling the café Firefly Ice Cream Parlor) ($4.87). We got home around 1800 with the fatigue of a busy seven days catching up with us.