"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood... And sorry I could not travel both. I took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference." --Robert Frost

Monday, August 31, 2015

Kintla Lake, West Glacier, MT

West Glacier, MT
Fish Creek Campground

After many weeks, we have SUNSHINE and BLUE SKIES!  Just for a few hours.  So off we all went on a little off-road drive to Kintla Lake with Lee & Trace (of Camper Cronicles).  This lake is where Trace really wanted to go to get a picture of the beautiful stones that are in the lake.  If you get the weather just right, it's a magical sight.

Lot's of weathered barns and cabins along the way.

 
 
Which do you like better?  Black and white or color?


The tiny town of Polebridge was a nice place to stop to stretch our legs and get a little bite to eat.  Steve and Trace are in love with all things Huckleberry.  So of course we had some Huckleberry Bearclaws.  Pretty darn good!

 
Our trip just kept getting better.  My highlight was driving down the dirt road after getting our bearclaw pastries and hearing Trace say over the walkie talkie BEARS.  Or something like that.  She was so excited I could hardly tell what she was saying.
 
The fantastic above picture was taken by Trace (borrowed with permission).  Of course it is taken with a big zoom lens.  WOW!  Our first grizzly bears spotted in the wild!  Huge high point for me and one I won't forget.  Scary and amazing all at once.
 
Steve took these two pictures. Exciting! He's looking back at us.
 
Love this one.  Look at that hump!!!!

I don't know what kind of bush/shrub this was, but it was turning red and making for some spectacular color along the way.





The clouds were moving in quickly.  By time we made it to the lake, it was pretty cloudy.  We were determined to get our shot, so we walked around and waited for a small patch of blue to move over.





Trace, getting ready for a break in the clouds.

 
Here it comes.


This canoe looked handmade.




Lee, contemplating life.

 






We have a long ride back and the clouds are getting angry.




 


 The cooler weather and fall colors were beautiful and a nice break from the past weeks of heat and smoke.






What a great day!


 
After a nice dinner, Lee & Trace brought a game over called Quirkle. It's kind of a combination of Scrabble and Dominoes.  It was a lot of fun.


15 comments:

  1. I really wanted to get to Polebridge but we opted to return to east Glacier to hike to Iceberg Lake. But now we have a reason to return to the west side to see some of the off road areas away from the very popular area. The rock shots are great. I especially like the larger photo of the lake covered in the rocks. The bears are beautiful! Aren't they just huge!! Definitely a highlight!!

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    1. Thanks. It was a great drive. More secluded from the rest of the park. You made the right decision doing the Iceberg hike though. That was a fantastic hike! No icebergs left by time we got there. We will return sometime to do the hikes we missed. While on the west half we had thick smoke and heat, and on the east side we had snow and high winds! Funny weather.

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  2. So many great picture. I like the black and white ones for cabins and such. But the water and rocks definately needed color.

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    1. We got lucky with at least a little break in the cloud cover for the rock pictures. But I've seen some with full sun and the color of the water is incredible! Beautiful, quiet drive off the pavement. LOVE those!

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  3. Black and white!!! Especially the old barn!! Great pics!!

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  4. Oh my goodness, what wonderful photos! And the BEARS...AWESOME! So good to see you had clear skies at least for a little while!

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    1. Thank you Lisa. We were very grateful for the clearer skies as our trip went along.

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  5. Awesome pictures. You really captured the beauty of that area of the park. The Grizzly sighting is off the chart.

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    1. Seeing the grizzlies was big for me. While I've seen some black bears, I've never seen a grizzly in the wild in 54 years. Odds are I may not see one again!

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  6. Stunning scenery and pictures, Debbie! You and Steve are truly blessed to be having this experience of a lifetime!

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  7. Oooooo look at my mum and pap! I love those photos of the different rock colors. You should have tried to ride them bears!!

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  8. Could you rent canoes at the lake? Or was there a rental spot in Polebridge?

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    1. I don't think so. It was quite a drive out there. Polebridge is a 3 building-type "town". Doubt they rent anything there. Other lakes in Glacier do rent kayaks and canoes though.

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