Okay. Let's do it!
Colleen drove her pickup and I was the navigator, though not the best one. In the tangle of various roads, trails and bicycle trails we ended up 'exploring' before we found the correct road across McDonald Creek. Colleen has a relaxed sense of adventure, and likes to go somewhere new, so we had fun being temporarily lost. We found the sewer treatment plant for Apgar village (oh, joy
) and also a large pasture, corral, and barn for the Park's horse and mules.One other vehicle was in the parking lot and we weren't far into the hike when we met the vehicle's occupants returning from Apgar Lookout. They told us no one else was on the mountain and we had it to ourselves.
Oh, yeah!
Most of this area had burned during the Robert Fire in 2003. Therefore there no shade on a hot and smokey day. Add in a southern exposure and we had a hot hike on this hot day.
At the beginning of the trail the sign listed the trail length at 2.8 miles one way. Someone had crossed the distance off and scratched in a length of 3.5 miles. 2.8 miles may have been correct, but in the sun and heat it sure felt like 3.5 miles.
Berries were growing along the way. We saw very few ripe huckleberries. A combination of a light crop and people on the trail meant many huckleberry bushes but few berries. We found quite a number of ripe thimbleberries. They were so ripe than most of them lost their shape when taken from the plant. No matter, they provided a tasty treat.
Soon I noticed other blue/purple berries. They weren't huckleberries. I tasted a few and found them to be serviceberries. Or as we called them in North Dakota: juneberries. Or as they are called in Canada: saskatoonberries. They were tasty and many were large and perfectly ripe. Between the serviceberries and thimbleberries we munched our way to the top.
At the top we had the lookout to ourselves. It was closed, but the balcony around the upper level was open and we quickly made our way to it, then to the lookout's north and east shady sides where we found a simple bench upon to sit.
We rested out of the sun, ate our lunch and enjoyed the view - or at least what of the view we could see. The smoke haze partially obscured the views of the mountains and of Lake McDonald. Still we enjoyed what we could see and each others company. Before we left a small breeze started to blow and the smoke thinned so we could make out the Lake and the mountains beyond it along the Going-to-the-Sun road.
While we ate our lunch one large bird - hawk? eagle? - rode the thermals and glided a little way above and in front of us. Then another bird. Then another, until seven birds soared around and above us. Colleen got real excited to see the birds as she loves watching birds. She had bought a new camera the previous day and took photo after photo following the birds around the lookout as they soared here and there with Colleen "ooohing" and "aaahing" in her excitement.
After the birds left and we settled back on the bench out of the sun to eat more food, we heard a voice down the trail.
"Bear, bear... bear, bear... bear, bear..."
After a few minutes a thin 50ish woman came into view. Once she saw us she stopped calling out.
A minute later her husband came into view and soon they had come up to the lookout to sit near us in the shade.They were an interesting couple, here on a week vacation from Indiana. With all the smoke from the forest fires this was not the best time to see the Park. He seemed to be a "glass half full" and she a "glass half empty" person. She wasn't a bad person, and enjoyable to talk with for a while, but I noticed the corners of her mouth and smile were naturally shaped downward and not up.
She had talked about a raft trip on the Middle Fork of the Flathead River the previous day where they were in kayaks and not in a 6 person raft. She said it was horrible and she was miserable, etc. until her husband asked her then why she was always smiling and beaming in the photos of her.
We also reassured her the chance of seeing a bear on this trail was small as she was nervous about seeing a bear. She was glad as she had chanted "bear, bear" much of the time on the hike up the trail and her voice was getting tired. I was thankful she didn't have bear bells as they are sooo annoying.
I discovered he was also a bicyclist and we discussed bicycling. Colleen told him of our full moon ride down from Logan Pass a few nights earlier. He was interested in another trip to the Park and would consider a visit during the full moon so he could bicycle down the Sun road also.
Living in Indiana they had watched the University of Indiana's annual "Little Indy" bicycle race. This is the race at the heart of one of my favorite movies, 1979's "Breaking Away". So it was fun for me to chat with them about the race and the movie.
Mom: What's the matter?
Dad: He's shavin'.
Mom: Well... so what?
Dad: ...his legs.
Mom: He was very sickly until he started riding around on that bicycle.
Dad: Yeah... well... now his body's fine, but his mind is gone.
Dave: You mean we might be a father?
Dad: No. I might be a father. And your mom might be a mother. And YOU might be a brother. See, that way I keep it all in the family.
Moocher: Wow! Hey, I didn't think people your age...
Dad: The next word may be your last, kid!
Dad: I had a dream last night that everyone I ever sold a car to came back and there you were, handing them back their money!
Dad: Refund? Refund?!
The Indiana couple left, and after Colleen took some photos of the fire weed near the lookout, we also hiked back down. Our schedules were open and we enjoyed each others company so we took our time to enjoy the day very happy we didn't have to be working a job inside a building. We felt sorry for those people.
Near the start of the trail we met other people beginning their hike up the trail. We had timed our hike just right.
After the hike was over Colleen took me to the Back 40, a local ribs restaurant in Columbia Falls that she really likes. And so do many other people as even on a Thursday night the restaurant was very busy with customers. Once I tasted their food I could see why this was a popular place.
We sat outside on the deck. The smoke from the fires have been agitating the yellow-jackets and they were a nuisance. The restaurant manager, whom Colleen knows, gave us a flyswatter and I discovered Colleen is quite skilled with it as she never seemed to miss nailing a yellow-jacket foolish enough to bother us.
The young woman waitresses and busboys were afraid of the yellow-jackets and would cringe when they saw one near them. A few people changed their minds and retreated to an inside table to eat. Not us as I had Colleen and her flyswatter.
When we were about to leave I remembered this was Thursday, when Columbia Falls had their weekly music concert in their city park. I knew Bill and his wife Marilyn, and Sue Ann often attended these concerts so Colleen and I drove over to the park to watch the concert and find them.
I am horrible at locating people in a crowd and Colleen first noticed my friends even though she hadn't ever seen them. She noticed a row of people elbowing one another after looking our way and then waving at us. I was oblivious. The group was Bill and Marilyn, Arnie and his wife and son, and Peter and Edwina. I had never met Peter in person before so it was a treat to finally meet him. Sue Ann was not present.
After the band played the final song I spoke with the group and introduced Colleen. Edwina mentioned her young niece would be visiting the next week and she had planned a surprise tea party for her up on the Dragon's Tail in Glacier Park. That is how imaginative and adventurous Edwina is.
Then it was off to home in the gathering dusk after a long fun filled satisfying day. Have I mentioned that life is good?
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