Day 9, August 21

Day 9, August 21

Locations: Glacier NP: Two Medicine Lk; Canadian border crossing; Waterton NP; Sparwood BC

Miles driven: 271

Click map to enlarge

I left camp at 6:15 and headed to Swiftcurrent Lake. I sat there for a bit, but didn’t end up taking any pictures from the lake as it was extremely windy. I headed out and drove to East Glacier where I fueled up and got a bag of ice. I drove up to Marias Pass just to check out what the scenery is like, which isn’t much. I turned back around and drove into Two Medicine Lake long enough to get some snaps from the shore. It was my first time there and I would definitely love to shoot sunrise here some time, but that will have to be on another trip. I could hang around Glacier another day, but I was really itching to get on with the meat and potatoes portion of my trip. I had Moraine and Peyto Lakes on my mind and they definitely had a magnetic pull! At 11:01, black bear #3 slowly crossed the road. I tried to get a picture of it, but was a bit late with the camera.

I stopped in St. Mary and stopped at their store where I picked up some mayonnaise and jelly, though not to be used together, of course. I topped off the tank as the gas would only get more expensive in Canada. Time to head for the border! 47 miles to Waterton.

I arrived at the Port of Chief Mountain right at noon. I pulled up to the drive-thru booth where I was asked the expected questions. Where are you going? Why are you going? How long? Etcetera. Apparently not satisfied, they asked me to pull into one of the bays where they would have a customs officer search the vehicle. I figured the modified vehicle and the inside being packed with stuff contributed to this more than anything. They ended up having a guy and a gal search through it. Both were nice and we had a lighthearted conversation as I stood in front of the truck. They didn’t disrupt any of my stuff and laid everything back down the way it was. I’ve heard they can be much worse about the way they handle these types of searches. There were only two other vehicles that were in the bays while I was there, but not nearly as long. Evidently still not satisfied, they asked me to go inside the station where I’d be questioned further by a customs agent (I think this was the title they used) . This guy, undoubtedly, would be at the top of the chain here for questioning purposes, and God forbid he crack a smile! I was asked again the reason for the trip along with the other previous questions, but he also wanted more background info as far as misdemeanors, felonies, and the like. I thought about telling him I whacked a few people back in the day, but I actually wanted to continue my trip, so I thought better of it! He ended up making a phone call for a background check and I sat for a few minutes while he was talking with someone on the other end. He called me up and said I was set to go. I was out the door and on my way at 12:20. Well, that was all certainly interesting!

As I was driving down the road, I looked at my box containing exposed film that I had sitting in a big box next to me where the passenger seat would be. There were around 27 sheets in there at this point, and I wasn’t totally sure the rubber bands were in the same place I left them. My thinking was that during the search, the film box may have been opened to view its contents. My heart almost stopped! I really didn’t think they had touched it, but I still couldn’t be too sure. Well, after returning home and getting them developed, they were all fine. Whew! Had the box been opened, that would’ve been one expensive mistake by me. The price is secondary when it comes to losing pictures, though, as they are priceless.

I entered Waterton and stopped at the first overlook above the valley. I drove on into the park and purchased an annual parks pass at the gate then drove Red Rock Parkway then the Akamina Parkway. I turned around without stopping then drove through the Waterton townsite then back out of the park to look for a camping spot on forest service land.

I headed up Highway 6. It was a clear day in the late afternoon and the Canadian Rockies stretched north for as far as the eye could see. It was an incredible sight. The backlit, silhouetted skyline allowed me to get a good look at its profile. The view is actually quite similar to the Front Range views east of Denver, but their are far more pointy peaks up here. In fact, for those familiar with the Colorado Rockies, I noted that this range is seemingly comprised of nothing but Crestones and Wetterhorns. It is basically a 500-mile-long Gore Range, but even more craggy, and, of course, with the beautiful addition of glaciers.

I turned west on Highway 3 out of Pincher Creek and went over Crowsnest Pass and as far as Sparwood, British Columbia, before turning around in the lot that houses the world’s largest truck. On the way back, I went north on Road 940 out of Coleman and found some nice campsites about 2 km in. I definitely preferred something a lot closer to Waterton, though, so I left Coleman at 6:24 to head back south.

I arrived back in Waterton at 7:25 and thought I'd check out the Waterton townsite campground to check on availability and confirm pricing, which I believed to be $22 per night. I didn’t want to pay this price, but I didn’t know the area well enough to know where I could camp for free. There wasn’t an attendant at the booth, which was probably a good thing so that I wasn’t tempted to pay. I tried to call the folks from the information office at the entrance into town, but didn’t get an answer.

I headed back out of town to check the Belly River Campground just north of the US border. It is the cheapest campground in the area ($13/night) as it has no services. The sun was about to set by the time I got to the main overlook above the valley that I stopped at when coming into the park, so I stopped and pulled into the lot and fired off a few shots. I continued up the road and never made it to the campground. Instead, a little before 9:00, I found a side road that takes off to the right. I had to explore it to see if it offered any campsites. Sure enough. SWEET! Free camping! I believe this area is Beebee Flats along North Belly Creek, just north of the Belly River Campground. The turnoff is right at a bridge on the north side that crosses a stream, which why I’m thinking this is North Belly Creek. There is also a sign at the bridge, but I failed to note what it lists. You can actually see the lights of the border station from here. There are a number of great spots back in here, though I decided to park in one of the open spots above the stream at the start. It is only 20 minutes from the Waterton entrance. I mention all of this for others who travel to the area wanting to camp for free. This is a very ideal location.

There were a lot of mosquitoes outside, and I got ready for bed as quick as I could. Apparently, I wasn’t near fast enough with the doors as all kinds of those suckers remained buzzing around inside. I killed a number of them, but there were still way too many. After lying down for awhile, I couldn't put up with the pesky things any longer, so I went for a little drive down the highway with all the windows down to try to air them out. This always works with flies, so I figured mosquitoes shouldn’t be any different. After I got back, they were all still there! What the heck?! Before I went to sleep, I figured I had to kill 'em all, or they were going to have me! I killed 10 to 12, which was more than twice the number I thought were in there, and after I killed what I thought were the last ones, another one started to buzz. There were one or two that I just couldn't get. I went to bed. I killed about 5 more in the morning!