Upper Stillwater Lake Montana - July 6th
An old favorite, a good camp on Montana Route 93. The water level was way down, and an island last year was no longer an island this year. That said, the paddle in the evening was lovely. Birds, beavers and one great blue Heron – I wonder if it was the same guy as last year; compare photos below.
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| Upper Stillwater Lake |
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| A Killdeer |
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| Great Blue Heron 2015 |
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| Great Blue taken in same lake last year |
Paddles in Glacier National Park
Kintla Lake (July 8th- 15th)
Kintla is without doubt my favorite lake in the US . The week we were there, there were fires all around making the air very hazy, but as per usual it was wonderful. I had numerous paddles on the lake.
On one sunny day Bruce hiked up the lake trail and I paddled. By the time we met up well up towards the end of the lake, thunder was booming in the north and clouds were gathering.
We decided to turn around, and I made to it with about 15 minutes of the campground when a squall whipped up. From calm waters, with a gentle westerly, the conditions completely changed. The wind picked up in an
instant, coming from the east; white caps appeared and the waves were up to about 3 feet. I put all my effort to get to shore that was only about 30 yards away, but pulled the boat in shore. Bruce was there on the trail and by the time we decided that maybe I’d hike back, the wind dropped and I headed back onto the water and Bruce hiked on. The waves were about 1-2 feet, but the wind was dropping and it was blowing directly towards the end of the lake where the campground was. – Had a super surf home.
Had several another less eventful paddles and managed to catch a lake trout while trolling. They are a pest species and need to be killed. Sadly I did not know this and let it go. Argh!!
Swiftwater Lake Many Glacier - Glacier NP July 17th
I left Bruce in camp and headed the 50 miles or so up the eastern side of Glacier NP. It was a cloudy day and rain was threatening. There was a long lake (Sherburne lake) on the way into the park created by the damming of the Swiftwater River . The wind was very strong, and padding it was not really a fun option. I drove on to Swiftwater Lake that was much smaller and flanked by the Many Glacier Hotel, a classic American National Park Lodge. The lake was small and I paddled around it, checking out mergansers that were doing their thing. There was some light rain on my way back of the car, but I had my emergency poncho on (having left my wet weather gear at camp-doh!) and was fairly dry on my return. I went and checked out the Hotel, which was as impressive inside as out.
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| Many Glacier Hotel |
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| Inside the historic hotel |
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| The public 'lounge' at the Many Glacier Hotel |
Two Medicine Lake Montana (Glacier NP) July 15
More spectacular Montana scenery here. I paddled the circumference. It was fairly breezy – paddling directly into the wind (of course) made for a good workout. I met some local Montanans who have been paddling around the place for 30 years. They asked after Lyle from Kintla, having not been there for a couple of years. He is truly a legend.
Next time I come here I’ll be prepared to walk at the other end, as the Twin Falls are only 15 minutes away, but as I did not have my walking boots with me and my foot was bruised, I gave it a miss. The highlight of this paddle, apart from the beautiful scenery was the drive in. As I was approaching the park I was lucky to get a good look at a couple of bear cubs frolicking on the road. The mum was nowhere to be seen. They was calling out though, the first time I ever heard a bear make a noise (listen below).
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| More mergansers |
Bowman's Lake (Glacier)
Just another perfect paddle on a perfect lake on a perfect day.
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| Lookout tower on top of mountain |
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| Clark's Nutcracker |
