The Adventures of Bushwhack Jack

Back in the USA

Glacier National Park, MT

Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

I was planning to photograph the sunrise again, but there was no sunrise to be had this morning.  Instead the air was filled with fog and a light rain.  I did take a few photos and enjoyed another great breakfast at the Simply the Best Bed and Breakfast before hitting the road back to the USA and Glacier National Park.

One of the Horses at the Simply the Best Bed and Breakfast

View of the Front Yard at the Simply the Best Bed and Breakfast

It was a good day to be driving, but I regretted my decision a few days earlier to save the Chief Mountain International Highway for today's drive.  There are suppose to be some great mountain views along this road, but this was the extent of our views!

Foggy Roadside View

These are the Mountains we could have seen!

We arrived at the USA border and I was happy to see only two vehicles in line ahead of us at customs.  However, the must have spent a good 15 minutes searching the van in line ahead of us.  It looked like they confiscated a few bags of fruits and vegetables and never did allow the van though.  They made them turn around a head back into Canada.

They searched our vehicle as well, but only gave it a quick 5 minute search before allowing us back into the USA.

Things were no clearer in the USA and we knew that this would not be a good day to enjoy the awesome mountain views that Glacier National Park has to offer. 

Lake St Mary and Wild Goose Island

However, it would be the perfect day to check out some waterfalls.

So I selected a hike that would take me to (3) different waterfalls.

Hike Route (highlighted in Blue)

Amy had no desire to be out hiking on a dreary day like today, so she dropped me off at the Sunrift Gorge Trail head and agreed to meet me back there about 3 hours later.

There were several nice cascades at the start of the hike, but I decided to save them until later if I had time.  I did stop to take a photo of a four-legged friend who was not at all afraid of me.

Deer on the Trail

The first waterfall I came to was Baring Falls.  Except for the challenge of keeping rain drops off the lens, photo conditions were perfect for waterfall photography!

The next section of trail followed some cliffs above the shores of Lake St Mary. 

Fog over Lake St Mary

Next up was St. Mary Falls which I thought was a really nice waterfall!

St Mary Falls

And finally I arrived at Virginia Falls, the tallest of the three waterfalls on this hike.

Virginia Falls

There were several smaller unnamed waterfalls and cascades along the trail between Virginia and St Mary Falls.  I stopped to photograph a few of them on the hike back.

Un-named waterfall between Virginia and St Mary Falls

Un-named waterfall between Virginia and St Mary Falls

I stopped briefly for a few more shots of Lake St Mary on the way back as well

Lake St Mary

After my solo hike, I convinced Amy to join me on a short hike to Sun Point.  While things still hadn't cleared up any, at least for now the heaviest of the rain had stopped.

Sign at Sun Point showing all the mountains we could not see

Amy at Sun Point

Amy at Sun Point

(in the center of the photo you can see a distant view of Virginia Falls)

Jack and Amy at Sun Point

(very typical:  Me in shorts and t-shirt, while Amy is dressed for winter)

Coming up Tomorrow:

First Glimpse at the Two Medicine Area of Glacier National Park

and our first night at the Aspenwood Resort