June 27 – Day 6 Alaska Trip

Glacier National Park is so unique to the world, it is designated a “World Heritage Site”, an honor shared with the Taj Mahal, The Great Barrier Reef, and the Egyptian Pyramids. The Going-to-the-Sun Road is a 50 mile long “National Landmark” and is located within the park. After eating breakfast, we headed out for the Going-to-the-Sun Road, planning on entering the western park boundary and exiting on the eastern side before going north to cross the border into Canada. We were lucky, the road just opened the day before after being cleared of snow. The GTTS Road is truly a marvelous engineering masterpiece. The narrow roadbed was blasted from the sheer mountainsides carved perpendicular by glacial erosion. Waterfalls cascade from dizzying heights dropping straight down the bluffs above to right beside the road before being channeled through underlying tunnels continuing out the other side of the cliff. Ice Age glaciers, glistening snow, clear blue lakes, turbulent river rapids, beauty out the Wazoo, it’s all there… I almost had a deer jump in my lap, but fortunately for me, it decided otherwise and scaled an impossible cliff instead! We saw a black bear scavenging on an old avalanche path, chowing down on the remains of hapless victims beat to a pulp in the violent and swift path of moving snow. If you haven’t been, you should go. Go this summer. Go on your bike. Oh! BTW, I am so jazzed…! It was at the Summit on the Going-to-the-Sun Road that I learned my True Indian Name… It came to me in a Vision. For as long as the wind blows and the grass grows, I will be known as “Head-Smashed-in-Buffalo-Collision”!!! The US is on friendly terms with Canada, so you can just go there if you want. Leroy used his considerable charms on the pretty little Customs Agent, and we smuggled our lunch apples through undetected. One little thing, Canada doesn’t have reciprocity laws regarding concealed carry weapons, so don’t try it – they get really pissed if you come into their country packing heat. So, who’s brilliant idea was this? Oh well, chalk up one for the bad guys! Once across the border, Leroy and I started looking for a picnic spot. I managed to take a couple of wrong turns and by that time, I was really getting cranky from hunger. Finally, we found Beauvais Lake Provincial Park. A mountainous landscape surrounding a beautiful lake, it was a great picnic. They did have signs up warning of recent bear sightings, but with all the cutesy canine happy meals running around loose from their owners, the park bears must be reasonably well fed from these easy pickings! Final destination is Cranbrook, B.C. – Total miles today at 299.