We got up to some pretty wet surroundings this morning. Our chairs were soaked, so we had to spread out a tablecloth on the picnic table seat for somewhere to sit down. We brewed up some coffee and tea, and made ourselves some breakfast sandwiches to start the day. We then packed up and hit the showers using our new tokens from the campground general store. Behind the general store were the public showers, and thankfully they were empty on the men's side. However, Rhonda once again had company in the shower. But she was a nice woman who let me have the shower as soon as I got into the room.
After we were cleaned up and feeling human again, we set off on the Going To The Sun highway (Without the sun part. Maybe we thought if we followed this road we would find it. But no luck. It was just a highway.). It's a highway that goes right up into the mountains, and over them. There were several stops on the highway, but they were all on the opposite side of the highway. We were driving back along the same highway, so we planned on seeing those sights on the way back.
Our first stop was at Logan's Pass, the highest point on the highway. It's located right at the top of the treeline, and offers some spectacular views of the lush, green valley that drops off from that point. That was, until the cloud rolled in and completely obscured the view of everything. When you're that high up, any clouds are at the same height as the road, so it ended up looking like a pea soup thick fog. It had been raining ever since we got to the Pass, and the fog didn't help any. After seeing the sights and perusing the gift shop, we hopped back into the truck and drove down to the other side of the Park. Driving in the fog along the extremely narrow mountain road was pretty treacherous, and we were simply coasting along at 10 mph at times. We also had to stop for road construction a couple times, too. Funnily, they had some pretty upbeat and happy road workers, though. All the while, the fog was blocking the view of all the deep valleys and mountain peaks that make the highway so beautiful to drive. And the road crews had set up their gear in all of the prime spots to see the sights. How convenient.
We eventually got out of the cloud/fog, and were back down to a normal altitude. We stopped at some small waterfalls for pictures, then went into Apgar Village, located on the far west side of the Park. Rain was still coming down, so we ducked from one gift shop to another, picking up some last minute souvenirs. Basically avoiding the great outdoors.
The shortest way back to our campground was back up the Going To The Sun highway, and our luck in terms of the fog was much better. We could now see the amazing vistas previously hidden by the thick fog and cloud cover. At one viewpoint, we even saw some mountain goats grazing on the valley floor, far below us. And yes we took a picture. But we didn't block traffic.
Some of the more interesting viewpoint were blocked off by construction equipment and emergency cones, but Rhonda did a good job of taking pictures from inside the truck on the go. It was a trial and error kind of experience. Rain was still coming down. After Logan's Pass, we stopped at most of the more interesting viewpoints for photos. By this time, the rain had let up some, and had completely stopped by the time we got back to the campsite. After realizing that we didn't have much to do at the campsite and no groceries for the night, we headed in St Mary again for some dinner supplies. Yes, we were actually planning to cook tonight.
After arriving back at the campsite again, we were both a little tired, so we bedded down for a nap. Meanwhile, the rain stated to pelt the tent and tarp again. We weren't feeling up to the task of cooking in the rain, so we decided to visit the great restaurant again.
Tonight, Brett dined on steak with blue cheese and chorizo cornbread, while Rhonda opted for the Prairie Chicken, a swiss and mushroom chicken burger. Brett went for another beer, this one called "Trout Slayer" from the same brewing company as the beer from last night. This one was a light amber ale, not quite as good as the one from last night, but still decent. Rhonda finally ordered something that got her a frosty glass, a Huckleberry Soda (she had been coveting Brett's frosty glasses all throughout the trip). To keep out of the rain, we opted for dessert as well, some chocolate cake. Rhonda had some tea which came in a cool pyramid shape. Other diners actually came to the table to look at it. That's how cool it was.
We staved off the inevitable and browsed the same gift shops again, and saw that tonight's forecast called for more rain and the possibility of SNOW! So, what to do for the evening?
We went back to the campsite, and hid in the tent. Brett bundled up in his hoodie and rain jacket, and enjoyed a large can of beer, while Rhonda snuggled in her blankets. We chatted, read to each other and basically passed the time until a reasonable hour for bed.
About 200 km's put on the truck today, and we're all still here. Cold and wet, but here.
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