This American finally put his money where his mouth is, and toured the country of which he speaks so fondly.Traveling with Brother Brad and Econ. Extraordinaire Alex, we set out to Montana via plane on August 10th to meet Econ. Professor Jake. We then drove back across America. The road mileage totaled 3,160 when we arrived in Raleigh, NC on August 20th.
America can not be done justice in one blog, so there will be 3-4 installments. First, I'd like to say that I originally thought Wrigley Field in Chicago was going to be the highlight of the trip for me. This proved to be incorrect. Wrigley Field was splendid, but it was trumped by Glacier National park in the northwestern corner of Montana and southern edge of Canada.
I know you've probably heard the saying before, but photos truly can't do this place justice. Even with heavy smoke from intense forest fires, the views were unbelievable. The only thing that comes close to what I saw in Glacier is the 9-foot tall statue of Dale Earnhardt that stands in Kannapolis, North Carolina. But seriously, Glacier was the most amazing place I've ever been. I would post the pictures here, but they are more accessible at Alex Marten's website. Holler at the "3160-mile road trip" photo book.
We saw a black bear, a grizzly bear, a moose, long-horned sheep, and mountain goats all in two days. We saw glaciers...Friggin' glaciers; ice as old Julio Franco. We jumped in a lake formed from glacier runoff. We wrestled 3 grizzly bears and traded their hides for provisions; not really, but you get the idea. We were doing some serious Jeremiah Johnson ish up there.
The group hiked 22 miles in 2 days. The first destination was Grinnell Glacier (12 mile hike all told). A slip on the edge of this trail would = "Goodbye world, hello Glory." We made it though. The second day, we set out for Iceburg Lake (10 mile hike). This one ended with a plunge into 40-45 degree water all for the sake of saying "Hey there pretty lady, my name's Casey. I once jumped in a frigid lake. Let's date."
After Glacier National Park we left for Chicago, Illinois. Left on Tuesday, had to be in Chicago by Friday for the Cubs/Cardinals game. Farewell Big Sky Country.
1 comment:
Best trip ever! We also had encounters with cougars, though we know not where or when. If we knew the exact time or place of the encounters, I would not be leaving this comment; I would be in Glory. Nonetheless, we had encounters with cougars. You don't see the cougar; the cougar sees you. ****ing A!
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