June 12, Sunday, Essex to Cut Bank

https://ridewithgps.com/trips/93049886

We got up a little bit after 6:00 and left at approximately 730 after a breakfast of bagels and peanut butter. It was misting just a little bit as we got ready to leave and for the first few miles. Today we finally entered Glacier National Park--the highway crossed the Middle Fork of the Flathead River and we were officially in (for a few miles).  It soon became partly cloudy and we got some nice sunshine and clear views of the mountains. We stopped at a waterfall, called the Silver Staircase Falls (we also heard someone call it Stairway to Heaven) outside the park. The water comes down over ledges on the hillside that look like steps, very beautiful. At this spot we met a couple from Eastern Ontario who are traveling on motorcycles to Vancouver BC and then back home through Canada, going almost 7,000 miles or more. We felt bonded to one another as we both wore very bright rain suits.  We were wearing ours both for rain and because it was fairly cool As we continued climbing up to  Marias Pass we took our rain pants off because the sun was out and we were starting to get warm.  We hadn't pedaled much more than a city block when it started to rain hard so we had to stop and put our rain pants back on again. After crossing the Pass,  it was a gentle downhill to East Glacier. As we headed east from there the terrain and vegetation changed to dryer and much flatter with the gentle rolls and wide vistas of the great plains. In the town of Browning which is in the Blackfeet Indian reservation we went to an IGA to use the restroom and buy some crackers and we felt very much a minority there.  It was a pretty modern up-to-date grocery store, but were amazed by the 3 dogs hanging around just outside the door.  Our ride from Browning to Cut Bank was very pleasant as for most the way we had a tailwind and nice wide shoulders which made for pleasant riding. It was fun to see the  mountains gradually fading into the background.  It was also amazing to see trains about a mile away, Jim mistook one for a snow fence until he saw it was moving. 

Because of rain tonight we're staying at a motel in Cut Bank and during check-in we met another couple who are going to hike the Continental Divide from Canada to Mexico. We had supper with them and had a fun time chatting about the hiking they've done and their hopes and plans  for their up-to-6 month hike.