Chicken

I have not helped butcher chicken for a long time.   My uncle each year raises around 100 chicken and keeps 30 or so through the winter.  As a child, I learned a lot of my anatomy through watching my family butcher turkeys, chickens, deer, cattle, etc.  I was able to identify lung matter, livers, hearts and intestines before kindergarten.  Today we butchered about 15 chickens.  I helped pick feathers and clean the chicken before we stuck it in the freezer.  I was then asked to clean a couple of wash tubs.  

The tubs used to cool down the chicken before it is put in the freezer.  They are full of clean water and chicken that have been dressed and cut up are put there.  After a while they are placed in bags and put in the freezer.  

I have always just rinsed the tubs out and put them back where we get them from.  Sometimes we use a little soap.  This time, my aunt Jerri noticed there were quite a few spots on the tub.  We then began to scrub the tubs and found the sides of the tub were coated in layers upon layers of soap and old chicken fat.  I do not know when the last time these were scrubbed, but I worked on one tub for over an hour and was still not done.  

We ate a delicious dinner and then moved equipment to see if we could harvest.  Right now, the crew is in the field and the first wheat is cutting at about 13% moisture.  It is time to harvest and get the wheat out of the field. In the next few days, I will help out when needed, but I think I probably won't see much of my father for the rest of the trip.  Wish us a fruitful harvest.  

July 30

The farm is getting ready to harvest our winter wheat and we lease a combine, or harvester, to help cut the grain.  The machine was delivered on Wednesday and I helped Dad put on a second set of tires.  The wind was blowing about 20-30 miles an hour all day and it was HOT!  Mom and I spent a day in the kitchen baking bread and she also was teaching me how to make jelly.  Hopefully when I get back to Oregon, I will make some Blackberry and raspberry preserves.  Mom, Dad and I ate porkchops for dinner, and I ate my share of potatoes.  At around 8:30, the wind died down and I went running.  I don't miss the burning in my lungs I get in Montana.  In Oregon, there is enough humidity, my legs always give out before my lungs.  In Montana, I am short of breath and coughing much before my legs are tired.  I should come here to train if I ever want to compete in a race.  

Last Day in Glacier

We decided to do one last short hike before we left the park.  We ate breakfast, took down our campsite and drove to East Glacier.  I hopped in with R & R and we drove to Two Medicine to do the Running Eagle Falls hike.  When I was young the falls were called trick falls.  We walked the .3 mile trail to the falls.  There was no water running over the top, but there was a torrent gushing forth from the bottom.  We then drove back to East Glacier and parted ways.  I stopped in Ft. Benton for a burger (it was delicious) and returned to an empty house at the farm.  I did laundry and put all the gear back.  

When Mom came home that night, we sat and talked for many hours.  I had not spent quality time with my mother yet on this trip.  It was fun to sit and chat about our family and laugh.  

Logan Pass

Rachael opted for a day at the campsite while Ryan and I tried to do more hiking.  We drove to St. Mary and got on a free shuttle to Logan Pass.  The shuttle was packed with people and so was the parking lot.  I think it is removing quite a bit of traffic from the road, which is excellent.  At the top, the parking lot was teeming with people and three cars were driving in circles looking for a spot.  Ryan and I headed toward the garden wall and walked along the cliff for a while.  We saw many mountain goats in a similar spot to where Marie and I had seen them a year before.  

We then went back and decided to just do the hidden lake overlook.  It is a boardwalk trail, but some of it was still under snow.  We moved quickly to the overlook and ate lunch there, and then ran the whole way back with skiing/skating through the snow patches.  We had people looking at us like we were junior high boys, but it was fun.  We then went back to camp.  

We had spaghetti o's and Easy Mac.  It was not the best choice, but we all felt that it will help us appreciate "real" food when we got out of the park the next day.  We burned the end of our wood and ate the last smores and hot dogs.  

Fishin'

Ryan told me earlier this summer that he would like to try and fish in Glacier.  You don't need to buy a license, so why not.  We grabbed 3 poles from my house, which haven't been used for at least (emphasis on least) 9 years.  We drove to Swiftcurrent lake and Many Glacier lodge.  Rachael worked a season there when she was 19.  We walked through the lodge and looked in the gift shop.  

We then grabbed the poles and walked a mile into Lake Josephine and found a little inlet on the South west shore.  Rachael brought a chair and books to relax in while Ryan and I fought with the poles.  We strung the poles within a half hour which shocked me.  Ryan loaded a pole with a hook and bobber and cast it.  He then set it near Rachael and told her to watch it.  Ryan and I then played with all the lures that were in the tackle box.  

Since we were fishin' at noon in the heat of the day on a rocky shore with little shade, Ryan and I knew there was little hope for any catch.  We had a tremendous amount of fun anyway.  After losing one lure under a rock, Ryan and I moved to a small pond behind our inlet and cast into the water for 15-20 minutes.  Hikers would hike by above us and comment to each other , thinking they were out of ear shot, about how stupid we were.  I even commented back to a couple that stopped and stared for a while.  Eventually Ryan and I put bobbers and hooks on our poles and sat down to read as well.  At around 1:30 we decided to go back to the parking lot for lunch.  We made sandwiches and ate in the shade.  We then headed to St. Mary for a restaurant that served pie.  Rachael told me it was the best pie on this side of the park.  

We walked in and put our name on the 20 minute waiting list, and then went into the gift shop.  I bought some stickers and found my way into the restaurant.  We sat down and ordered different types of berry pies.  It was delicious and the atmosphere was good.  The counter at the front where we sat had an open view to the kitchen where twenty-somethings hustled around making the orders and chatting.  You could tell they were having fun and enjoying their summer near the park.  

We then went back to camp and napped.  I was sore from the hike yesterday and the rest was great.  We cooked chili that night.  Ryan and I ate the last of the beer sausage and made chili dogs.  We then discussed plans tomorrow.  Ryan and I thought we might try to summit a peak near Logan's pass and so we were going to do the Going-to-the-Sun Highway.  I slept like a brick again.  

TDP

We hit the trail at 7:45 am after a breakfast of oatmeal and hot chocolate. We had made our lunches and were making good time up the trail. We passed Atlantic Creek Campground and passed another "t" in the trail when I saw a little bird that looked like a meadow lark. I looked closely and it was a baby bird that was learning how to fly. As we sat and watched we found the mother very close by, sitting on a branch cooing as her 3-5 chicks were following. I am pretty sure it was a ptarmigan. As Marie and Rachael watched the birds, Ryan and I started on the trail and not fifty feet down the trial I startled a moose. I saw it's rump near the trail and it took off up into the woods. Marie and Rachael came up and were able to see it on the side of the hill in the woods.

My goal was to hit Triple Divide Pass by 11 am so we could summit and get down in time to take Marie to the train. We started walking pretty quickly and made it to the pass at 11:05. At this point we saw that where we wanted to walk was covered in steep snow fields. We would have to wait to summit the peak. After lunch Ryan and I walked up a ridgeline toward the peak, and had great views to the North and South. Rachael hiked toward Mt. James on a ridge line, but neither of us were more than 500 feet higher than the pass.

We decided to head down at around 12:45 and walk back to camp. We arrived back at camp at around 3:45-4:00. We all went straight to the creek to refill the water bottles with a filter and to cool down our feet.

Marie packed and we all went into East Glacier at about 5pm. We got there at 5:50 and Marie grabbed her ticket. We went to a grocery store where Marie grabbed snacks and ice cream, and we grabbed beer and chips. We waited at the station and put Marie on the train to go to Portland. Our summer journey together was over, but we still weren't home yet. Marie was going back to Portland to take part in an Earth Science Teacher workshop. I was going back to the farm after a few more days in the park.

Ryan, Rachael and I drove back to camp, and made chicken, potatoes, carrots and onions for dinner. I grabbed a chicked from the farm freezer and we wrapped it in tin foil and threw it in the fire. We did the same with the carrots and onions, but cooked dehydrated potatoes on the stove. It was delicious and we all went to bed with sore limbs and full bellies.

To Glacier

We left at 10am for the Park.  I have not car-camped for a while and forgot how much you can pack.  We brought four chairs, a picnic hamper with all dishes we would need, a cooler, 3 fishing poles, tackle box, clothes, day pack, two burner stove with fuel, and more.  

We stopped in Shelby to pick up last minute groceries, and then arrived in East Glacier around 2pm.  We stayed in a small campground called Cut Bank, which is advertised as "primitive."  It has a pump with non-potable water and pit toliets, but it seemed pretty nice to me.  We set up tents, put together some lunch and walked up a the trial that left from the campground.  We walked about a mile then turned back.  We ate a dinner of red beans and rice with some hot beer sausage we got from my Dad.  We then had smores and hotdogs over a fire.  We picked out a trail for the next day, the Triple Divide Peak.  We had thoughts of sumiting the peak so we set our alarms for 7am to get an early start.  

Tour of the Montana Prairie

We woke up early and saw that it had rained the night before.  We were still good to go hiking, and I was excited that there would be less dust in the air.  We drove 12 miles to my uncles place and we loaded up a pickup for the breaks.  

Dad, Paul, Dylan, Marie, Ryan, Rachael and myself piled in and took off for the breaks.  we also brought Mason, my uncle's dog.  The breaks are a set of coulees carved by rivers and streams in the past.  As you drive across the prairie you would not know they were there until you get right to them.  

We parked and started walking.  Our only destination was a petrified tree my uncle had found the fall prior while he was deer hunting.  We took off in the wind and walked through typical Montana prairie: sage brush, grass, cactus, flowers, and yucca.  We finally found a ridge and hiked down to find some sandstone cliffs.  Lewis and Clark wrote in their journals about the white cliffs of the Missouri River and we were climbing around similar formations all day.  

We ate lunch after admiring rock formations, ant hills, and wild flowers.  My uncle thought he was on the correct ridge to see the petrified log, but we could not find it.  I found a small piece of petrified wood, but no luck.  We then took off down a steep slope toward the next ridge.  

We all made it to that set of sandstone, but again could not find the log.  Marie and my Dad decided to slowly take their time and walk up the ridge toward the pickup while the rest of us scrambled down and up to the next batch of sandstone.  

As we approached, there was a cliff in front that my uncle was going to go around, but I guessed we could go up it.  We all made it, even the dog with a little assistance.  We saw a bat resting on the cliff as well as some holes in the rock big enough for a mountain lion den.  On top of that formation, we finally found the log.  

We then all walked back, met up with Dad and Marie and headed to find some teepee rings.  We drove a ways to another part of the breaks and got out.  Here there are stone circles the Native Americans used to hold down the edges of their teepees in the wind and weather.  They would roll away the stones and leave them until the next season when they would return. There are not many left in the prairie near us, but these neat.  

We then drove to the last place on the tour.  It is a cut in the side of a hill, where sea shells and sharks teeth fossils are left from the age when Montana was covered by a great sea.  I found 12 shark teeth and nobody went away empty handed.  It was this cut that sparked some of the geology and paleontology interest and helped decide my major in college.  

We then drove back to Paul's house, and Jerri had made a delicious lasagna dinner for us.  When we return home, I gathered camping gear and we all discussed our trip to Glacier Park the next day.  

comments

Thanks to those who have commented.  I now have it set up that you can comment without registering.  Sorry, I thought I had done that to start.  ENJOY!~

R & R

Ryan and Rachael, two friends from grad school, were wed July 14* in Boise, ID.  They then went and spent some time with his family in Cheyenne, and on their trip back to Oregon, they decided to meet up with Marie and I.  

Ryan and Rachael showed up to the farm around 2:30 on Wednesday.   I gave them the tour, and we sat down to catch up on our trips.  We started the farming game and we played right up until dinner was ready.  Rachael won this time, and after dinner we chatted then went in a watched the Notebook. I hadn't seen it, and it was ok, but did not meet all the hype.  The next day we were going to day the tour of our farm and a hike in breaks.  

That night there was tons of lightening and we all sat outside and watched it.  We went to bed with thunder still booming in the distance.

Round Butte

On the 22nd my uncle Paul, aunt Jerri, Mom, Dad, cousin Dylan, Marie and I hiked up Round Butte.  It is a fixture on my families skyline, but I have never hiked it.  I have hiked the larger square butte (creative names I'll admit) many times, but never hiked the smaller, mostly because it is entirely on private land.  My uncle Paul attained permission, we packed up the dogs  and  took off at 8am.  

We arrived at the base of the butte at around 9:30 and began hiking.  The first stop, was the tomb of Ole Osnes who had once owned the land.  He was buried in 1937 within a granite tomb.  

We then began the hike through Montana prarie to the base.  The grass was dry and poked through socks.  The worst part was the cheat grass.  It is a pain and has little sharp seeds that stick to anything.  Marie and I stopped often to pull them out of our shoes, socks, and pants.  

We got to the top and found a survey marker on the highest point.  We ate lunch and rested for a while.  Paul, Dylan and I wandered to find mountain goats and then head down.  We found a pair on the far other side of the butte.  Just as we headed down we ran into the others on their way down.  

We did not plan super well for the dogs.  Paul had his dog Mason pack his own water, but our new dog, Molly, did not have any.  Dad and I sacrificed some of our water for her.  On the way down, we did find a stock tank that the dogs were able to drink from, and Mason went for a swim to cool down.  

The hike was great, although I did sunburn my neck.  That night Marie, Dylan and I played the Farming Game.  Dylan whooped up on us.    

Montana

I slept well and Marie did too.  We woke up after Fargo at around 5 am, and went into the observation car to watch the sunrise.  I have not seen one for.....a long time.   I then went back to sleep and woke up at 8.  We decided we should eat in the dining car once on our train trip, so we went and ate breakfast.  We were seated with a man from Michigan headed to Vancouver to see his daughter and a man whose family is from Manitoba, and they were going to Seattle to see a Mariners game.  Marie and I both had french toast, and enjoyed our visit as we passed through North Dakota farm land.  It made me nostalgic for home.  

We arrived in Havre at around 3pm and when we stepped off the train it seemed hot and dry.  My uncle Paul picked us up and we stopped at Artic Circle for some food before heading home.  We arrived at the farm around 5 pm and we sat up and talked with my parents and my cousin Dylan.    

Aquatennial!

We woke up to a delicious breakfast of eggs, toast, fruit, coffee cake, fried potatoes, coffee, and freshly squeezed orange juice.  As we sat outside enjoying the weather and digesting our food, we decided we wanted to try and see the milk carton boat races and sand castle competition at the Aquatennial.  We packed a cooler and took off for the lakes.  When Marie and I heard "Milk-Carton Boat Races" we both thought they were boats made from a single milk carton that raced down a creek or something.  I figured watching the contest could give me a quick idea for a class project.  Instead the boats need to carry a human and be propelled by humans.  It was quite entertaining.  We only saw the last heat, but I was happy.  We then strolled through the sand castle building competition and saw some very creative entries.  My favorite was two swimmers cutting through waves.  

We then drove to a sculpture garden.  The art was mostly modern art, and was interesting to walk through quickly.  There was also an exhibit about housing and technology for third world countries.

  

We then played mini-golf on a course where each hole was designed by a different artist.  There were holes that had a pinball machine powered by a bicycle, plastic bottles swinging from ropes, and many other elaborate holes.  It was short but a lot of fun.  

We then went to find food, and found ourselves in the same place as the night before.  There was a live band called the Minnesota Barking Ducks.  They put out some great blues and set a good mood for dinner.  Afterwards we made our way back to Elizabeth and Bill's to relax and pack before boarding the train that night.  On our drive, our hosts pointed out local landmarks, as well as buildings that my uncle had worked on.  

We boarded the train for Havre, MT at 11pm and I fell asleep promptly after.  

Chicago annd Minneapolis

Grandma dropped Marie and I off at the bus stop at around 9 am. Marie and I arrived in Chicago around 11 am. We found a free shuttle and found our way from Union Station around town. We were looking for a pizza place. We had New York style pizza, why not look for Chicago style?

On the shuttle we spotted a pizza place and ate there.

We rode back to Union Station and boarded the train for Minneapolis St. Paul. The route took us through Milwaukee WI and I got to see the Miller Brewing Plant out of my window. I have a friend that has recently (last month) moved and began working there.

As we approached Minneapolis, we were behind schedule, so I called my aunt to warn her. As I got off the phone, the conductor called to tell us that we would still be on schedule. I called back to tell her we would make it on time. As we approached, we had to stop because of freight traffic (BNSF owns the rail, Amtrak just runs on it) and we were late anyway.

My aunt Elizabeth and her husband Bill decided it was still early enough to grab a drink. We stopped at Tuggs, with a great view of the skyline, and sat outside and had a few drinks. Marie and I got to bed around 2 am.

Last day in Rockford

I finished looking at photo albums my last full day in Rockford.  I took pictures of pictures to help me remember everything and wrote down notes.  I started a family tree online, and read accounts of my grandfather's dating and traveling.   

Julie and Grandma agreed to take us around town, and help us pick up a few things before we left.  We stopped and bought a blanket (trains are cold, despite the heat outside) and snacks for our last legs of the journey.  We then travelled to a peace memorial, which had flags representing all of the nations and languages that are represented in Rockford, Il.  It had quotes and a nice flower garden around the outside.  

We then went to Rock Cut State Park and saw a lake and a few trails. The water was extremely high and had almost completely covered an island in the lake.  We got out and walked a little bit then returned home.  

That night I spent hours with Julie, Carl, Amy and Grandma, showing off pictures and telling the stories of our travels.