Lots of wildlife, no rain

©2012 Lydia Hinshaw 

 

Rock-hopper lifts off...

. . .and lands on the other side

Bye-bye bear

 WEST GLACIER, MT -- We saw our first bear and our first mountain goats Thursday, during a drive to the east side of Glacier National Park.

 We saw the bear first, just north of East Glacier Park.  Three or four cars were already stopped and we arrived just in time to watch the grizzly head for the treeline.

 On the way back, near Essex, some folks had stopped beside the road and walked out onto a bridge, and we pulled over to join them. We were all watching about 10 mountain goats high above us when someone noticed a straggler coming out from under the bridge and much closer to us.

 He seemed content to have his picture taken, nibbling at the grass and taking a long drink of water before jumping the small creek and heading up the steep slope to join his friends. 

 It was a good day, and not just for wildlife viewing.  The best part was that we didn't see a single raindrop all day.