Two Medicine for the Soul

On the 13th day of our 35 day trip we reached the mileage halfway point, Glacier National Park. The Two Medicine Campground is a first-come, first-served site with 100 spaces. Elena made the ultimate sacrifice by letting me wake her up early, so we could make the ~2 hour drive and get there to claim a campsite. It worked. We are here for 4 nights. 

At Two Medicine Campground in Glacier National Park

There is still some smoke haze, but it seems to be a little better today. Instead of being rated a 10.0, the views are more like a 9.8 - still pretty special. We walked around the campsite the first day and scouted the hikes. We splashed in the cool lake water. We also booked a scenic boat trip on the lake for Saturday. 

Over the next few days we'll drive less, hike more, relax more, and maybe take an afternoon nap (one down already). We are in the no-generator section of the campground, so it's nice and quiet. The high is a sunny 83, and we'll be in the 50's at night.

"Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better." —Albert Einstein

We'll be on the lookout for wildlife. I can't help but flashback to a favorite Simpsons episode, Kamp Krusty:

Bart: How could you, Krusty? I never lend my name to an inferior product.
Krusty: (gasps and sobs) They drove a dump truck full of money up to my house! I'm not made of stone.
Bart: Krusty, this camp was a nightmare! They fed us gruel! They forced us to make wallets for export and one of the campers was eaten by a bear!
Krusty: Oh, my God! [sobs harder]
Bart: Well, actually the bear just ate his hat.
Krusty: Was it a nice hat?
Bart: Oh, yeah.
Krusty: Oh, my God! [sobs even harder than before] 

(Editorial note from Elena: Paul makes the "was it a nice hat?" joke ALL the time, so if you hear him say that, now you know where it came from.)

I'm not worried about a bear encounter, and neither is my hat. Hiking is calming and relaxing, even if you are carrying bear spray and keeping a careful watch. The risk of a bear attack is about 1 in 2.1 million. Driving is about 21,000 times riskier than hiking in bear country. A bear attack while hiking is 7,000 times less likely than being shot by a Yosemite Sam wannabe while walking around in Texas. I just want to shoot a bear -- with a camera. 

"Nature is loved by what is best in us." —Ralph Waldo Emerson

Nature heals, nature soothes, nature restores. The Two Medicine area is not as touristy as some other park areas, so the nature to people ratio is pretty favorable. We're fortunate to live on a couple of wooded acres at home, so we can bathe in the forest whenever we want. There is also something so majestic about the mountains. 

Elena at the lake

“The mountains are calling and I must go.” – John Muir

- Paul