On our first day at Glacier NP we had a campsite that was not very shaded. On the good side, my Jetpack was connecting well enough to access email and the internet. We noticed that the people a few sites down had a great shady site, and they were planning to depart the next morning, so we relocated as they pulled out. We gained shade, but lost connectivity. We were disconnected from the outside world.
On Friday (7/30) evening, we hiked about 4 miles RT to a beautiful little waterfall. It wasn’t the largest waterfall we’ve seen. In fact, it was rather modest in flow, but it was one of my favorites for the zigzag pattern and the way the water split over the last rock. It had character. On Saturday morning, Elena and I hiked another 5 mile RT along the northern edge of Two Medicine Lake. In the afternoon, we took the 45-minute boat ride around the lake. Elena brought her inflatable SUP, but they are short of staff and can’t inspect watercraft, so they have prohibited all private watercraft for now.
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| Aster Falls with even greater beauty |
On Saturday (7/31) we did a 5 mile hike along the north short of the lake. I’ll detail my long Sunday morning hike in another post. On Monday (8/2) we returned to the small waterfall and climbed up higher to find it continued in a long ribbon well up the mountain. The high temperature was only 74ºF.
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| Sunset over Two Medicine Lake |
Friday (7/30) evening we attended a talk by Blackfoot tribe member Don Fish. My grandmother always said she was half Cherokee. Whether that’s true or not, it does not matter, because I very much relate to, and respect, their outlook on the world. They’ve been in this area for over 10,000 years, so there is much wisdom they have passed down. Don talked about how all living things are connected. His people value respect and humility. They value ethics and morals. They understand that people cannot exist without nature, but nature would thrive without people. When they harvest a plant, or kill an animal for food, they thank the plant or animal for its sacrifice to help their family and tribe. They don’t think they have dominion over nature - they understand that they are part of it. They share freely. Ownership and material possessions are not what they value.
Their medicine men (and women) are the wise elders who understand the workings of nature. They are sort of a biologist, zoologist, geologist, climatologist, naturalist, and doctor combination. The leaders of the tribe always consult with them before making any major decisions. Their leaders seek wisdom first and then do what’s best for their people.
He spoke about how everyone in the community takes responsibility for raising a child and teaching them. They use humor to educate. When a child does something wrong, they are teased by everyone. The teasing is not mean, or meant to lower their self-worth. It’s a way to show them that they have made an error and have a lesson to learn. They value humor.
The Blackfeet and other indigenous people have endured much suffering and challenges since people with different values invaded their space. The new people did not seek to learn, but only to conquer and try to change them. I’m thankful that people like Don are still around to pass the wisdom on. I’ve spent much of my career working on sustainability issues, but the Native Americans have been implementing solutions for thousands of years. Our society could learn much from their culture.
-Paul
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