This morning we both woke up feeling great!  The extra rest day was much needed.  Everywhere you look, it’s beautiful and green (except the 45-minute drive to Glacier National Park – which is beautiful and a little scary).

Leaving for the park a little after noon gave us some extra time to find parking (a rare commodity) and log a mile inside the park at McDonald Lodge.  The ride from the campground to the Park was pretty quiet – I was waging an internal battle trying to convince myself that people did these tours all the time and no one got hurt.  No one fell off the mountain and no horrible disasters would befall us.  By the time we parked, I was resigned and excited at the same time.

Jammer Karl was our tour guide and driver of Red Bus #97 for our 3-4 hour Western Alpine Tour.  16 other people (including Bill) had a lot more confidence than I did as we climbed on board.  Karl was a great tour guide – he kept 17 people awake and entertained for the whole trip.  And we all returned, in one piece, in the same vehicle, breathing, talking, and laughing.

We were blessed to see so many beautiful scenes – different types of vegetation as the altitude changed, different rock formations, waterfalls, lakes, rivers, snow, snow bridges, and a few glaciers.  At Logan’s Pass, we stood on the Continental Divide and took the requisite tourist photos.  I let my mind ponder the idea that when rain fell, just a few inches made the difference about where it ended up.  We also saw some bighorn sheep enjoying the sunshine at Logan’s Pass.  Before we left, I logged ¼ mile walking so that it would be recorded on my Garmin.  We filled a bottle with glacier water to drink on the way home.  We found some more prairie dogs waiting for us on our return.

I am including some of our pictures from the tour – we took so many, and I was too caught up in listening and looking to write down names and locations.  I just want to give you a glimpse of the wonders we saw.

I mentioned yesterday that I am not good with heights.  Yes, I am a pilot – but it is different in an airplane – especially when you’re in the left seat.  Today was a really big step for me – and reminds me of the need to pull up your big girl panties, take a deep breath, and take a giant step forward – out of your comfort zone.  Had I opted to play it safe and not go on the tour, I would never know what I missed.  Life would go on, just as it is now.  Had I opted to play it safe, I would have never experienced the breathtaking beauty that I witnessed.

We are so blessed.  Enjoy some of these scenes: