The race route
I got up with the sunrise (about 7:00 local time, it felt like) and headed out for a run.
I missed my Saturday run because of my poor sleeping habits.
I ran down 93 and took route 3 east toward Glacier.
There was a fog over the ground, but sunshine above. I ran past a grove of pine trees there the sunlight through the boughs cast long shafts of light through the fog. Off in the distance I could see the mountains of Swan Range, and peeking over, the mountaintops of Flathead Range.
These peaks were probably 7 to 10 miles away, but I still had to look up to see their cloud covered peaks.
As the clouds lifted off the peaks, the crests were covered in fresh snow… It’s as if the mountains were dunked in powdered sugar. Beautiful.
This was one of many runs where I told myself, “No wonder ultrarunning is big out here…”
After a shower and a warm cup of coffee, I hit the road. My destination was Glacier National Park. I wanted to get into some big mountains!
My route took me past Hungry Horse, and I saw a sign for the dam. I decided to take a quick detour that ended up taking all day.
My first trek took me to the base of the Hungry Horse Dam. It’s huge, and the valley below the dam is beautiful.
Next, I headed back around to the top of the dam. I thought I’d check out the race finish area, so I could explain to Joce where to meet me.
Ok… I figured that part out, but I decided to drive the route. It was early, and I thought I’d just head down the route to Spotted Bear (where the race starts) and try to find a motel down there.
Man was I in for a treat. Mostly cloudy, some sprinkles, but good visibility.
The bulk of Hungry Horse Reservoir extends about 30 miles southward where it is fed, including various tributaries, by the South Fork of the Flathead River.
Swan Range on the west side, Flathead Range on the east. Flathead Range exposes a beautiful display to the reservoir. From north to south, Ousel, Hungry Horse, Nyack, Great Northern (8,700), Adams, Felix, Baptiste, Circus, Crossover, Condor, Green and Spotted Bear scratch at the heavens with their snow-covered peaks.
I had found what I had come for, big mountains.
I made my way to the staging area. This is one of the areas where my limited comprehension of the English language is completely insufficient to describe the surroundings.
On Saturday, it will be dark for the ride down to the staging area. I’m profoundly excited that this view will be the first thing that Jocelyn sees when the sun comes up!
These pictures do not do the area justice. The pine trees on the far shore are at least 35 to 50 feet tall, if that’s any help as you try to visually approximate the magnitude of these images.
Oh yeah, Spotted Bear is not a town… It’s an intersection of two roads, as far as I can tell… No buildings, no nothing… I headed back to Whitefish for the night.
Bill