Elk and Goats and Bears, Oh My

Experiencing Waterton National Park in the off season is an incredible thing. Yes, most of the shops and restaurants are closed, but that is a small price to pay. Every road you drive down, every trail you hike, every view you pause at to soak in - you have mostly to yourself. You don't have to share it with hoards of international tourists. 

You can sit at any spot for as long as you like, and not feel like you have to move along to make room for the next group of people. It's easy to take pictures without getting other people in them.

When you are driving down one of the roads and see something of interest, you can stop and look at it or take a picture without worrying about backing up traffic. 

When you go to a restaurant, you can chose the perfect patio table; great view, the sun at your back, not in your eyes (with option of shade), and there's no one close by to look at you funny when you take pictures of trolls!

A well deserved raspberry ripple break!

If you go into a gift shop or the ice cream shop, you aren't elbow to elbow with other people. Well, maybe in the chocolate/ice cream shop, it's such a small space that two people would be crowded! The ice cream was so good that it was worth it!

Blakiston Falls is an easy hike on a well maintained trail. It is uphill most of the way, but not such an incline that it's hard on the knees or you feel unstable going back down on the gravel. There are viewing platforms at several points when you get to the falls, with benches. It was wonderful to sit and close my eyes, with the sun on my back, and let the roar of the water drown out everything else. While I was by myself, I indulged in a little yoga. 

A lovely couple from Louisiana came by. We had a nice chat and then I ran into them again at dinner! We got talking about the forest fire, 5 years ago, and the slow regrowth after. Many people wonder about the value about coming to Waterton after such devastation. It is shocking at first, I won't pretend otherwise. I found that I got used to it. The townsite wasn't touched, and the mountains are still awe inspiring. There is something poetic about the signs of new life in the baby pine and aspen trees.

The one thing I did notice is how much burnt stumps look like black bears when you are driving along! More that once, I slowed down, only to find it was a stump! It reminded me of the scene from "Little House in the Big Woods" when Pa was walking back from town and thought a stump was a bear in the dark, For the record, I saw 4 bears, mountain goats and elk (and oodles of deer, but they are in my front yard, not so exciting). I think I saw a bald eagle, but it was flying away from me and I didn't get a close enough look at the head.

The elk were bugling at sunset. I have never heard anything quite like it before. They were a fair distance, so the volume has to be quite high to hear them. Listening to them call to each other while the sun set and the moon rose gave me goosebumps.