Rain, Going to the Sun and... a Marmot -- Glacier National Park

How can the glaciers of Glacier National Park be disappearing? What will they call it when the glaciers are gone? The “Former” Glaciers?

But that’ what they say. The glaciers will gone in 17 years. 17! That’s like tomorrow! Certainly in planet years that’s like a blink and drip! They’re gone. Weird!

I had heard that Going to the Sun Road was one of the most beautiful places on earth. Well, with or without those melting glaciers, it certainly is. Only we saw it with no sun—which I think made it even more beautiful.

It rained all our stay in GNP (Glacier National Park not Gross National Product). And the drive on Going to the Sun took us into avalanche danger, unstable snow mass areas, through raging waterfalls (it got some of the bugs off) and above and through the clouds. INCREDIBLE!

Jagged peaks. Winding roads. Roaring waterfalls. Wind carved snow still waiting to melt.

Delicious.

Ever dreamed of walking into a fairy realm and reaching from our world to it? That was our day.

The highlight however was a momentary (at least it was supposed to be momentary) stop at an overlook to St. Mary’s lake. When a marmot. Yes, really, Benz fans…(if you don’t know understand read “My Life As a Lumberjack or How I Fell for the Wrong Guy(s) and you will)… a marmot. Decided to crawl under our van. He sat for quite some time. Thank heavens the rain had stopped for the moment and started licking the bugs – at least that what it looked like, may he was eating the brake tubing – from the car.

We became celebrities as people stopped to gape and take a thousand pictures.

“Start your car!”

“Honk your horn!”

“Toss a rock!”

Were the suggestions. People kissed, clucked, called and chirped at the creature. Like he cared? Not.

We weren’t in a hurry so we just laughed at the stupid tourists and worked on trying to get a great shot of him. And when he was done. We hopped in the car and went on our way. Marmotted and happy.