vacation re-cap day 6

We got up and it was rainy and wet. Instead of cooking breakfast, we decided to head to the little town outside the park and eat at one of the few restaurants. We chose one in the lobby of a hotel based on the fact that they had let Mike and his backpacking buddies eat there before even though they were pretty scruffy looking and hadn't showered in several days.

Got to the hostess station right behind a few other couples. She seated them but asked us if we minded waiting 10 minutes. Okay, no big problem. Then we saw the hostess go out for a smoke break. The we saw a hotel manager ask someone he was having a meeting with if they had eaten yet and proceed to waltz on in. 20 minutes later, after I made Mike go tell her we needed to be seated or we were leaving, we were seated in a nearly empty restaurant. No apology, no explanation, nothing. Niiiice.

We placed our orders (overpriced, under-portioned french toast stuffed with huckleberry cream cheese for me, overpriced but appropriately portioned omelet for Mike), but I still couldn't let it go. I was just looking around the place, seething. So I asked to speak with the manager who was apologetic. She explained that they were short handed because it was close to the end of the busy season but much of the summer help had already left. Fine. But, seriously, do they not understand that most people would be much happier sitting with a cup of coffee (blech!) or other beverage (yes!) and waiting for furthter service?! Or that the hostess should at least explain the situation?! Or that actual customers should probably be served before hotel employees?! Dimwits.

After breakfast it was still gray and drizzly. We drove a bit east on the Going-to-the-Sun Road (yep, that's actually the name of the road) and hiked from Sunrift Gorge to Baring Falls. We started off without rain gear, but the rain started picking up, so we had to put it on. I hate rain gear. It makes me sweat like sweating's going out of style. I never did get completely dry after this little hike and ended up getting chafed which kept me pretty uncomfortable for much of the rest of the trip. First the sunburn, then the chafing . . . awesome!

Thomas at Sunrift Gorge - so happy to be photographed!

under the bridge for the Going-to-the-Sun Road

on the trail from Sunrift to Baring Falls

service berries

Baring Falls

Since the rain had picked up, we decided to try a different area of the park. We drove to Many Glacier, but didn't get out of the car and do anything due to the rain. Next we drove up to Waterton Lakes in Canada. A few photos from there:

The guy at the window of the entrance to Waterton park claimed that the credit card machine was down. Personally, I think it's a scam. Either to keep more money in Canada or for him to personally make a bit off the exchange rate. It's a vast left-wing conspiracy, I tell you! ;-) Anyway, after paying for admission we had some Canadian money left. More than Mike was just willing to hand over to Thomas for the novelty factor. So after we were pretty much done sightseeing, we drove into the little town to spend this money. Mike had been buying individual microbrews pretty much every night at the parks to have with his dinner and wanted to find some cool Canadian beer to have that night. [Funny aside . . . we did not pack a bottle opener . . . every night I was opening bottles on the latch to the Taurus's driver door. The one night Mike attempted, he broke the bottle. Good thing I learned a few skillz in college, huh?] I don't know whether it's the liquor laws or just the little town we were in, but no beer was to be had in the little grocery store or gas station we stopped at. So we bought some gas.

That night we cooked, cleaned up in the dark (again) and went pretty much straight to bed. It was the chilliest night of the trip for sure. I had to get up for the bathroom in the middle of the night. As I approached the bathhouse, I saw *something* move in the dark. I had no idea what it was except that it was big and blondish. My heart was racing and I would have loved to just go back to bed, but I *had* to pee! I got back and told Mike about it and said "I'm not sure at all, but it could have been like a mountain lion or something." Got up the next morning and saw a big mule deer doe walking around the woods in the campgrounds. So much for the mountain lion, LOL!