Bozeman Hailstorm
Yesterday in Bozeman we had a couple of short but serious storms. In summer the weather around here is typically dry but yesterday was an exception.
I had my camera for the 2nd storm.
…more from Glacier
These were all taken the same day as the previous post, but unlike the previous post they are not in chronological order.
…and then we went to Glacier
After a big winter the Going to the Sun Road finally opened a week or so into July.
The Adventure Cycling Association
I am a firm believer that the bicycle is one of the greatest inventions ever.
It was a pleasant surprise to stumble upon the Adventure Cycling Association in Missoula, which seems to exist solely for the purpose of promoting bicycle touring, one of the best ways to travel possible.
There were a lot of fun pictures on the wall of people doing tours who stopped by and ended up having their pictures taken, so I did the ol’ take a picture of a picture. Hopefully they are big enough here to see whats going on.
Ah yes, bicycle transportation, no war required.
Polebridge, Montana
Polebridge is the kind of place I would worry about telling people if anyone actually read this website. A little “town” just ouside the western edge of Glacier National Park. Polebridge is off the grid, the Mercantile there sells some extremely delicious baked good, (think cheesy jalapeno bread and huckleberry bearclaws). Other than that there’s grass, kids, happy tourists, a sand volleyball court, cabins, a bar, and dogs.
My friend Lorrie suggested going there instead of visiting the eastern part again. After stopping for coffee and baked goods we went to the Bowman Lake Campground and did a nice 12-mile loop to Quartz Lake. After being caught in an evening thunderstorm the mosquitoes were basically unbearable. I’d never seen anything like it. The time of year was perfect for the little buggers, warm enough and wet enough.
WP(VP) in the hizzie
“Sunshowers that I’m aiming at you, cause I’m watching you my baby”
Thanks for visiting Val. I am lucky to have a friend like you.
The Bay Area
My final pictures of California. The first set is from my epic Razor Scooter Tour of San Jose. The second is from my last day in San Francisco (thanks for letting me use your car Davy), it was finally clear down by the waterfront. Huzzah!
Sunday in San Francisco
Our second day in San Francisco I rented a bike and we did a fairly decent 40 mile bike ride. We biked across the Golden Gate Bridge and into the magical city of Sausalito, where the humongous waterfront houses everywhere made San Francisco look like a shanty town.
After the bridge we went through Sausalito and up a large hill with some good views of the bay towards our destination of the John Muir woods, home to some large Redwood trees. The woods were lovely, it was interesting to see the tallest tree species on earth (although we didn’t actually see the tallest tree).
Exiting the woods we hopped on our bikes and caught scenic Highway 1 for a little bit, we did another decent uphill there and the traffic was fairly constant. I definitely was glad we weren’t taking some long bike trip on that road.
Eventually we went back across the Golden Gate where it was a lot foggier, windier, colder, and wetter than the first time we went over. I dropped the bike back at the rental place and we walked across town back to the car.
The day turned out to be an interesting blend of urban and natural worlds.
More Pow Wow Pictures
Picture overload probably. I wasn’t seeing me having a lot of time to post these in the next week so I thought making this post would be a good study break. The costumes these people had were really incredible. The clothes are totally handmade as well, with really intricate bead work that doesn’t show up in the tiny pictures I’m posting on here.
The last picture is of Luke and a Native American Studies student Michael Sweeney as they were leading their congratulatory procession. It was really heartwarming to watch as people come up to shake hands and give hugs and then get in line.
Pow Wow
So I was at the Montana State University American Indian Council Pow Wow for a couple hours yesterday. My friend Luke was honored for his service to the Native American community at the school. Congratulations Luke!
Pow Wows are especially unique events for someone like myself who hasn’t been exposed to a lot of Native American culture. I took a lot of pictures and here are a few. I’ll put up more later but right now I have to study for the final I have tomorrow.
Monday afternoon and my classes for the semester will be finished. It has been a warm weekend in Bozeman as well, which I am grateful for.
Driving to Pocatello
Over the weekend I went with the MSU Ultimate team down to Pocatello Idaho to play in the end of season tournament for the Big Sky Section.
It is a nice drive and only having to travel 4 hours is basically nothing. We didn’t win the most games but we had fun doing it. It must have been 70 degrees on Saturday which was the warmest weather I’ve been in around here in about 6 months.
