Day 6: Rafting the Flathead & Market Music

Today was going to be a fun day! The weather was cold and crisp to start with but the forecast indicated we'd be in the mid 70's by the afternoon, so I had to think about layers.  We were going to be on the water most of the day, and there was the real possibility I'd end up wet as well.  That meant we needed to pull out the synthetic clothing that would dry quickly.

A quick breakfast of avocado toast with some bacon and a soft boiled egg, all with the obligatory coffee and juice, was a great way to start the day out.  A short 8 minute drive down to West Glacier, and we were checked in at Glacier Raft Company well before the 9:00 am cutoff. We gathered our gear (dry tops, helmets and life vest), received our basic safety instructions from Lance (we'll talk more about him later) and then board ye' ol' school bus for the shuttle ride to the Middle Fork of the Flathead River. If you scroll back yesterday's post, some of those pictures are of the Flathead.

Our guide was Zoe, who was more or less a local (she hails from Helena, MT and works the season here in Glacier). We joined four others in our small raft and set off down the river. As you can see Papa Bear had camera duty today. This trip was expected to be about 6 hours (give or take), with a break at about the 8 mile mark for lunch. Our little boat crew was a nice mix of us, a mom and daughter (Spartan racers for those that know), and younger couple from Virginia.

I won't narrate mile by mile as that would get really boring really quickly. I'll let the photos do the talking. The entire trip was pretty tame, compared to the rapids we experienced in Moab (Class IV-V). Even at their best, the Flathead rapids are a max Class III, but were an enjoyable experience as we bounced through Tunnel Rapids, Bonecrusher, etc.  This river's claim to fame is that the River Wild was filmed here in the middle section of the Flathead River. The movie is a classic for sure, and if you've not seen it, look it up on Netflix or Amazon. Apparently, Meryl Streep did her own rowing stunts - which was just Bonecrusher filmed from many different angles over many different takes and then spliced together.

We stopped for lunch around 1:30 pm at Glacier Raft's private beach area.  The guides quickly worked together to pull out grills, picnic tables, and appetizers for the hungry bunch.  We snacked on chips, salsa, guacamole and fresh fruit while the grills heated and our main courses cooked.  It was nice to be out of the water for a little while and back on dry land. The day was starting to get a little warmer and this was the perfect time to shed some of the layers we started the day with.  When we registered for the trip, we had our choice of ribeye, chicken or veggie burger. We both opted for the ribeye. I have to say that with all of the rafting trips that we have done, these guys definitely know how to cook and eat. The steak was very tender, flavorful and along with some pasta salad, was the perfect fuel for the remainder of the trip.

The later half of the trip was more of a scenic float where we occasionally paddled to mitigate the wind coming up the canyon. There were a few more riffles, and we made it to the end of the 16 mile trip. No incidents of anyone falling in, even though the teenager on our boat was tempting fate! With water temps in the mid-40's, falling in was to be avoided unless you wanted to be really cold for the remainder of the day.  We loaded up into the bus, held on for dear life as our driver Gus took us through a maze of backroads at what felt like breakneck speed (it was probably only 45 mph).

The trip ended where it began, back at the West Glacier office. We returned all of the borrowed gear, said our goodbyes and then headed back to our campsite to shower.  While we were on the river, our guide Zoe, mentioned that the Columbia Falls Community Market was going on that evening and was something we might want to check out. After showers, during a short rest, I looked up the CFCM on the internet and sure enough, from May to September Columbia Falls puts on a community market that includes produce, flowers, baked goods and meat from local farmers and businesses, along with food trucks and live music. Even more interesting was that one of the guides on our trip was also a featured musician and would be at the market that evening. What fun!

We loaded up around 5:30 and headed to Columbia Falls, a drive of about 20 minutes. The place was hopping! We had to circle the parking lot a couple of times and felt kind of like Jaws stalking people that were leaving so that we could get a parking spot.  Sure enough Lance (remember him from above?) was on stage playing trumpet and singing. He was pretty darn good too!

Papa Bear and I walked through the market kind of scoping things out before making a decision on what to eat.  We ended up with a Montana Cristo (a local take on a Monte Cristo sandwich) and Super Chicken Nachos, along with a locally brewed hard cider and water.

  

We worked our way into the pavilion and snagged a spot on a bench along with the locals and enjoyed the music and food.  We struck up a conversation with the retired couple behind us who were from Florida. We spent a good half hour talking with them about the RV life and they gave us some very valuable tips on visiting Alaska. They had spent two months RVing in AK right after they retired and were a wealth of knowledge. We exchanged info and they promised to send us some additional information.

After finishing our dinner and conversation we meandered back through the market. We didn't end up buying anything else that evening, but it was a fun way to end the day.  We made our way back to the camp and settled in for the evening. Not entirely sure what triggered it, but I'm assuming the slightly uncomfortable angle of my neck in the life jacket all day, the haziness caused from some local forest fires, some slight dehydration and a storm moving in (didn't realize that) all resulted in a pretty bad migraine. I took some meds and went to bed with an ice pack, totally intending to only rest until the headache was gone, but ended up completely falling asleep. But all was well that ended well.

Join us tomorrow for our first day in Glacier National Park!