Pincher Creek to Waterton National Park - The Mountains are Back

Tuesday - July 23

Once more the winds are calm as we head out in the early morning stillness.

The border is still a day away for us but this is bittersweet as it means we are nearing the end of this journey.

We reached Twin Buttes in time for breakfast #2. There were 2 loaded touring bikes parked outside the cafe.

Inside we found Dave and Kristina from Sacramento. They had been in Pincher Creek last night too after coming over Crowsnest Pass having started at Flathead Lake. They are also planning to stay at Waterton tonight although in a motel. We are planning to camp. We talked for almost an hour before riding on. 

The Rockies keep getting closer all day.

Sheila is from Kamloops and she was just thrilled with our journey and asked if she could give Doug a hug of support. He was happy to oblige and even got a 2nd hug so Donna could get a picture.

This viewpoint looked into the Waterton Park Front which is mostly private land that is cooperatively managed for wildlife and crops in way that supports the National Park.

The viewpoint was a really popular place. We noticed that people tended to stick around a lot longer than they sometimes do at such spots, engaging in conversations and not just hopping out of their car for a picture and hopping back in. Maybe it was the perfect temperature and lack of wind. Or maybe just the magic of the spot.

Entering our last Canadian National Park for this trip. This makes #5.

That is Dave and Kristina headed on a little side trip to the Bison Paddock.

It was mostly downhill after Lower Waterton Lake. We talked to a couple who had just watched a bear swim all the way across that lake. Donna asked the young boy if the bear had done the breaststroke while crossing. He answered "No...he did the bear stroke!" That had us all laughing. In this picture, we are looking across Middle Waterton Lake towards Upper Waterton Lake.

When we reached the townsite, we decided to see if there just might be any rooms available for the night though most National Parks motels are booked well in advance. Sleeping in a bed before tomorrow's climbing just sounded very appealing. We were in luck. Dave and Kristina had told us about the Bear Mountain Inn having reasonable rates and being bike friendly and they just happened to have a room available. The NO VACANCY sign went out soon after we checked in.

We did go check out the campground for future reference. It did not have much shade but did have nice bathroom facilities. It was also very full. That is the Prince of Wales Hotel in the background, which is a National Historic Site.

This little guy went in and out of the water with his bike many times and was having a blast doing it. Hopefully his parents have some kind of lubrication handy! We were impressed that he never took his helmet off either.

Just following doctor's orders to soak her feet in cold water.

An early Ranger and his family.

This was one downright delicious ice cream cone.

The motel had some spectacular views from the parking lot.

Looks like Doug's bike decided to take a bite.

The sun sets on another wonderful day.

Kristina is originally from Sweden but has lived in the US for 40 years. She and Donna had a delightful visit lasting until after the sun went down.