Update: I actually prepared this post on Wednesday night, and for some reason I forgot to hit ‘Publish’.

Instead of uploading a butt-load of photos that always seem to take forever to load anyway, I thought I would just make videos from now on. It’s actually a little less tedious than uploading every individual photo, and it should save you some loading time. Hopefully.

Tomorrow (actually, I guess it’s today, now) we’re heading down to Missoula so Dan can do a little comics shopping and we can do a little geocaching. Oh, and bird toys, Solomon’s stock is running low and there’s just no selection here in Kalispell. Maybe I’ll even bring back a pinkie or two for the Leopard Gecko.

If anyone is having problems with the page loading due to the large photos, let me know. I’ve resized most of these, and I’m posting them as medium instead of large, so hopefully that will help.

These were all taken while we hiked up the Columbia Mountain Trail between Columbia Falls and Hungry Horse.

Dan and I both thought that this rock layer was neat. I think this is a layer of low-grade marble that would have been formed by a layer of cooling magma that baked a layer of limestone. The heat also drives out all organic material which bleaches the layer. I could be wrong though, Geology isn’t my forté and I couldn’t find any info that pertains to this particular area.

A cute purple flower with silvery leaves that is as yet unidentified, because I packed my Montana Wildflower identification book. Stupid me!

A Glacier Lily (Erythronium gradiflorum)

Melting snow has to go somewhere, right?

This is Teakettle Mountain; so named because prior to the 1929 Half-Moon fire that denuded it, the tree formation looked like a teakettle. Later, I’ll try to scan an old photo of Teakettle before the fire.

And just a view of the valley from about a mile up the trail.

The season for Geocaching is upon us, and today we hit a few.

These are from a cache on the Foys to Blacktail Trail, which begins (or ends, depending on how you look at it) at Herron Park.

If you click this one, you may be able to read some of the sign.

Herron Park is a horse park, full of horse jumps.

Another view of the park and part of Foys Canyon.

Click it, and click it again, and you can see the cute lil’ bird. Yeah, I know I need a new lens.

If Plato is 87 percent certain that a kneaded eraser should not be used with graphite, can he complete his Narrative Essay using 100 ISO Black and White Film?

Pop. Crack! Smoke! Fizzle!!

Pretty pictures….

Actually classes are going well, and my schedule is easy to manage. I’m merely a little groggy since my planned nap took longer than expected.

These photos were taken at Glacier National Park.

Erm… I haven’t posted these before, have I?

Visit MT Fire Conditions
USDA Forest Service Map of Fires
NASA Visible Earth Wildfires over MT and ID
NIFC Site Report

You may be able to tell that today the smoke from area wildfires was not as ‘thick’ as it was yesterday. However, NW Montana still smells like a Pine-sol factory.

Blech!

Marias Pass is the lowest point along the continental divide and is located near East Glacier, Montana.

I did it! I made a video.

From Kootenai Falls and the Swinging Bridge. This was most assuredly a scenic stop.

From the road side of the bridge.

Taken from the center of the swinging bridge.

Another taken from the center of the bridge.

This one was taken from the opposite side of the bridge. I had to prove that I did cross it, afterall.

Rocks on the banks of the river.

That’s Dan.

Another view from on the bridge.

My interest in blogging, blogs and the internet in general has been null and void lately. I call it a suspended state of blah. Or disgust. Or just plain pissy.

These are from an evening excursion to the Flathead River (which is a little high).

Them beavers have been busy.