Miistakis

My backyard.

Miistakis is the Blackfeet term for the mountains in Glacier National Park. Miistakis literally translates to backbone. The Rockies are the backbone of the West. From these amazing mountains all life can be sustained and they are the heart and soul of the area. I connected with this term when I first learned about it from my boss on our drive to East Glacier last week. I too need mountains in my life and love the image and significance of the backbone reference.  

As I’ve been around Glacier for a month now, I’ve finally found some great people to hike, hang, and explore with. Since Aubrey and Rishi work in Headquarters, they are connected to a whole group of people that I never get to see. This week was great because not only did I get to learn things through Aubrey and Rishi’s findings, but it was also the Employees Picnic and the first all employees meeting to start off the season. I was able to network a lot and meet new people who have been here in Glacier for many seasons and know the drill. 

The good life.

One thing my neighbors and I got hooked into was a free game night dinner at a local bar. Game night, not in the sense of fun and games, but game as in wild animals. The bar has an agreement with local hunters who can’t pack out or use all the meat they get from their hunt. The meat is used for the free dinner and so is not wasted out in the woods. This Wednesday we had grapes, corn on the cob, a pasta salad, rolls, and the highlight, elk tater tot casserole. It was like yummy comfort food. Nothing really amazing, but just yummy and warm. I had been needing the warmth because at the beginning of the week a freak Winter storm came through. In the high country, they got 16 new inches of snow and we got about 6-8 inches of rain. The storm came in Monday night and lasted until Thursday morning. Rain, rain, rain, and temps in the 40s. So, these indoor activities helped make the dreary outdoors not seem so bad. I liked reading from my front porch with tea and sweat pants. 

Wednesday was also our all employees meeting with the Superintendent and the Deputy Superintendent getting everyone pumped up for the season. We heard about other departments and what they were doing to gear up for the two high traffic months, July and August. We even got to talk about the opening of the Going-to-the-Sun Road. The plows had met finally from each side of the Park, but that was before the crazy storm. Now, the plow crew will have to go back over and remove those 16 inches and a few avalanches. They don’t know when the road will be open, but hopefully by July. It has to be safe and free from possible avalanche danger before it can be opened to the public. 

Great chalk work at the Campground for the Picnic.

Thursday was designated Safety Day and we had to spend some time in various safety trainings to bring awareness to those who have lost their lives while working at NPS. Jon Jarvis, the NPS director, made it required by all Parks to create one day in June as a Safety Day. I attended a hazard tree program and a 'near misses' discussion. Hazard trees are trees that look weak and may fall on a target (house, car, walkway, place where a person could be). 'Near misses' are events that occur where nothing serious happens, but the outcome could have been very bad if things panned out differently. Safety Bill lead this discussion and told us about a near miss he just had that morning with a huge rock in the road on Highway 2. The canyon has high rock walls and a chunk had fallen from all the rain. Luckily it did not hit him, but he pulled over and directed traffic until someone else stopped to help him move the rock. In the evening, it was the annual employee picnic and a local cook came to roast a pig all day for our party. We had the picnic at a local campground with a great covered bench area and beautiful flower beds. Thankfully the sun had come out and warmed things up so it was nice to finally be outside and not cold and wet. Things were still damp, but so much better than they had been. After the picnic I went with Aubrey to the Stone Fly to listen to some local music and hang out with new friends. These girls go hiking every weekend and invited us on a Saturday hike on Forest Service land. This should be fun!

Aubrey and Safety Bill's dog dancing at the Stone Fly!

Friday at work was a great day for me personally. I finished the ‘A’ file unit (Administrative) I was working on. The intern last year had done part of this huge group, but I finished it up and printed labels and got it all cataloged correctly. It is now a complete set of ‘A’ files and includes 75 boxes. Phew! Next I get to work on the ‘F’ files which are a tiny group and should be easy compared to the ‘A’s.’ Next week I’ll spend some time rearranging the shelving in the main archives building where we keep the records in a secure, fire proof, room-within-a-room. Feels great to see my progress! 

West Glacier Farmer's Market.

Also, Friday was the first Farmer's Market of the season in West Glacier. I went on my way to the grocery store and wandered around. It was small but nice. I bought some earrings and sized up the produce. YEY local crafters and food! 

Kalispell Farmer's Market!

Today, Saturday, was an errands day. The hike my new friends wanted to do was 16.7 miles and I had been under the impression it was maybe a half-day hike. Yeah, not so much. I had wanted to get my hair cut and go to Target to buy a DVD player for my computer (and TV shows). I'll tackle a long 16 mile hike later in the season. So, I ran into Kalispell and came across their Farmer's Market, did my errands, and planned for a BBQ with Aubrey and our new friends. The Kalispell Market was huge! It took up two parking lots and had a great mix of crafts, jewelry, wood cuts, photography, produce, and lots of plants (both flowers and vegetables). Sunday, Aubrey is having a friend visit her, so I'm planning to join them hiking then. Time to let Glacier dry out and absorb the rain a bit.