Callie's Trip to Glacier National Park: Day Four

Callie Goes Fishing

The next morning, Callie is up bright and early to go fishing.  The sunrise is beautiful against the mountains.  The light coloring the mountain tops and the sky behind them.  What a wonderful way to start the morning.

The streams and rivers in this area are great for fly fishing especially.  Callie is not going to fly fish today though.   After driving down from camp, she finds a spot with a short hike to a wonderful spot where two streams come together.

She hikes up river on the smaller stream, hoping to find a good spot to fish.  As she crosses a bridge, she spots a great area to fish from.

After baiting her hook and getting her pole ready, she makes her first cast up stream.  As soon as she does the current takes the fishing line and pushes it downstream.

She waits, reeling the line in slowly.    She pulls her line in all the way as it gets closer to the rocks on the edge of the stream, then casts out again.  As she reels in, she thinks she feels a nibble.  She gives the pole a quick yank to try and set the hook, but feels no tension.

When she reels it back in her worm is gone...but there is no fish.  She spends an hour or so fishing, never catching anything, but having loads of fun anyways.

Before leaving the stream are she walks along the bank, sometimes throwing rocks into the stream.  Like most of the water here it is clear and cold.  The water temperature is only about 55 degrees ferenhiet.  She is careful not to fall in.  She does not want to get wet!

The stream weaves it's way in and out of Glacier National Park.  She follows it to a trail that goes out of the park and into the national forest.  The scenery drastically changes as she comes to acres and acres of burnt trees.

In 2003 a fire burned almost 136,000 acres of land in the area.  Barren pine trees line the mountains sides for as far as Callie can see.  But little pine trees and other vegetation is slowly making it's way back.

The stumps of the trees seem more contorted from the fire, twisted and mangled black masses  Some still have their bark on them, singed but hanging on.  The burnt trees are creepy and beautiful at the same time.

Callie take a closer look at the scorched remains of some of the stumps. The blackened outsides still leave black marks on her hands as she touches it.

She wonders what caused the fire.  Was it someone being careless or was it something more natural like a lightning strike.  She finds out later that the fire was most likely started by lightning.

It is amazing  how the forest survives though.  Callie goes back to her camp.  She builds her fire, very carefully, and roasts some hotdogs for dinner.

Before she goes to bed she makes doubly sure that her fire is completely out.  Tomorrow is her last day in Glacier National Park.  It will be a little shorter so that she can start on her trip home.

Check back for Callie's last day in Glacier National Park