Glacier National Park

It has been an experience of a lifetime to explore so many national parks! I’ve now seen 4 and the list is still growing! I’m in a unique place with how I feel about National Parks. The nature and views are utterly outstanding and otherworldly. It’s amazing that they can be kept so pristine despite the millions of people who pass through each park every year. I appreciate the protection and preservation of the parks to no end, the USA is very lucky to have such a passionate forest service, however the masses of people deter me from spending much time in the parks. I know that I am one body adding to the masses, I know it’s unfair of me to want to experience the parks with less people, I know I am part of the population problem. I feel fortunate to lead a life where I experience beautiful nature each day, unfettered with people, slow moving, beautiful and simple. Because of my lifestyle, I have an appreciation for all nature, especially that which is quiet and undisturbed. The National Parks offer a starting place for non-nature enthusiasts to experience visceral beauty and protected wildlife. There are pristine campgrounds allowing new campers to experience the outdoors in the company of other enthused travelers and explorers.

We arrived at Glacier National Park at 5:30am to beat the crowds. We parked in a half full parking lot and took a simple 1.5 mile walk to view Hidden Lake. There were few people on the trail, the air was calm and quiet, and wildlife could be seen all over. On the walk down, Barron and I stayed to the side of the trail, one of us behind the other to make room for the dozens and dozens of people making the same hike up. The wildlife had disappeared with the new sounds of babbling brides maids and foreign languages. The parking lot was swarming with impatient vehicles lurking around for an open spot. The time was 7:30am.

Scamp Renovation

The Scamp in its current state.

Great Sand Dunes

A Stressful, Not Fun Day

Moving the Scamp to a new location goes one of two ways. It’s either simple and fun or stressful and not fun. The chances for a good moving day tend to be better when I wake Barron up with a kiss on the cheek (this is real, it’s an act of love as well as tact), however on this day that was not the case.

It was an unusually hot morning. Barron packs up outside as I pack up inside and the heat seemed to stress him out, not to mention he dropped the tongue of the Scamp on his foot. I worked very hard to not mirror his energy, which often tends to happen with just the two of us in this tiny space during stressful situations and only makes matters worse. I gave him a hug, offered him some CBD (my go-to anxiety cure) and after pulling the Scamp out of our bumpy, rocky spot and up the steep hill to the main road, we were finally able to laugh it off and enjoy ourselves, road trips with the Scamp are quite enjoyable, that is until we came to a stop and the solar panel in the back slid off the storage bins and into the Berkey, snapping in half one of its very expensive water filter elements. (We’ve not yet decided if we will replace the filter or find a new water filtration system.)

Road trips with the Scamp are enjoyable because we have the freedom to go anywhere with our home on our tail. It’s like backpacking, but with far more luxuries. We drove up into the mountains and past Lake Gunnison, absolutely gorgeous and undisturbed terrain, but our car was working over time with the temperature gauge rising on every hill. Barron long ago learned from his dad that when the temperature gauge begins to climb, to blast the internal heat so as to pull heat off the engine, a myth that has been 100% confirmed by our Subaru on more than one occasion. Thankfully the mountains are still very cool this time of year so we drove with the windows down and the air vents pointed away from us.

I don’t often tow the Scamp. In fact, I never tow the Scamp. I am the copilot and navigator so I am usually unaware of the stress going through Barron’s mind as he monitors the various nuances of the Subaru. While he’s paying close attention to sounds and the feel of the car, I’m blasting the music and putting my feet out the window.

The road to our new location was top 5 most treacherous we’ve ever driven. It’s very hard for me to assess the road conditions when looking for campsites online. Nothing broke, the back window of the Scamp didn’t show up with any additional cracks than the 7 already existing, but the screws of the Scamp’s door handle managed to rattle out of their homes and I found the handle sitting in my hand after fully opening the door.

After officially landing and unpacking, we both went on walks separately to clear our heads. We weren’t mad at each other, but because nearly every hour of our days are spent within 10 feet of one another, time alone is an unsurprisingly efficient way to recollect ourselves. We were lucky enough to find a private, desolate spot to camp that still has great service, so we pulled up Game of Thrones on my iPad and closed out our day watching our long-time favorite character tyrannically burn down a city.

The following day was sunny, warm and lovely.

A Journal Entry

September 25, 2018

This morning was so wonderful waking up in the Scamp. The moon was bright AF as we went to sleep and the sun was bright AF as we woke up. Why is the full moon so special? Why not all moons? It’s only one moon anyway.

A Dude and His Dog