Montana Trip -- Sioux Charley Lake

On Saturday we decided to do two different things.  Nathan wasn't feeling great, so the kids and I dropped him off at a picturesque spot to do some quiet fishing, and then we went a few miles down the road to hike the Sioux Charley Lake Trail.  The owner of our cabin had recommended it, and my guidebook said that it was about 7 miles round trip and not too difficult, so the kids and I decided to give it a go.  Turns out, we loved it!

The first mile or so followed the Stillwater River.  The water rushed down over rocks and boulders, foaming white or a beautiful green in some spots.  After the trail veered into the woods it got a little steeper, but the woods were beautiful, and we crossed several little creeks.  We ended up at Sioux Charley Lake, which was simply lovely.  The water was crystal clear and cold.  It was raining a little when we got there, and Eden said the rain on the lake sounded like a symphony.  We ate our lunch and enjoyed sitting by the lake.  It was pretty hard to leave, but we did have a 3.5 mile hike ahead of us to get back to the car.

Z can find a 4 leaf clover anywhere!

Our first glimpse of the lake.

We made it to the lake!

Rain on the lake.

Eden listening to the symphony.

A little blurry, but there we are!

Z was trying to get a picture of the moment the rock hit the water.  He did it, but he also got his finger in the picture.

On the way back down.

You can just see Z way down the trail.

Montana Trip -- Woodbine Falls

 On Friday we hiked to a waterfall called Woodbine Falls.  It was a short but beautiful drive from our cabin.  We saw the falls from a distance (right behind an incredible ranch) and then hiked up to them.  The trail up to the falls was well marked and not too hard -- just a series of switchbacks.  But once you get to the falls, you can look at them from behind a waist-high wall, which stops you from falling off a really big cliff, or you can hike further up the big cliff, where there is no wall and not really a path either.  All four of us started up this "trail" until I realized that we were just inches away from death.  This didn't bother me so much for myself, but the kids have no sense of what gravity can do to soft flesh and bone and were getting soooo close to the edge and then complaining when I told them to get back.  Nathan also seemed to think that I was overreacting, but since watching them get that close to the edge literally made me feel like I was going to throw up, I decided to go back down to the protected area and pretend I didn't know what was going on further up.  It was the right decision.  The kids had fun (and Nathan kept them safe), and I didn't vomit into the abyss.

Woodbine Falls and Eden very close to the edge!

Montana Trip -- Beartooth Highway

 On Thursday we decided to drive the Beartooth Highway, which came highly recommended by my guide books and by people who had been there.  The Beartooth Highway is 68 miles of road connecting Redlodge, MT to one of the entrances to Yellowstone.  We drove to Redlodge, which is a fun little town, and then headed out on the highway.  It was kind of a cold and drizzly day, but the highway was still incredibly gorgeous.  It winds up into the mountains with amazing views, lots of places to stop for big or little hikes, and some heartstopping driving.

Our first stop was this beautiful little waterfall by the side of the road.

There were beautiful wildflowers everywhere.

Next we pulled over to explore this plain and stunning view.  Again, the wildflowers were gorgeous, and we encountered some snow!

We kept driving until we found a lovely spot with two little lakes.  We hiked around them and decided to eat lunch there.  The water was crystal clear and cold!  We didn't see much wildlife, but it was a beautiful place to eat lunch.

From there we drove to a hike that went around a much bigger lake.  Again, completely gorgeous, and the flowers!

Z and Nathan noticed this rock and added the little stones to make a smiley face.

Finally we headed back to Redlodge.  We ate dinner at a place called Homestead BBQ.  It was sooo good.  We got ribs and pulled pork, coleslaw and some kind of corn salad (which was awesome), and beans (which surprisingly weren’t all that good).  I forgot to take a picture at the beginning, so here’s one of the carnage after we ate it all.