Student Page - Cycle the Rockies

My heart palpitates love, serenity, and peace here. Glacier National Park. As we rolled up to Lake McDonald for the first time, Noah said "I just love watching people’s eyes as they see this place for the first time." I was wondering what he meant by that. But a few more pedal strokes forward unleashed the answer to my curiosity. My eyes lit up like L.E.D. light bulbs and Noah laughed as his prediction came true.

What an amazingly pure, incredible, natural place to complete our bike ride at.

This morning we woke up to sunshine and mountains surrounding our little campsite in Glacier National Park. After we had breakfast we were greeted by a visitor, U.S. Geological Research Ecologist Dan Fagre, who joined us to talk about the effects climate change is having on Glacier National Park. Because it is a perfectly intact ecosystem that has little to no human impact, the park is a great place to study climate change effects. Glacier also has one key element that allows scientists to follow climate change very easily: glaciers.

We left Choteau, Montana early in the morning in a driving rain. Everyone had resorted to wearing plastic bags on their feet in an attempt to keep trench foot at bay. After thirteen miles at a brisk pace across open plains we arrived at the Bynum dinosaur center, home to the world's largest dinosaur and paleontologist David Trexler. We came to Dr. Trexler to get a better understanding of the long term history of the Earth's changing climate.

You know that jolting moment of terror that separates a nightmare from reality and awakens you in the night? Well, last night's sudden wake-up was the opposite of that feeling. Dreaming sweetly in the tent next to my dear comrade Page, I was abruptly halted by zooming roars over head and adrenaline pumping through my veins. The automatic consensus of the thunderous explosive sound effects was obvious; the United states had launched nuclear missals from the silos planted across Montana during the cold war!!! In that instant, I was convinced Word War III had began.

I’m back on the course! The doc done “scanned my cat.” When I asked him how my knee was he said “it was finer than frog’s hair.” The biggest thing that saved me was the steroid cream he gave me. This stuff is awesome. My knee is still really sore but I’m dealing with it. I’m just sticking it out and taking my time while I ride staying in low gears and just trying to keep up.