“The Ramparts of God” Part of the joy in being retired is freedom of time and as the temperature began to approach the 100’s in Billings I decided to leave town and spend three weeks exploring the Rocky Mountains of northwestern Montana. The plan is to head northwest from Billings to Glacier National Park, cross over into the Flathead Valley, explore the forests of the northwest corner of Montana, then turn east and tour central Montana before returning south to Billings. Augie the doggie and I packed up and hit the road. Come along!
Columbia Falls, MT to Libby, MT (Hwy 2 to Hwy 40; north on Hwy 93 to Eureka, MT; southwest on Hwy 37 to Libby, MT)
We follow the Middle Fork of the Flathead River west down Marias Pass and emerge from the mountains at West Glacier, just east of Columbia Falls on the northwestern edge of the Flathead Valley, one of the premier recreational destinations in Montana. Columbia Falls bills itself as the “Gateway to Glacier National Park” and the wall of mountains rise abruptly from the flat floor of the valley, pierced by the canyon created by the Middle Fork. Here’s the view from Columbia Falls looking east into the Middle Fork Canyon and Glacier National Park. Smoke from massive forest fires north in Canada has started to drift south into the valley and clouds the view. If you squint, you can make out the mountains in the middle!
The valley is bordered by towering mountains on the east, north and west with Flathead Lake (the largest freshwater lake in the United States west of the Mississippi River) occupying the southern two-thirds of the valley while a swath of flat land cradles the northern edge of the lake, running over 20 miles from the lakeshore to the base of the mountains. Saving the exploration of the valley for another day, we skirt the northern edge of the valley and head up Hwy 93 to Eureka. This is timber country, home to millions of acres blanketed by various species of pine. In years past the timber industry fueled the local economy but environmental considerations and government regulation has really restricted the harvesting of the forests (as in Oregon.) Also as in Oregon, one of the unintended results is that the fuel base for fires has really accumulated and there is palpable fear in the air this year about the possibility of massive blazes due to the extreme drought conditions. June is normally the wettest month on record for Kalispell in the northern valley; this year no measureable rain fell in June. The clock is clearly ticking… In the meantime the pine forests are emerald green and blanket the mountains as far as the eye can see. These are not the towering peaks of Glacier but range after range of rugged mountains fading into the distance. Hwy 93 heads north into British Columbia and sees a fair amount of traffic zipping down the green canyons created by carving a highway out of the forest. The smoke hangs in the air and grows thicker as I head north to Eureka. (Yes, this is another “through the windshield picture with the ever-present bug smear!)
Fortunately the smoke briefly lifts as I drop down into the little town of Eureka, situated on a hillside along the Tobacco River and sitting on the southern edge of the Tobacco Valley, a grassy plain (named by early explorers because a native tobacco plant was grown here by the local Native Americans.) The plain stretches north into Canada (only 7 miles to the north), bordered by mountains to the east and the west. This area (Lincoln County) was one of the last in Montana to be settled with timber as the draw for settlement but, as noted earlier, the decline of the timber industry has seen the closing of virtually all of the saw mills in the county and the economy struggles
The lucrative timber industry spurred a boom in the early 1900’s and most of the larger buildings along Main Street (Hwy 93) were constructed during that time period. About 1.00 people live in Eureka and the town center climbs three blocks from the river valley up to the plains above.
In particular, 1907 seems to have been the year that most of the old buildings in town were constructed. The National Hotel, anchoring the southern edge of town, the Majestic Theatre in the middle, and the Farmers and Merchants Bank on the bluff at the northern end all were built in that year.
Down on the river flat at the southern entrance to town is a historical village museum consisting of original buildings relocated from around the area, several from the town of Rexford, which was covered by the rising waters of Lake Koocanusa in the 1970’s. The smoke wasn’t quite as bad down here along the river but it was really hot, approaching one hundred degrees. The shaded park was a pleasant break in the day.
Joseph Peltier was one of the first settlers in the area and actually built the first house in Eureka in 1891. Below left is the original house, in remarkable condition after 123 years. The next year he built another, more substantial house for his family (below right).
Buildings from the 1900’s include the 1904 Iowa Flats School (on the left) and the 1926 Our Lady of the Perpetual Help Catholic Church (on the right), both relocated when Rexford was covered by the rising lake waters.
The 1903 Rexford train depot and a restored rail car recognize the importance of the Great Northern Railway to the area.
From the beginning of the exploitation of the timber in the area the National Forest Service has been a major player in the economy of western Montana. It is often a major employer in these small timber towns. Here is an original 1928 NFS Ranger cabin which was located nine miles from the nearest road and served as home for months at a time for rangers charged with patrolling the forest and watching for forest fires.
A covered shelter preserves antique farm implements as well as a covered wagon (obviously the tarp is not the original!)
Augie and I enjoy lunch and then hit the road. Just north of Eureka our journey takes a left on Hwy 37 as we head southwest to Libby. Within a few miles we come upon one of the newest features in northwest Montana, Lake Koocanusa. Lake Koocanusa (the name was chosen in a contest and is made up of the first three letters of Kootenai, Canada and USA) was formed in 1972 when the Libby Dam on the Kootenai River was completed. The lake stretches for over 90 miles to the north from the dam, the southern half in the United States and the northern half in Canada. Hwy 37 hugs the eastern shore of the lake and provides spectacular view of the lake and mountains beyond. The view to the south shows that the gathering smoke is getting worse in that direction.
Seventeen miles down the highway we reach Hwy 2 again at the town of Libby, scene of one of the more devastating downturns in a local economy in Montana in recent history. Historically Libby was a prosperous town, reaching a population of over 3,500 people in the 1960’s. The twin engines driving the economy were timber and mining. The decline of both industries hit at approximately the same time in the early 1970’s and the area economy has never recovered. The demise of the timber industry is not unique to Libby, but the abrupt end to the mining boom is very much a local tragedy. Gold and silver were not the source of wealth in Libby, instead a mineral called vermiculite was found in the early 1920’s in abundance in the mountains around Libby. Vermiculite was a popular ingredient in construction materials, particularly insulation, and was widely used for decades. In the late 1950’s a pattern of respiratory illnesses and cancer began to be documented in Libby but the mining continued as the source of the illness was not known to the public. W.R. Grace bought the mines in 1963 and continued operation despite the owners allegedly having private information as to the source of the illnesses. Vermiculite, of course, is more commonly known as asbestos, now a known carcinogen. The town of Libby was particularly hard hit because excess vermiculite had long been donated in the local area and was present in playgrounds, baseball fields, and, of course, buildings throughout the town. While some feel that the impact of the asbestos on the town was exaggerated by the media, there is obviously no denying the health impact of asbestos. Recent decades have focused on the cleaning up of the environment in Libby and the town is generally deemed safe, but the legacy of asbestos has essentially destroyed the towns’ economy. The anemic Main Street reflects this legacy and the population is now down to around 2,200. Sculptures of soaring eagles frame the downtown area in an aura of hope, but there’s no disguising the reflection of the tragedy on the small Main Street business strip.
Stretching about nine blocks from Hwy 2 north to the train tracks, there is a both a sense of quiet desperation and determination as I walk the blocks.
There is no “touristy cuteness” here despite being in the middle of spectacular natural beauty. It is somewhat ironic that the only new building to be seen in the downtown area is the hospital. There is a new grocery store and small Shopko on the west end of town so perhaps there’s some sign of a resurgence in the offing…
A dramatic reminder of the natural beauty that surrounds Libby exists about 10 miles west of town at the Kootenai Falls. Here the Kootenai River plunges over a series of falls and rapids in a burst of scenic wonder. To get to the falls one has to take a short hike through the forest, cross the railroad tracks and down a long stairway, and then hike some more down a steep path to the river. As always, climbing up on the way back was waaaay more challenging for this old guy than the scamper down. First the hike down to the river…
It was nearly one hundred degrees out and the smoke made breathing a bit “raspy” but I toughed it out and was rewarded with spectacular views. The Kootenai splits into three branches as it begins the plunge down the gorge, but I can’t get all three in the same picture. The first picture is of the northernmost falls, the second shows the middle and the southern falls.
Turning and looking downstream, the river continues through the narrow canyon.
And, of course, I have to make the return trek up the canyon wall. This is looking up one of the switchbacks (I have to confess that despite my normal dramatics, it really wasn’t that hard of a climb…, going back up the stairs was the worst!)
Leaving Libby the smoke from the forest fires continues to linger as we wind our way through the forests and look forward to our exploration of the Flathead Valley.
Next up: The Flathead Valley
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