An Audience With the Chief

A trip to the East Glacier area of Montana is like going back in time. Picture two old gents sitting on the porch of Thronson’s General Store, Babb, Montana. Their heads track simultaneously, right to left, as they keep an eye on the lone, helmetless, Harley rider passing through town. A cat leaps onto the railing in front of them and two sets of eyes turn to acknowledge the stray. This is the land of “Mo’ Betta Fireworks” and “Autentic Western Memobilla.”

We are on a four-day vacation away from Fort McMurray after thirty-five straight days of work for my husband. This allows us enough time to take a sixty-minute flight to Calgary and 3-hour drive in Buddy’s, VW Golf, to Duck Lake, Montana where we own a little piece of lakefront paradise. This is our first and only trip down in just over a year due to work commitments and life events.  It is funny how I can forget just how beautiful and fabulous this place is until I arrive again each season.

The majestic peak of Chief Mountain is the focal point of our view, in the middle of no-where. It is at the foot of “The Chief” that we get away from the noise and stresses of our everyday lives. The moment we arrive, we are reminded of the peace and serenity offered by the surroundings. Quiet. No back up alarms from constructions vehicles with squeaky parts rambling over construction sites, no shopping carts loaded with cans and bottles bouncing over payment and parking lot speed bumps, no Napa Auto Part workers expletives under my kitchen window and no police sirens. I am happy to float on the lake, look out at “The Chief “and take in the tranquility and calmness that is offered.