Freezeout Birds to Waterton Lakes

12 June 2019

We must have slept soundly because there was another camper here this morning and neither of us heard them arrive. Sleeping late isn't really an option with the number of birds around. That's not a complaint. It's awesome to see and hear the birds rise from the water, even without a migration coming through.

At 5:15, the sky lightened revealing wind generators to our east.

The free overnight camping is in a field surrounded with with tall grass a.k.a. bird food.

I can't resist sharing a few more bird pictures, like this of an American Avocet landing, before we leave Freezeout Lake.

I went for a walk shortly after sunrise, then Beth joined me for another after breakfast. This Black-necked Stilt has long, pink legs.

Beth was clad appropriately for the number of insects.

Avocet's uplifted beaks intrigue me.

The calm morning allowed for fun shorebird reflections.

A red-winged blackbird serenaded us as we walked along the lakeside road.

This one, and it's reflection, is a Wilson's Phalarope. According to Mirlin Bird ID. We've found this free app really helpful as we try to learn more about birds. You can upload a photo or answer questions and it will identify the bird.

This Western Meadowlark turned to see what kind of two-legged camera toting creature was encroaching on its territory.

One last look back at Freezeout Lake and a white pelican.

Enough with the bird pictures.

Packed up and ready to go, the sunshine and morning dew made the van look clean.

Here is the route we'll travel today to Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta, Canada

With only a stop for gas in Montana, we made it to the border in just under three hours where Big Chief Mountain is a major local landmark.  The crossing was uneventful and we were welcomed to Canada by a pleasant crossing officer.

Since Canada is on the metric system and our van doesn't show kilometers per hour on the dashboard, we stopped and set-up my cell phone with the OBD Fusion app. It talks to a Carista OBDII adapter via bluetooth which we've found to be very useful.

Needing to restock vegetables and divest the van of some recycling, we headed to the town of Cardston. The Extra Foods grocery store was clean and neatly stocked with lots of space in the parking lot. We asked the check-out lady where we might find a store that sells Kahlua and learned that this is a Mormon town where they don't sell any liquor at all.

With shopping complete, we head west towards the mountains.

I'm awestruck as we pull into Waterton Lakes National Park.

We set-up in site G26.

This will be the view out our window for the next ten days! We were lucky to get reservations, since half the campground is closed for renovation and repaving.

After over a month of driving almost every day, we're looking forward to staying put and exploring on foot.

Our first walk was along the shoreline to the International Peace Park memorial.

Joined with Glacier National Park in the US since 1932, the combined park is a refreshing symbol of cooperation between nations.

The Canadian side of the park, like all Canadian National Parks, has red chairs with a view.

And the view is rather spectacular.

This is looking south to the USA over an unusually calm lake.

A local resident posed for the last photo of the day.