Still Hanging Around in Whitefish, Montana—July 5, 2024

Yesterday we decided that we may have extended our trip one day too long here in Whitefish. It’s a small town and we have pretty much seen all of it. We thought we would go see the city fireworks last night, but they were not until 10:30 PM, a bit late for us. The sun doesn’t set until about 9:45, so it wasn’t all that dark even at 10:30. Too late and too many people, so we were lame and watched them over the rooftops from our balcony. Pictures of fireworks are usually dull, but here’s one anyway. And also a picture of downtown and the city beach.

Every night at 10 PM a really loud siren goes off in Whitefish. It began in 1919 when the “Ding-Dong Ordinance,” (a curfew for children), was made law. When children 16 and under heard it, they had to rush home. Back in 2009, they discontinued the siren because OSHA said it was too loud for the firefighters and EMTs who were trying to rest between emergencies. However, in 2010 they built a new fancy city hall on the main drag, and the firefighters and EMTs were moved elsewhere. For some reason, probably tradition, the city council voted to bring back the curfew siren and it goes off every night at 10 PM again. Not sure what the function is, but it is extremely loud and startling.

We drove around Flathead Lake yesterday just south of Kalispell for views of yet more mountains and more water. Absolutely stunning. Flathead is the largest natural freshwater lake (by surface area) in the United States west of the Mississippi. (Lake Tahoe has more water because it’s deeper.) Apparently, the east shore of the lake is known for its cherry orchards. People found that Flathead Valley was the perfect climate for growing sweet cherries, mostly Lamberts and Lapins, because of the long warm days with plenty of sunshine and night temperatures of 40-50 degrees. It’s kind of a microclimate. We didn’t buy any cherries because they won’t be ripe until the middle of July. Disclaimer: The following picture is from spring when the cherries were blooming, so I did not take it.

Another crop we have seen in Montana is canola. Canola is grown in huge fields and is the most vivid color of yellow ever. I was thrown by canola fields. I see canola oil in the grocery store and have always thought it was some kind of fake, healthy cooking oil. But it’s a natural oil, just more processed and less flavorful than olive oil. The reason it seems new is because the canola plant was developed in the 70’s by Canadian scientists. (Yes, I understand that was 54 years ago which isn’t really new, just new to me). The name canola comes from Canada, can, and oil, ola. The fields are pretty, but I think I will stick to olive oil.

Oh, and there is supposed to be a Flathead Lake Monster, but we didn’t catch site of it. There have been more than 115 reported sightings of the monster, as well as a few sketchy photos of something people claim is the monster. Eyewitnesses typically describe the beast as eel-shaped, from 20 to 40 feet in length, sometimes with four flippers. Of course it’s an urban myth, possibly handed down from the Salish Indians who once populated the area. I guess it is kind of the Loch Ness monster of the American West. I won’t post pictures I found because they look super fake to me.

Tomorrow we pick up Vanna, say goodbye to Whitefish, and head 35 miles northeast to Glacier National Park where we will spend a few days.