Post #46: Fort Peck, Mt. Sunday, June 15

John is safe and warm in a motel room in Fort Peck tonight. Someone from the motel came to the marina and picked him up. It was two miles away and, therefore, too far to portage the kayak. The daytime weather turned cold on him the last few days, and the nights have remained cold. He has been wearing three layers of clothing at night. He previously sent me his medium weight sleeping bag and I sent him his summer bag--it was a mistake. The days are usually very hot, so it is surprising that the nights are so cold.


I am all packed and ready to head out Wednesday morning. I have eight hours of driving to do Wednesday to Missoula, and nine hours on Thursday to Fort Peck. This will probably be the last post until we get to Williston. Ellen

Sunday's weather included high winds and rain.  Early in the morning, from inside my tent, I called Fort Peck Motel and requested a room. That weekend there was a women's conference in Glasgow and there was not an empty room within 100 miles of the conference. Fort Peck Motel is about 18 miles from Glasgow and they had been booked all weekend.  I was asked to call back at 10 am in order to talk to Carl, the owner, about portage and storage of the kayak.  The room for the week, storage of the kayak, and the trip to the motel were all arranged after speaking to Carl.  He arrived at the Marina at 11 am and I was hauled the two miles to the motel in the back of his pickup and in my room taking a much needed shower by noon.  Linda, co-owner, made a wonderful breakfast for me out of left overs from the morning's breakfast.  I needed that food.  The warmth, the soap and hot water on my body, the pancakes and sausage, and the bed restored my energy. Throughout the day I kept thinking about my days on the lake and how lucky I was with the conditions I encountered. It was raining hard and the winds were strong as I sat in the lobby catching up on the World Cup games and the news. The storms continued to roll across the lake throughout the day. I had just beaten the bad weather. Had I not left James Kipp Monday afternoon and had taken the scheduled full two days of rest, I would still be on the lake in those miserable conditions. I lucked out.  John

The rain and thunder rolled through Fort Peck in the 

afternoons through Tuesday  like clockwork.