….so we’re done with downtown and head out to the country. We pass over the Missouri River.
We are in search of Giant Springs. We have no idea what this is about but were told by a local to make sure we take them in. We find the location on our handy dandy Great Falls map and off we go.
We passed this area on the way. The great falls for which this city is named.
Of course this is nothing like they were when Lewis and Clark had to come through this way.
Some scenery pictures taken as we look for the Giant Springs.
YES, the bird in the next picture is indeed a PELICAN! I never expected to see pelicans but this is where they come for the summer when its too hot in Southern California.
Further down the road we found what we were looking for.
What a beautiful park this is. In addition to the Giant Springs there is a rainbow fish hatchery here also that raises one million rainbow trout per year. Here is what we found in the show tank.
As you can well imagine Bob wished he had a fishing pole!
There was a beautiful park setting with grand old trees that provided tons of shade and the greenest grass I’ve seen in a long time.
Also on the grounds of this park we were able to view one of the shortest rivers in the world. A river that is only 201 feet in length. It is called Roe River and flows into the Missouri River which is the longest in this country stretching 2,540 miles.
It may be short but it is CRYSTAL CLEAR! This water is several feet deep and just as clear as glass.
A little set of falls at the top of Roe River.
It is in this area we found the Giant Springs. One hundred fifty million gallons or water bubble up from the spring and flows in the Missouri River everyday. The water is a constant fifty four degrees and has been tested and it is pure.
So clear, you just wanted to scoop up a handful and drink it. Until that is you notice this in the water. This water is about 8 – 10 feet deep here. You can see all the way to the bottom without a problem.
Lewis & Clark passed this way and what William Clark wrote as his description over 200 years ago still holds true today:
“….the largest fountain or Spring I have ever Saw, and doubt if it is not the largest in America Known, this water boils up from under the rocks near the edge of the river and falls immediately into the river 8 feets and keeps it colour for a mile which is emencely Clear and of a bluish Cast….”
Here the water spills over into the Missouri.
There were benches all around and I know I could spend hours here just taking in the scenery. (If the mosquitoes hadn’t been so bad!)
Walking back to the truck I couldn’t help but notice the walkway lined with summer flowers. Since the season is getting short now I thought I’d better snap a picture so that I have something colorful to look at once we get back to the desert.
From here we went to the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center.
This met us in the lobby.
After we showed our National Park pass to the Ranger, saved us another $16.00, we took in this two story display of what the explorers had to go through back in the day. Here is the display showing the steep incline the men had to get the boats up in order to bypass the falls. This is true to form in the size of the boats, the weight and the degree of incline.
A better angel to show you how steep the hills were.
While standing there the lady explaining things to us took notice of the pelicans out the window.
She told us that the pelicans swim up river several times a day in a group and then float down on the current. She said that the center personnel have decided that this is like an amusement park ride because they do it over and over again.
I do believe this “boat” has a proper name but for the life of me I can’t remember what the lady said it was. A metal frame was put together….
and then covered with a hide and secured.
The inside was lined with willow branches.
This would have made a great little boat to carry extra supplies or to send scouts ahead in but there was one problem. They had no resin of any kind to fill in around holes where the seams were sewn and where it was stitched over the frame to secure to the hide. So after all the time and work spent building these nifty little boats they were put in the water and promptly sank.
This is a picture of the falls before modern technology of dams harnessed the force of the river.
Downstairs, we followed the "Missour River". Thankfully, it didn’t take us nearly as long.
I’m certainly not going to go through the whole journey that Lewis & Clark went on here in this blog but I will share some of the pictures I took. I remember learning all about this expedition when I was in elementary school. I certainly do appreciate it much more now as an adult.
A pair sunglasses made from shells!
They had some movies to watch but we couldn’t stay long enough to see them as the RV repair shop called to say our home ready for pick up and it was getting close to their closing time.
A shot of flat Montana.
So that was pretty much our day. When we got back to Malmstrom AFB and got set up again there was nothing more to do than run out and get some burgers for dinner.
We’ll be pulling out of here on Monday morning so our sightseeing, such as it was, consisted of today. We are both so ready to move on and we’ve got stuff to do before we leave this campsite. We hope you enjoyed this tiny glimpse of Great Falls, Montana.
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