Kamp Karma

It was tough to say goodbye to all the beautiful people and places I met in Montana, but once I hit the road I couldn’t get out of the state fast enough. It sank in that I stayed in Montana for about two months, summer was almost over and there was still a lot I wanted to see and do before winter set in.

I had about a week before I needed to show up at my next farm, so I decided to cram as many sights (and miles) into it as possible. My first stop was Yellowstone, which, of course, kicked ass.

I only had to drive a few miles into the park before I saw my first herd of elk. They were just lying around the lawn at the Mammoth post office (a small town inside the park). Aside from a few rangers keeping the crowd at a safe distance, they seemed to fit right in. Ten minutes later, a humungous buffalo crossed the road in front of me.


I took about twenty pictures of that buffalo, thinking the whole time that this was such an incredible and unusual experience… how lucky of a visitor must I be to see this right after entering the park… when will I EVER see a buffalo this close again? Turns out I saw another buffalo alongside the road again about an hour later, then about an hour after that, and an hour after that. Halfway through my second day, I was pretty sick and tired of those damn buffalo blocking traffic all the time. I also started thinking they should allow hunting in this park to help solve their buffalo infestation problem.

Aside from the amazing wildlife, the place was full of waterfalls, geysers, steam beds, and countless pools and lakes full of bubbling ooze every color of the rainbow. I never imagined there could be so many boiling pools and pockets of steam anywhere in nature. It was like a mad scientists’ playland. And I totally lucked out with Old Faithful. It goes off every ninety minutes, and most people wait over an hour to see it. I walked up to the site and within two minutes it went off!


My first night at Yellowstone, I made looking for a campsite my top priority. I learned that lesson after getting shafted at Glacier about six weeks ago. As it turns out, all the campsites were full by the time I arrived. I was ready to give up and see if I could find a place where I could park and sleep in my car for the night without getting in trouble when I met Vera and Jim, a friendly old couple from Ontario. Not only did they insist that I share their campsite with them, and not only did they adamantly refuse my offer to pay for half the site fee, but they also insisted on feeding me. The conversation went like this:

VERA: Can I make you a hot dog?
ME: No thanks, I have food in my car.
VERA: Are you sure I can’t make you a hot dog?
ME: Thanks, but I’m not hungry. Really.
VERA: Are you sure?
ME: Yeah, I’m sure. Thanks.
VERA: Well, I’m making you a hot dog anyway so you might as well eat it.

And later…

VERA: Here are your hot dogs. I made you two. Can I make you some dessert?

On my second night at Glacier, I shared my site with an Asian couple that came too late to get one of their own. I think this was a karma thing coming back to me. I’m not a fan of processed food on Wonderbread buns, but after living off cold oatmeal for a few days, those hot dogs really hit the spot.

This Is Me Not Being Eaten

My time on Julie’s farm ended before I confirmed a spot on another farm, so I loaded up my camping gear (along with everything else I owned) and headed up to Glacier National Park.

I made the mistake of telling my parents my plans, because a grizzly bear attack in Yellowstone last week was still all over the news. My folks love to worry, and they were now 100% convinced a bear would eat me if I even stepped foot into a national park.

The ride was smooth and short, only 2-3 hours. I took some time to hang out in Kalispell because there was a nifty little organic grocery there and I get sucked into them like a kid in a candy shop. I always have to see how their products and procedures compare to the co-op where I worked in Oregon. Since I was the merchandiser there, I pay a lot of attention to things like sign formats, end aisle displays, shelf arrangements, store layout, etc. (I know, I know… you can take the boy out of merchandising but you can’t take the merchandising out of the boy). Before leaving, I stocked up on oats, trail mix and veggies—my typical camping fare.

Glacier was, of course, incredible. Every turn in the road let to another amazing view of glaciers, lakes and snowy mountains as far as the eye could see. Since it was a Monday, I expected the crowds to be minimal. Not so—the place was packed! It didn’t sink-in how many tourists were there until I started looking for a campsite in the evening. That’s when I learned that every single campground in the park fills up by 2pm, even on a weekday. I ended up having to settle for a site outside the park on Duck Lake, slightly less scenic but far more private. For the rest of my time up there, finding a place to camp became my first morning priority.



On my second night, a friendly Chinese couple approached me as I ate dinner by my tent and asked if they could share my campsite. They had been driving from campground to campground all day with no luck, and now it was too late to find anything open. I could relate to their problem, so I let them pitch their tent next to mine.

The three of us stayed up late talking. The husband, Fei, was studying law in Missouri. He and his wife (whose name I never learned) were hitting almost all the National Parks in the West before school started again in late August. They were close to visiting all 50 states, and I pointed out that they’ve already seen more of America than most Americans do in their entire lives. Fei was interested in my WWOOFing life, and when I told him I’d like to do it abroad, he ran to his car to get a business card for me. Told me to send him an email if I ever ended up in China because he knew a lot of places I could stay. I can’t say China is one of my top destinations, but who knows? I like to think that things happen for a reason.

I spent a total of three days at Glacier, hiking and swimming every day at different points in the park. Saw seven bears in that time and didn’t get eaten. Not even once.