Independance Day

Megan, JR, Taylor and Ripped
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Our family spent Independence Day touring West Glacier’s countryside by horseback and whitewater rafting.  Our day began with a scenic four-hour trail ride through the Flathead National Forest.  Our first family trail ride ~ nothing but smiles and beautiful scenery!  Megan led the way, riding JR, and Taylor trailed close behind riding Ripped.  Tom was riding a buckskin named Pistol, and I was riding a silver dun named Tony.  At one point during the ride, Taylor’s horse saw an opening Megan and JR left open and took off for the lead.  It was very entertaining for Tom and me to watch the girls have so much fun!     

And She's in the Water...
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After the trail ride we were fed lunch and prepped for the next part of our saddle and paddle adventure.  During the bus ride up the Flathead River, we were given proper instructions about rafting various Class III rapids.  We learned then that we would be paddling over rapids such as Bone Crusher, Pinball, and Screaming Right Turn.  And yes, we were all expected to paddle!  However, Megan lucked out and got placed in the middle of the raft.  Taylor did an excellent job paddling down the eight mile stretch of river!  In fact, she had so much fun that you will notice from the photos she decided to jump off the raft and into the river!  It was an exciting adventure!  I didn’t think the smiles could get any bigger than earlier in the day, but I was proven wrong.  I get the feeling we will be having many more whitewater rafting adventures!