The town of Kalispell in NW Montana is sits just to the west of the Flathead river. The Flathead river is kind of a dividing line between the urban/developed part of Kalispell the agricultural land that sits east of town before you run in to the Swan mountain range. As the river meanders along the valley floor it breaks in to many braided channels creating little islands and gravel bars as it works its way south to Flathead Lake. There are a few of these little islands that are accessible and they usually make for beautiful little places to visit and watch the local river ecologies.
On one such little spot is a park called Leisure Island Park. It’s a little spot I’d been wanting to visit for a while but hadn’t made the effort to get out there. It’s a very short bike ride from my house, maybe 3 miles. So one morning I got out of bed early and loaded up Hubert to get out to the park for sunrise. The park is very small but there is a boat launch that gets you right to the river as it wanders along one of those many little braided channels. It was beautiful to sit and watch the river as the sun rose for the day. There was a small group of beavers working on the bank of the river as well as some swans and in the sky someone was giving a hot air balloon tour.
There is also a small trail system that works through the forested banks of the river, dense with the old cottonwood trees that love to make their living in the damp soils adjacent to rivers and streams. A doe and her two fawns were working their way through the dense brush. These small, relatively unmolested segments of riparian habitat are some of my favorite places to walk around here. The flowing river, the tall cottonwoods, and the richness of life all make them feel especially magical.
Here’s a little beaver to send us out:
