Glacier National Park, ca 1940

censor bar places who doesn't long to travel to see the things we've never seen and do all the things we've never done today the world rolls easily swiftly on rubber tires highway stretch ahead of you adventurous men and women are driving across the burning Sahara to India China across North America the world is shrinking there's high adventure and the majesty of nature just off our smooth highways every year they've beckoned to us all and today with the motorist magic carpet we can answer come along for a quick preview of one of the best vacations you can imagine perhaps we have only a few days or weeks but we decide that this year we will have a real vacation in one of our great national parks we're going to northwestern Montana to the finest mountain country in America convenient camps make it unnecessary to carry food or camping equipment horseback in foot trails penetrate almost all sections of the park you can go as you please there's an Indian encampment nearby we're on the edge of the great black pea preservation and it's like turning back the pages of history to watch them sing and dance the Blackfeet were once the terror of the north but the tide of civilization has swept over them with the divet picture of these American Aborigines in our minds we go across this attractive bridge we're on the way to the chalets near the foot of to Medicine Lake majestic forests covered peaks fliers on every side separated by deep glaciated valleys the water comes tumbling down from the Blue Mountain Lake above and falls to the stream below there's good trout fishing here brook and rainbow and in the larger lakes a Mackinac or Dolly Varden weighing as much as 40 here's an oddity the winds blowing the water backward and it makes a beautiful sight against the sky the Sun smiles down on peaceful lakes and towering mountains wildlife abounds there's a ground squirrel have you ever seen one friendly little fellow even walk right up to him he's shy but he's hungry too he's always hungry the waitresses at Glacier Park Hotel dress in Swedish costumes they're watching this lunch cutting its way through the clear blue water bringing visitors from one of the trails across the leaf forests are dense and the ground is carpeted with flowers let's take one of these trails food and suppliers are loaded and we cross this small bridge we've heard that near Swift Current Falls there are some nesting water zones there's one see him here is the place to study wildlife there are so many things to do in any glacier region you can learn the secrets of nature or climb a mountain go swimming fishing hiking or motoring all with this background of friendliness suppose you want to go fishing there's a stream that runs past the many glacier hotel you know the Swift Current Falls where the water of bounds with gamy trusts there are many excellent trails and as you breathe in the bracing mountain air you get a new grip on life these mountains are made up of many layers of limestone and sedimentary rocks this whole area was once covered by a shallow sea and the muddy bottom slowly became rocks known to the geologists as shales or RG lights but all of this happened several hundred million years ago and we're content to leave the geologic history to the scientists it's worth remembering however that the same natural forces which heaved up and carved out these landscapes have produced most of the mountains of the world there is a modern hotel and everything looks very comfortable and is very comfortable but only a little way up the trail we get our first glimpses of the Bighorn Rams we will see lots of wildlife from the trail no cages here everything is just the way nature intended it to be we're headed for Grinnell glacier but there are dozens of others and hundreds of beautiful mountain lakes it seems odd to think of snow and ice in the middle of summer doesn't it there it is Grinnell glacier but it's still many miles away as the ice above us melts the water comes down sparkling in the sunlight then clear as crystal there is a rocky mountain goat dizzy heights and precipitous cliffs mean nothing to him he'd be unhappy in your backyard but here a safe pantry door follow his own fences a glacier is no novelty to him but most of us have never seen one at close range few of them are accessible as these are by good roads and trails careful don't fall into the profess that plaque may be several hundred feet deep your guide will tell you where to stand well we may be having a leisurely easygoing kind of trip but somebody's working hard just for contrast we go to the end busy little creatures are they and there's a beaver washing his food he's very fussy about keeping it clean and fresh there he goes intent about his own business this is iceberg Lake the Berg's float around all summer there's no refrigeration problem here here's an interesting bird the ptarmigan is spotted summer coat turns white in the winter months so that it blends with but let's push on how would you like to ride through a wall of rock there's the endless we're going up ptarmigan Trail on one of the many side fits on this side all the water flows to the Pacific and on the other side of the divide it all flows to the Mississippi and then to the Gulf of Mexico we've crossed the Continental Divide and it's down here laughter this these trails are well marked and there isn't the slightest danger of getting lost and yet we're in a wonderland of rock and snow and thick forests this park was dedicated as a gesture of the goodwill that has so long blessed our relations with our Canadian neighbors as an appropriate symbol of permanent peace and friendship we're on the Canadian side now the boundary line runs along the top of that mountain in such grand surroundings we seem very far away from the frictions and troubles of a busy world here peace and quiet reigned supreme you can drive there on the going-to-the-sun highway this is one of the finest scenic roads in the world if you haven't the time for pack trains you can see the super Val pine scenery from your own car this road is a triumph of engineering achievement you can stop and overlook scenes that used to be witnessed only by the birds the chalet groups are from 10 to 18 miles apart and they provide excellent accommodations for visitors you can look out of your car and see glaciers gleaming on the slopes of great mountain peaks gem-like lakes are everywhere and in the summer the wildflowers offer a color display that is forever a cherished memory of those fortunate enough to see for two weeks every year the rare third-best flower appears bursts with beauty before it completely disappears again as you go along these good roads you look up and see landscapes like this you'll come around the curve and see snow banks like this in the middle of July if you're in a great hurry it's possible to cross the park in two days or less or you can spend weeks on glacier parks 900 miles of highway the American and Canadian Rockies are all around you the fringes of their ice caps and the snow is melting letting the water come rushing down glittering in the sunshine to make beautiful Rapids and falls you can over the glaciers themselves across the snow fields under the bluest sky you've ever seen you can make up hiking or riding parties and go on short expeditions to the wilder and more inaccessible features the smell of forests will linger in your nostrils pine and spruce and hemlock and the towering red cedars all within easy reach of our tents continental highways and as you drive up slowly headed homeward again you can't help but be impressed with the privilege of our modern day good roads to drive on and the last word in personal transportation the modern automobile will take you there and bring you back again safely comfortably for an unforgettable vacation [Music]