Day 5: Heart Butte Cutoff Road to Heart Butte Road, 12 miles   

Today we walked from our campsite at the Heart Butte Cutoff Road and Hwy 89 Junction following the Heart Butte Cutoff to the Heart Butte Road (BIA Road 1). It totaled 12 miles. The Heart Butte Cutoff is a rural gravel road that stretches east to west along the front of the Rocky Mountains. It was a relief to our feet and our nerves to get off the pavement on a less busy road. Tomorrow will be the final day as we walk into the town of Heart Butte, just as the celebration of Heart Butte Indian Days gets under way.

The camp is packed up and we gather in a circle to start the day. We smudge and ask the creator to give us another beautiful day. Chris shares two letters that we have received showing us support. One of them is from two women in Sweden. We have gone global! It was a lovely poem of encouragement and admiration. Tears spring loose as the heartfelt words touch our hearts. We will walk strong today, empowered, thank you.

We start the walk and the sun rises. It’s the fifth sunrise I have seen in a row and I am still amazed at the beauty. Since we have started walking we have traveled over varying landscapes each offering a new foreground in which the rays can filter through. Since I have not been carrying a watch, or my phone, the sun is the only gage of time I have. Time has become the amount we have walked and miles we have covered. The numbered hours loose importance, we have no deadlines, no appointments. The feeling is enlivening and it allows me to be able to think without distractions. Think about water. It takes awhile of this deep thinking really understand. Water is life. Which why I question why we would be taking any risk in harming it?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=keRf2_Dc0No&feature=youtu.be

The sun moves overhead as the temperature rises. We keep on walking. The prairie stretches out in front of us as we walk east. Finally we reach our destination, hydrating and resting our tired feet. This for me was the most difficult day, due to the intensity of the sun and the four previous days taking their toll. Last day tomorrow, I am excited, another sunrise, another landscape, and another day to honor the water.    

Here is a short presentation on the oil and gas development on the Blackfeet Reservation.

https://vimeo.com/42007507?action=share