Hi Glacier chat folks. I am a neighbor of Hockey Refs (aka, Andy Anderson) and am writing to tell you he passed away this weekend after a long heroic fight with colon cancer. Andy lived across the street from me for 20 years and we were friendly acquaintances for a long time until one day I heard him talk about Glacier NP. I am a passionate hiker and thought, "whoa, this sounds like a chance I can't miss." I got myself invited to a ten day trip to GNP with Andy, who I soon discovered knew literally everything there was to know about the Park. Along with several unforgettable day hikes we did a three day backpacking trip including one day by Lake Ellen Wilson, and held out in the cabin at the pass in a terrible storm where we met some folks who recognized the "Hockey Ref" and thought he was a rock star. As modest as he was I think even he blushed a bit!
We would meet folks on the trail and he would occasionally offer advice, but never more than someone wanted, but usually once someone understood what he knew about GNP, we would stand for ten minutes while he discussed hiking options. A year ago he and I planned another trip to GNP (with an idea it may be his last). We did several day hikes, including the Dawson-Pitamakin 17 miler that I think was his favorite. He met up with some folks one day and did an off-trail hike to "Shangra-La" that I didn't go on, but whoever was there, he beamed for the rest of the trip about that hike.
Andy was one of the most modest, straightforward, unaffected people I'd ever met. He loved three things: his family, GNP and photography (ok and maybe Pink Floyd, something else I learned on one of our GNP trips). He has two kids who he was incredibly proud of but never bragged about. One is an executive at Google, the other an executive for one of most successful NFL teams of the last twenty years. His pictures have to be among the best GNP pix ever. I have pictures of our GNP trips posted all over my office I will treasure for the rest of my life. His family asked that donations in his memory be made to Glacier NP Conservancy. Andy's passion for GNP is a reminder to all of us of the transformative power of nature.
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/indyst ... fhid=14455