Glacier with Dot and Mike

We headed back to Glacier on Tuesday with a plan to drive through the whole park, stopping for a picnic and a few trails. I was excited for my Mom and Dad to come to Glacier with us because it is so spectacular when you see it for the first time.

I knew they would love it and of course it did not disappoint. We hiked through Avalanche Creek and some old growth cedars, then went to Logan Pass and hiked Hidden Lake. Bob and I went ahead at Hidden Lake and missed out on the experience of mature big horn sheep (with the huge curling horns) walking right across the trail in front of my parents. 10 feet away and they have great photos that I’ll try to post later.

We picnicked at the Sunrift Gorge and walked down to Baring Falls. We ended the afternoon at St. Mary and then Many Glacier Lodge.

On the way to Many Glacier I saw a bear sitting on his haunches about 50 yards from the road. Bob put on the brakes and we tried to go back, but everywhere we turned cars were piling up behind us. No one else got to catch a glimpse. By early evening we started heading back and it was a very long ride on a very winding road. Dot and I were none too happy as both of us are prone to a little car sickness. By the time we made it back to Bigfork we just stopped for quick burgers and beer, which seemed to lift everyone’s spirit.

We all made it back after conquering Glacier National Park in one day and we fell asleep exhausted. The next day was left open for shopping, resting, and grilling out at our cabin. My parents spent the afternoon at their condo swimming in Flathead Lake and sipping on frozen Mike’s Hard Lemonade. It was a record high for the summer on Flathead: 94 degrees.

“Swimming Hole“ hike and Bob’s favorite day of the year

On Sunday we went to a swimming hole that the ranger told us about. We packed a lunch and our suits and hiked to this gorgeous waterfall with a turquoise pool. We had the place to ourselves. Bob tore off his boots and socks and jumped in with glee… he ran out with tears in his eyes because the water was, per our estimation, approx. 42 degrees. Beautiful, yes. Swimming, no.

We sat on the rocks and had lunch preparing ourselves to hike back out when my pack rolled off the rocks, over the falls, and into the swimming hole. It didn’t have anything irreplaceable in it, just towels and swimming suits etc but we couldn’t just abandon it. Bob went down to the edge to sweet talk it out. He wouldn’t get back in the frigid water for fear of death, so he let the current take it for a few minutes until he could reach it with a long stick. What we ended up with was two massive beach towels that could have taken until Tuesday to dry so I just threw the pack that went from 12 pounds to 35 pounds soaking wet on my back and we got out of there.

Monday was my 29^th birthday, woohoo! I had a nice bagel in the morning and did some interneting catching up on my celebrity gossip. Bob and I went into Bigfork and browsed around. I took a nap in the afternoon and my parents arrived here in Montana that evening. My Grandpa is from Anaconda Montana and my Dad visited here when he was young and always wanted to come back. I suggested they come out when Bob and I were here, and they obliged! Dot and Mike are staying at a condo on the lake just down the street from our cabin. We met them when they arrived on Monday and had an awesome birthday dinner at the Many Springs Restaurant. I had King Crab Legs and an ice cream sundae with a b-day candle in it. I had a great wild west Montana birthday.

Glacier National Park - Highline Trail

Glacier National Park is called the crown of the continent. It straddles the continental divide with sharp peaks reaching 10,000 feet. In every direction from the highest point in the center of the park, the terrain slopes down to lower peaks strewn with lush valleys, innumerable waterfalls, mountain streams and a glacier here and there.

We headed back to the park early Friday morning. The NPS is working on a shuttle system to move folks around the park and alleviate traffic but the kinks aren’t quite worked out. We drove to the shuttle stop at end of the highline trail then took the shuttle the last 10 miles to the trailhead at 6800 feet. One way the trail is 12 miles and drops about 2,500 feet.

The first 7 miles of the trail follows the continental divide through the center of the park and provides views of most of the western ½ of the park. It is a relatively flat trail. About 6 miles into the trail there is a fork with a sign indicating a quick detour of 0.6 miles to the “Glacier Overlook”. We decided to take the detour. 50 feet from the main trail Christine decided the trail was a bit steep and said she would wait for me at the crossroads.

I continued up and up and up to a notch in the ridge which crested about 1,100 feet above the trail. Through the notch was a view overlooking the Grinnell glacier and much of the eastern ½ of the park. The wind was fierce and cold. As I stood there I realized that bees were being blown through the notch and launched towards north Dakota against their will. I’m guessing that the wind picked them up from the side of the mountain and off they went.

I walked back down and met up with Christine. At the end of the flat portion of the trail, we stopped at a chalet for lunch then descended the last section of the trail through an area that had been burned in 2003.

Saturday we slept in and went into bigfork for an art fair. We bought a decorative coat hanger with dragonflies on it for Christine’s birthday. It is lovely.

We ate an early dinner then headed into the casino back in bigfork so that I could play some poker with the cowboys. I bought a handgun and a holster from a pawn shop and headed to the game. It was full of locals that were much better poker players than I am. I didn’t lose too badly thanks to one dude who got worse as he slammed shots of rumplemintz.

Christine sat behind me cheering me on when I won and consoling me when I lost. As she mowed down pints of busch beer, her whispering cheers and derogatory comments about my competition got louder and louder. I thought I might have to get into a duel at one point, but it didn’t come to that. I did open the bathroom door and smack one of the poker players in the forehead and put a big gash in his brow. So the short version of the story is I went to Montana lost a little money in a backroom poker game then almost knocked some fella out.

Glacier National Park - Gunsight Lake

Why even bother trying to describe? It’s just that good. The pictures we have are crap because most of the time we were slack jawed and teary eyed. It is spectacular; and we are going back to Glacier several times so I’ll save additional adjectives for later.

Day 1 was spent parking at the west side (Apgar Visitor Center) and catching one of the park’s shuttles to Logan’s Pass. From our cabin it’s 1 hour to the entrance, but 2 and a half to Logan’s Pass. The park is expansive, but the drive is part of the breath taking experience. We had in mind to do the Highline Trail, which is very popular and well traveled. However, when we got there the ranger forecasted 80 mph winds and the trail literally walks out on an exposed ridge at 7000 feet. It looks like certain death from a distance with no wind.

We opted for another trail that a shuttle rider recommended: Gunsight Lake. The hike was just shy of 13 miles with little elevation change; except an 800 foot climb right at the end that was a bit of a killer. The payoff is at the half way mark when the trail opens onto Gunsight Lake. We had lunch and rested. The thing about this hike was that there were people we came upon that we wanted to ditch for solitude reasons. This led to a record pace! We were all high fives and congratulatory the whole way home. Thursday we stayed at the cabin all day lounging around, reading, and planning for Friday.