NP#37 - Glacier

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May 20, 2012  Our 37th Park!

Although we have previously visited Glacier (Oct 2007), the visit did not qualify within the parameters of our 40 Treks between 9/9/9 - 12/12/12...hence, we visit Glacier once again! Glacier is located in northwestern Montana and was established as a National Park in 1910. Waterton Lakes National Park, located in southwestern Alberta, Canada and borders Glacier. Waterton was established as a Canadian National Park in1895.

In 1932, the Waterton-Glacier Peace Park was formed by combining the Waterton and Glacier NP's. This International Park was dedicated to world peace. We haven't yet ventured outside the US during our National Park Quest, however, the Price of Wales Hotel is located in Waterton and is one of the sixteen Great Lodges of the National Parks that is an important part of our "Bucket List!" 

Lake McDonald Lodge

Speaking of Great Lodges...the Lake McDonald Lodge IS on our list and we had the good fortune of being able to secure a couple of nights in cabin 2A during our visit to Glacier. The weather was a bit wet and cool so Terry and I opted out of setting up the Hob.  

Lake McDonald Lodge was opened in 1914 and quickly became one of our favorites. (Including Lake McD, we've now stayed in 8 of the 16 Lodges) Its rustic architecture suits me very nicely and naturally blends into its surroundings. The Swiss Chalet motif is intended to evoke a pioneer spirit in its visitors!

Local Transportation

If you go to Glacier, you will see the historic Jammer vehicles tooling about. In 1936, 33 Red Busses began providing visitors a unique touring experience. Although we have not yet taken the Red Bus tour, I would highly recommend doing so if you wish to really see the sights along the Going-to-the-Sun Highway. This road is both beautiful and awe-inspiring and one of the key highlights of the Park. 

However, if you are the Driver of your vehicle...trust me, you will NOT see nearly as much of the Park as your passengers. Why? The GTTS Highway is very, very narrow with many hairpin turns! Your undivided attention on the road IS mandatory. Why do I know this? Because I was the Tour Driver when we traveled this road back in '07!

Our Modest Cabin - #2A

We chose to stay in one of the Cabins during our visit. A "duplex" with a modest bath and two double beds. I was surprised we were able to get reservations with such short notice. As we were making the 12-hour drive from Teedie to Kalispell, (yes...that was one loooong drive), Terry got online and made the reservation. As we discovered, the Lodge had just opened for the season the day before our arrival! The last time we visited the Lodge, we got there the day after it had closed for the season! According to the Front Desk staff, the reason why the Lodge was quiet stems from the fact that the Going-to-the-Sun road was still closed. It wasn't scheduled to open until some time in mid June. Then watch out! the Lodge and the park will be packed!

Cabin Interior!

The interior of the Main Lodge is charming and was designed with a Huntsman feel. Heads and skins and full sized Mountain Goats are hanging from the railings and walls! The hand painted light shades suspended over the Living Room give the room a touch of Japanese Tea House.  

Walk In Fireplace

 My favorite element of the Lodge was the walk-in Fireplace! I literally rambled into it to examine its construction. I found that it included a hearth that was once used for cooking. The massive fireplace and concrete floor are scored in a flagstone pattern and have been inscribed with several Indian messages! I think it said "Tourist go home!" in Navajo.

Totem Pole Terry

We did not get the scoop on the significance of the totem Pole that greets guests in front of the Lodge. I shall do more research regarding its meaning when I revisit Glacier in July!

Avalanche Lake Hike

If you ever visit Glacier, do take the Avalance Lake hike. It's a 2-mile (one way) easy trail that climbs about 500 feet from the trailhead to the Lake. The trail follows Avalanche Creek for a good portion of the hike and offers up some outstanding scenery! The one disadvantage to this hike? It's very popular...thus it can get a bit congested. The first time Terry and I hiked it (Oct, 2007) we only saw two other people! This time around (and it wasn't yet considered busy) we saw about two people every two minutes!

Avalanche Creek

Texture along the Trail

I'm a freak about shooting "Texture in Natune" photos! Don't know why...but stuff like this gets me feeling all fuzzy! 

Back at the Lodge with Mike's

Somewhere along our travels, we discovered Mike's Hard Black Cherry Lemonade. Needless to say, we became instantly addicted! Most of the afternoon was cloudy with a bit of drizzle; however, we were able to soak in a few minutes of Montana sunshine while enjoying a Mike's out on the Lodge's lakeside veranda. 

Lake McDonald

Before there were roads to the Lodge, visitors would access the property via Boat. 

McDonald Creek Observation Platform

The Spring snowmelt had definitely filled the rivers, creeks and streams and the raging water of McDonald Creek was impressive!

McDonald Creek

Snyder Creek

This trip has been very relaxing for the two of us. No real agenda. We do what we do when we do it without worry of where or what we need to be doing next! I’m finding the “play it by ear” approach to be quite enjoyable! Typically, I’ve been one who has felt the need to adhere to a strict agenda.

 Day two of our visit to Glacier. We take a drive to Apgar to see what message has been left on Terry’s Cell. There is no cell or Internet service at the Lake McDonald Lodge. It turns out to be a false alarm. No messages. I call my sister Laura to wish her a happy birthday. We drive up Fish Creek Road to see what we can see. A deer is standing in the middle of the road. She takes off running when she sees us. We follow behind her and Terry films the chase on her IPhone.  The gentle rain begins to fall a bit more aggressively. When we approach the end of the paved road, we spot a young moose standing in the middle of the road. He looks at us and begins to prance off into the forest. Before he vanishes from sight. Terry is able to catch him on film as well.

The area in which we are traveling is where the great fire of 1983  burned an estimated 10% of the Park. The ghostly remains of the burn are still painfully visible. However, new growth is emerging from the burn zone and one day in the future the forest will have rejuvenated itself.

Most of the weekend visitors have departed. It seems like we have the Park to ourselves. After our drive up Fish Creek, we venture back toward Avalanche Lake to take a look at the swelling river that is now churning with white water. There’s a footbridge that crosses the river and we take a walk in the rain down the soggy path on the opposite side of the river.  About 500 yards into the walk, Terry spots a pile of fresh Grizzly scat. That curbs her enthusiasm for walking deeper into the forest and we retreat back to the car. We never did see a Griz during our visit! Only Deer and young Moose.

It’s a good day for a Keoki coffee or three! We hang out at the Lodge Bar for 3 hours chatting it up with the bartenders and other patrons. We discover that one of the kids tending bar (Aaron) went to the same High School as our son. Small world.

We meet Dick and Doty, Floridians who have fled Florida in favor of becoming Montanians. They overheard our conversation with Aaron regarding living in Phoenix and asked us our opinion about Queen Creek. They are interested in buying some property in AZ to escape the harsh winters of northern Montana. Ironic. We seek to escape the heat of AZ and find the mountains a pleasant relief. They seek to escape the cold mountain winters and desire to live in the desert during the winter months. Dick is a photographer and writer. Sounds like the kind of occupation I desire! He got into photography as a hobby back in Del Rey Beach and ended up meeting the editor of Outdoor Photography magazine. One thing led to another and before long, Dick is writing articles for the magazine and teaching photography at a local school. I get his card and will look him up either before or after my week-long Photography class at Glacier with Jeff Jessing in July.

A few decent photo ops present themselves this evening and then we retire to our cabin for a good nights rest. Perhaps the only minor disappointment regarding the Lodge would be the food in the Restaurant. People do not visit these Lodges for their culinary offerings...however, it would be nice if more of them would follow in the footsteps of the Chef at Lake Crescent Lodge in Olympic National Park. We've yet to find a finer meal in any of our other Lodge visits.

Yikes! I've noticed that I've begun to get a bit wordy once again! So enough of the commentary. Tomorrow we ride! It's off to Bozeman for the night and then south to Yellowstone! Happy Trails my friends!