Arrived at the park on Wednesday afternoon. Found a nice corner campsite at the Apgar campground, which is at the southwest end of the park. A quick walk to the end of Lake Macdonald. Setup the trailer, then drove over to do some laundry in West Glacier. Ahh.. clean clothes! In the mid 90s that afternoon, so a dip in the lake was a perfect activity. Might be the clearest water I have ever seen. Reminds me of the water clarity in the Bahamas. Afterwards, took a short bike to the village, checking out the visitor center and a couple shops. Relaxed by the fire and cooked up some bison burgers for dinner. Tried to play canasta at the picnic table, but the winds which had been calm all day decided to gust about 5 minutes into our game.
Big day of hiking planned for Thursday. Up early at 630, trying to catch the first shuttle up to Logan Pass at 730. They have free shuttles running across the 60-mile main road, aptly named “Going to the Sun Road”. Bunch of other visitors had the same idea and these shuttles only held 8-10 people each. Finally got on a shuttle at 830. Best way to get around this park, since you can sit back, relax and really enjoy the amazing scenery on this spectacular drive. Spoke with a ranger up at Logan Pass, helping explain to us about possible one-way day hikes. First option.. 20 miler, second option Highline, and third being Siyeh Pass. Not provisioned for a 20 mile hike and High line seemed to have the most traffic, so we decided to try Siyeh. Another quick shuttle ride eastward and we were underway on a 10.5 mile hike. Great mix of scenery along the way, no bears to be seen, but a few mountain goats. Enjoyed our lunch at the pass. Met a guy who lived in the Keys for 20 years before migrating to Montana in the mid 90s. I figured him for a fisherman, specializing in square groupers. Wasn’t everyone into that in the Keys in the 70s and 80s?
Ran out of water with about 3 miles to go on the hike. Quite parched by the end. Mental note to pack more water. Took a shuttle further east to the Rising Sun to attain drinkable liquids. Felt like a 2 hour bus ride with our thirst and construction delays. Carried around my fishing gear all day, but no fishing available on the trail, so I tried St Mary Lake for about 30 minutes. No luck before we had to walk back to the shuttle stop to catch a ride back home. Met some folks from Tallahassee, sharing stories about Florida and places visited on our travels. Back to the trailer about 9pm.. long day!! Cooked up a tasty veggie pasta dish before going to bed to rest our tired bodies.
Great weather continued again on Friday. Up at my normal time, so I drove down towards the middle fork of the Flathead River. Try my luck at some fishing while the ladies slept in. Caught a decent trout, but lost it and the lure while trying to snap a photo. Picked up a couple new lures at the store nearby before heading back to the trailer. Cindy cooked some breakfast for us and we decided to drive north to check out some fishing spots with short hikes. First stop was the north fork of the flathead river. Hiked and waded downstream about a half mile with a few hits but no catches. Beautiful scenery and refreshing water on a warm afternoon. Next stop was the Polebridge Mercantile. Folks mentioned the pastries here were a delight, which we confirmed with a raspberry turnover and hucklberry, beer, cinammon raisin bread. Further north down a rough gravel road to Bowman Lake. Another scenic lake with mountains and ultra-clear water. Wishing we had our kayaks with us now… No luck fishing from the shore here. Picked some firewood out of the forest on the way home, then stopped at Eddie’s for dinner. Both enjoyed the broasted chicken entrees. Hadn’t eaten chicken for over a year. While it was good, still not enough to make us give up our pescatarian diets. Back to the trailer for a quick pit stop, then a drive back up to Logan Pass. We picked up tickets earlier for a Night Sky Show. It’s an annual event hosted at the park where amateur and professional astronomers bring their telescopes and share their knowledge. Cool to see the sunset from this area, a large herd of bighorn sheep and then some breathtaking images looking into the scopes. Highlight was seeing Saturn’s rings. Didn’t get dark until around 11 and we drove back down at midnight as the moon was starting to rise, brightening the sky. Spooky driving back down the road, only seeing taillights cruising above and below in total darkness. Into bed around 2am..
No ax? No problem!
Star party gathering at Logan Pass
After a long day on Friday, we decided to take it easy on Saturday. Started at noon with a bike ride from our campsite to the middle fork of the flathead river. Couldn’t ride as far as I had hoped, but did make it to the old river bridge. It used to be the main entrance to the park, but was replaced with a newer bridge further downstream. Spent most of the day hanging around that area. After Cindy’s daredevil bridge jump, we enjoyed lunch and hiked a bit upstream. Caught a few fish in the early afternoon, just up from the bridge. Turned out to be a popular spot for fishing. Guess I am learning how to read the good spots in rivers. Just a great day to be near the river. Back at the campsite around 5pm, dinner around 8pm, then a movie and nighty night.
After a few really active days, time for a PBR-assisted nap
We really, really enjoyed Glacier National Park. One of our favorites so far on this road trip. Tons of stuff to see and do with a laid back atmosphere.
Chris, Cindy, Charlie and Cecily’s Adventure Blog 
Hey there! It’s LeAndra, I met you two at the Old Bridge with my friend Tyler. I was the one that was always getting my fishing line stuck in the tree haha. I hope all is well with you folks, it was great meeting you! I was thinking about doing some traveling myself and after meeting you both, it inspired me more to travel. I hope the rest of your trip brings you smiles, endless memories, and adventures. Take care!