Last September, my friend Mandi told me that she had managed to get reservations for a hotel in Glacier National Park. Did I want to go? Of course I did. We visited Glacier in 2022. It was a fantastic trip, but like a lot of people, we only saw the West side. I really wanted to see the other side of Glacier. This time, the hotel, Many Glaciers, was on the East side of the park. A perfect opportunity to also explore the East, South and North sections of Glacier National Park.
Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints, kill nothing but time.
Staying in a Grain Silo
We have a direct flight from SFO to Kalispel. Getting permits to get into Glacier National Park through the West entrance, which is the main entrance is complicated and tricky, and getting harder every year. Therefore, we decided to stay in Kalispel the first night and get into the park first thing the next morning. This is also a great opportunity to stay in a unique hotel: Clark Farm Silos. This property has converted 5 grain bins into luxury hotel rooms. It is so well done: a living room and kitchen downstairs with a sofa bed as well as a small, but very well-designed bathroom. Upstairs has a beautiful bedroom with round windows all around and a king bed.
The West
I am sad to leave our beautiful silo the next morning, but we have places to be and things to see in Glacier National Park. The permit system is complex. In the past, a day permit would allow you to enter the park at any time. The new permits give you a specific time. Therefore, to make sure we can get in we booked a boat tour at Lake McDonald. The tour automatically gives you a day permit (we hope). We arrive early at the gate, and luckily, the line is short. Our boat tour confirmation makes entering the park smooth, no issues. We stop for breakfast in at Eddie’s Cafe and Mercantile in Apgar.
Lake McDonald
From Apgar, we drive north along Lake McDonald. Our boat tour is at 11am. We arrive in plenty of time at the Lake McDonald Lodge, from where our boat leaves. Due to the fires in Canada, it is hazy today, although not as bad as the previous time and we still have beautiful views over the lake. The boat tour takes about an hour. Ryan, our guide from Massachusttes, provides us with all kinds of useful and less useful information. But he is entertaining for sure. One of the highlights is the Bald Eagle nest high up in a tree. Ryan explains it is so deep, that if Yao Ming, the Chinese basketball player, would stand in it, he would not be able to look over the rim.
The Road to the Sun
Leaving Lake McDonald, we continue to the “Road-to-the-Sun”. This is one of the main attractions in Glacier National Park. We stop a couple of times, but the combination of the sun and the smoke do not provide a lot of opportunity for good views.
Hidden Lake
We reach Logan Pass, the top of the Road-to-the-Sun. We want to hike the Hidden Lake trail, that starts here. However, as it is the middle of the day, the main parking lot is full. We continue and we are lucky, a car in one of the parking lots along the road is just leaving when we drive by. The hike starts as a long wooden walkway that then turns into a dusty trail. It is hot, but the destination is worth it.
The East
We finish the Road-to- the-Sun and get to our hotel late afternoon. Many Glacier hotel is located on the east side of the park on the shore of Swiftcurrent Lake. It is a beautiful place, built in the style of hotels and houses in the Alps. After dinner the first night, we are rewarded with a beautiful sunset over the lake.
Swiftcurrent Lake
One of the hikes I really wanted to do last time, but we didn’t get to, is the Grinell Glacier hike. From the hotel, you can take a boat to the trailhead. We don’t have tickets for the boat, but the front desk told us you line up at 7 to try to get tickets. So just before 7 am, I throw a puffer over my pj’s and head to the dock. There are already 3 people in line. I learn the office doesn’t open till 8, but I use the hour to watch the sunrise over the lake as well as talking to my fellow travelers. They provide me with all kinds of valuable tips of things to do on this side of the park. By the time the ticket office opens, the line behind me is long. I get tickets for the 9am boat so I rush back inside to change from my pjs and flipflops into my hiking gear. On my way to the boat, I realize we are being evacuated. Somebody used their bear spray inside the coffeeshop. It is good we are on our way out anyway.
Moose sighting
The boat from our dock takes us across Swiftcurrent Lake. From there, a short trail takes us to Lake Josepine, where a second boat takes us across. From our guide, we learn that we are right at the continental divide that divides West and East Glacier. It also divides the water: part of the water goes West via the Columbia river to the Pacific Ocean, part goes east via the Missouri river to the Gulf. In addition, some of the water flows north into the Hudson Bay. When the boat gets close to the next dock, Mandi spots a moose sitting on the beach across. It slowly gets up as if posing for our pictures. It is massive and an impressive sight.
Grinell Glacier
The signs tell us we are in bear country, so with our bear spray readily at hand, we follow the trail from the boat dock, around the lake. From there, the trail starts going up. We look down at the beach in the hope to see the moose again, but it is gone. The trail is 7.6 miles and labeled strenuous. By taking the boat we reduce this by 2 miles. The trail is steep, and it is hot, but once we get clear views of Lake Grinell, it is worth it. When we are about halfway to the bottom of the Grinell Glacier, we decide to turn around. The next part of the trail consists of steep dusty switchbacks, and we don’t think the views will be that much better than what we have already seen.
Grinell Lake
On our way back, people tell us the moose was spotted swimming in the lake. Excited we hurry back. However, we don’t see the moose in the lake, but when we get to the trail along the lake, people point us to where they just saw it. We take a left turn towards the lake but are stopped in our tracks by a loud snorting noise. We are clearly too close and we carefully back track to the main trail. Hoping the moose will show again, we wait for a while, but it doesn’t, so we continue. We decide to do the short hike to Lake Grinell and have lunch there. It is a nice hike, through the woods and over several suspension bridges. The lake is beautiful but cold. Instead of taking the boat back, we decide to hike back along Lake Josephine and Swiftcurrent lake.
Beer and Moose
We return to the lodge satisfied with today’s accomplishment. All in all we still did 8 miles today. And nothing tastes better after a long hike than a cold Radler. After dinner, we return to our veranda. The sun has set, and it is starting to get dark. Somebody points across the lake at the little beach “there is a moose”. We grab our binoculars and indeed, a moose is sitting on the beach. After a while, is stands up, walks across the beach and into the lake. It swims across the lake leaving a wake of water in its trail. It is a magical moment: the almost dark sky, the swimming moose with a white trail of water behind it. As it was too dark and too far, we don’t even try to take pictures, but we capture the pictures in our head.
The South
One of the recommendations from yesterday, was to visit to Two Medicine Lake. This is located in the most Southern part of the park. So, the next morning, we drive an hour and half to the Two Medicine Lake General Store. Another boat trip to the trailhead, but this time I did manage to book tickets in advance.
Two Medicine Lake
Our boat leaves at 10am. The boat, Sinopah, is 99 years old and has done the same job of transporting people across the lake for all those 99 years. During the winter, when the lake freezes over, she gets to rest and gets mani and pedis, according to our guide. Like the previous 2 guides, she also has a wealth of information about the tribes who lived here and from who the name of the lake stems. According to stories, at one point, two medicine women set up their temporary huts at the same point along the river, on opposite sides. This was so rare, that they called the lake Two Medicine Lake. Now the full area is called Two Medicine Lakes.
Upper Two Medicine Lake
The trail starts right at the boat dock. We hike to the Twin Falls first. They are nice, but nothing really special. The trail continues past a little lake. People saw grizzlies on this trail only yesterday. We are hopeful and have our bear spray ready as we continue to Upper Two Medicine Lake. We stop and have lunch on the little beach, searching for bears and moose. But nothing today. We turn around and hike back to the boat. The line is long, so like yesterday, we decide to hike back along the lake. It is a pretty hike, and it gives us some extra miles and steps.
Huckleberry everything
We already noticed in Yellowstone, that Montana is famous for huckleberries, and you can find everything with huckleberry. Mandi was on a quest to find the best huckleberry pie. We had looked it up and Rock n Roll bakery in East Glacier supposedly had the best one. So, after our hike, we decide to drive over there for pie. We have done some extra miles, so we deserve pie. Unfortunately, when we arrive, the bakery is already closed for the day. However, another tip we had from one of our fellow hotel guests, was to have huckleberry turnovers at the Kyiyo Mercantile. It is on our way back, so easy to make a stop. While standing in line, everybody is ordering the fried chicken, so we decide we might as well order that too. The fried chicken is great – although not as good as the ones from the Blue store in Baton Rouge. The huckleberry turnovers with whipped cream are heaven in puff pastry. And when we come back, we have a huckleberry cider and that was really good too. I am a huckleberry convert.
The North
Our hotel is only an hour drive from the Canadian border. Being this close we might as well visit that part as well as part of our explorations of the other side of Glacier.
Red Rock Canyon
We drive the Red Rock Canyon road to the end. The scenery at Red Rock Canyon. is completely different from the US part of Glacier. We have hiked a lot the last 3 days, so today we are taking it easy. We do the loop around the Canyon and to the waterfall. It is an easy 1 1/2 mile and the canyon is pretty and the waterfall a lot more impressive than the one at Two Medicine Lake.
Prince of Wales Hotel
After a short stop in the town of Waterton, we visit the Prince of Wales hotel. The hotel is located on the cliff overlooking Lake Waterton. It has specular views, although it is very windy today. The hotel feels a bit kitschy on the outside but definitely has a European feeling and the inside is very pretty. We feel sorry for the bellboys, having to wear a kilt and debate whether that is better or worse than the ones in our hotel in lederhosen. After a nice lunch on the terrace of the Kilmorey Lodge, we drive back to the US.
Tips
Glacier National Park is a beautiful place. Plan your trip carefully as the permits are tricky. We had a reservation for a hotel in the park. However, that did not include the permit for the Road-to-the-Sun. There are several options to acquire a permit for the Road-to-the-Sun: you can get a day pass, but day passes have a specific time of entry. You can also buy a ticket for an activity in the park – a boat tour, a horseback riding trip, a kayak or canoe excursion. Those all come with a permit. The last option is to get to the entrance after 3pm, as there are no permits required from that time onwards. I highly recommend staying in one of the hotels in the park. It saves a lot of time driving in and out of the park, and you can start hikes and activities without having to drive. And last but not least try the huckleberry turnovers at Kyiyo Mercantile.
