Today was a down day for us, tying up loose ends, and doing some journeying on our own. After sleeping in a bit, followed by a big breakfast, we set out for West Glacier MT, and the other side of the park. Obviously, we woulda preferred to do this over the Going-to-the-Sun Road, but with it close, the only path was Highway 2 around the southern rim of Glacier NP — about 55mi.

On the west side, we stopped in Apgar Village, got some directions, and looked around. Generally, everyone we talked to said that Lake McDonald was the place to visit, so we drove up to the lodge there, and arranged for a boat tour around the lake. It’s the biggest lake in the park, about 10mi long and 1.5mi wide, and was gorgeous. Our boat, the DeSmet, chugged about 80 of us around the lake for an hour. We had one of the park guides tell us loads about the lake, and stories about the people who live there. It was a fantastic tour, and a great way to spend the early afternoon.

Once arriving back on dry land, we souvenir shopped, ate some lunch, and made the big drive back to our lodge. We had packing to do, and basically wanted to wind down and relax, given tomorrow’s drive to Yellowstone.

So Beck asked if we’d come back again. I’d be back in a second! She asked what we’d do. For me, it was hiking and photographing, and probably doing all that in winter. 🙂 For her, it was fishing and painting. And for Sio, it was sitting on a porch someplace, reading a book.

Glacier has been so good and so relaxing. I’ve slept like I haven’t slept in a very long time, and I’ve been inspired like never before. This was a great place to visit, and I’ve got to figure out how to get back up here.

Tomorrow: Yellowstone!

We spent most of the day on the Red Bus, touring around the eastern part of Glacier National Park. With the Going-to-the-Sun Road still closed, that left the typically cross-park tours only servicing one half of the park or the other. Come 9am, we were on the bus and cruising with our “jammer”, Stan.

As I understand it, the drivers are called jammers because in the old days, the vehicles shifted badly, and the drivers were jamming the gears. Now, the red busses are automatics, with 5.4L V8s, running on propane. Big difference from the old days, I suppose.

With the big snow here last week, the streams are like rivers. Everywhere you looked, there was water running off from on high. Even at the lodge, you can hear the rushing waters non-stop.

We dropped the top on the bus mid-morning, and enjoyed the see through roof. It was like being in my Jeep, only in a longer format! We traveled to Two Falls, and enjoyed watching the pair of falls. Stan told us that the upper fall would be dried up by July — I guess it’s mostly from run off.

One of our stops was Many Glacier Lodge. This place had a beautiful view of Two Medicine Lake, which was surrounded on one end my mountains. The lodge was built like a Swiss chalet, and really had a European feel to it. We ate lunch there, and moved on.

We did get to look at a glacier — Jackson Glacier. We were told that there are less than 20 glaciers left in the park. In the 1800s there were over a hundred. Most of the drivers and folks we’ve talked to seem to think this is just part of a cyclical pattern. Myself, well, I think I believe something else!

After eight hours on the road, we returned to our lodge, exhausted, and ready for dinner and sleep…