In northwestern Montana on the Canadian border, Glacier National Park is renowned for pristine forests, alpine meadows, rugged mountains, and spectacular lakes. With over 700 miles of trails, Glacier is a hiker’s paradise for adventurous visitors seeking wilderness and solitude. It is also a place to experience bygone days with historic chalets, lodges, and the famous Going-to-the-Sun Road. Wildlife sightings are all but guaranteed, so we are excited to see this park. Upon the recommendation of a ranger at Yellowstone, we are planning on camping at Two Medicine Campground in East Glacier, and it is a highly rated site. The only problem is that it is first-come, first-serve and high season, so we are a bit nervous as to how this will all turn out . . .
The east side of Glacier National Park is going to be a 3 to 4-hour drive from Polson, MT and since this is a first-come first-serve campground, we valiantly depart before 5am to ensure we snag a campsite at Two Medicine Campground. It’s not just a question of finding an unoccupied site, it needs to be large enough to accommodate our 30’ Airstream trailer. As type-A planners and “reservers” of campsites (up to six months in advance!!) this process is nerve-wracking. To make matters worse, we find out when we arrive that there is no system to facilitate the orderly dispersal of sites to campers as they arrive. You simply have to drive around trying to find a site that is vacant, or lacks a reserved sign hanging out front. If the current occupant is still there, you need to ask them if they are leaving. Per park rules, they can change their mind and keep the spot for another night up until noon. We also discover that many vacating sites have already been promised to other campers – you never know until you ask. Meanwhile, other campers continue to arrive and there is a frenzy of activity until the sites fill up. We drive around several loops and Kay is aggressively running ahead, enlisting help from the friendly campers already there. We find an empty site and it is long, private and a pull-through! The far end is narrow and lined with trees, but DT takes a quick look and “thinks” it will be okay. We pull in and discover that it will be a chore to level, so we look for a better site. There really are no other sites that we can find, so we maneuver within our spot (#76) and manage to level. It is lovely to be nestled in the pine trees at the base of a massive mountain, with nature all around us and not even a glimpse of our fellow campers. It may turn out to be a challenge to depart in four days, but there is nothing to do now but enjoy the park.
As mentioned, we were staying near East Glacier, with skinny towering pines and vast mountain vistas spreading out in all directions. The cool weather is ideal for hiking, and options are endless. Our first day we take a short hike through the pines to the edge of the lake and then rent a canoe on Two Medicine Lake for a peaceful hour of canoeing.
The following day we drive the Going-to-the-Sun Road – stunning, especially the sections just before and after Logan Pass.
And we encounter mountain goats close up on the Hidden Lake Overlook hike (they literally are on the edge of the trail and do not seem to be bothered by numerous hikers). We see a crowd and find out there has been grizzly sightings nearby – we linger for a while but we seem to have arrived a few minutes too late.
Day three is quiet, we stick close to the campground since thunderstorms are in the area and take a short walk to Running Eagle Falls. When we are safely back inside the Airstream, the thunderstorm hits and we are bombarded by hail for about five or ten minutes. Mother Nature is reminding us she is in charge!
Day four we venture to Many Glacier Valley, about a two hour drive north from our campsite. On the last five miles of the paved, but badly rutted (and only) road into Many Glacier, we are rewarded with the best wildlife sightings of the trip so far: we see a Grizzly munching his breakfast right by the side of the road, and then a few moments later we watch a moose and her baby cross the road right in front of us!
After a quick tour of the historic lodge, we hike close to 8 stunning miles to baby-blue Grinnell Lake and make it back to the Many Glacier Lodge for a late lunch and the best huckleberry cobbler ever. We are ready to return to base camp!
The next morning it’s time to leave. We have a long 4 to 5-hour drive to Coeur d’Alene, ID, a rest stop en route to Washington and its three National Parks. It is the moment of truth, and unfortunately what we have been dreading comes to pass. Site 76 is easy to enter with a 30’ Airstream, but not so easy to depart! The exit driveway is uphill, slightly curved, and bordered by trees. The airstream is on a trajectory to hit the trees. Backing up at this point is not a practical option because the driveway in is also curved and steep and we have repositioned ourselves in a bad angle to do that. As DT is maneuvering the truck to gain a few precious inches he unknowingly comes close to taking out a water spigot and a nearby camper comes running over in a panic!
Other campers witness the unfolding events and come over to help. One neighbor breaks off some branches and dead wood to help ease our exit and another watches as DT inches out and shouts out adjustments we need to make. A few excruciating minutes later, we are free and on the road. What a relief! In the future we will need to be more careful and discerning in our choice of campsites! And beauty of the site aside, we will seek to avoid first-come first-serve campgrounds if at all possible – our trip is all about stress minimization.
