August 29
Sorry for the two-day delay. The lodges/inns in Glacier NP are as sketchy as they come for WiFi connection. I was able to get one phone call out the last three days. Working on this website was out of the question. Here it comes.
I made it past the Two Medicine entrance before 6 AM. One must have an entrance reservation for between 6 AM and 3 PM during the summer since visitation is so high. But there was a problem, the sun was not up. If I can get up before 5 AM, why can’t it? With no headlight, flashlight, or other means to illuminate a trail, this would not be fun. The hike at Arches NP at 4 AM in pitch black conditions was my reference. But, unlike Arches, today there was no one else at the trail head. Error on my part. I exited the park and headed to Browning, where I would be giving a presentation to the De La Salle Blackfeet School about America’s National Parks. This is one wonderful group of students. The school educates 4th through 8th grades. There were about sixty young boys and girls seated on the gym floor. And were they ever eager to ask questions. The school does fieldtrips to Glacier NP, as well as Yellowstone. But being only 40 miles from the Canadian border in northwest Montana, there are no other parks nearby. Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS and Big Hole NB are the closest, south of Missoula, but then one must drive a long way to get to the next parks. I want to especially thank Alyssa for the pencil drawing of a wolf she presented to me before I left.
Next stop was the St. Mary entrance to Glacier (this is the east portal to the famous Going-to-the-Sun Road), to get the Passport Cancellation stamp and chat with a ranger. A short side drive took me to an historic 1913 ranger station building. Glacier became a National Park in 1910. Then I was ready to continue on to the Many Glacier entrance, further north (getting close to Canada). I turned west off route Montana 49. This road up to the dam on Swiftcurrent Lake was excellent. But at the dam, the route became miserable. A sign reads you are entering the park. At this point I was thinking it too bad Montana has funds for its roads but the NPS does not. In a couple of minutes, I came across twenty vehicles pulled off on the side of the road. Sure enough, a wildlife sighting. There were two grizzly bears on the shoreline of the lake. I was told later the bears like to frequent the shoreline at this time of year when the water level is down so they can dig along the banks. Another mile later was a muffler, in the middle of road, looking for a car. With all the jarring I am surprised there were not more car parts spewed across the landscape. A few more minutes and the entrance kiosk appeared. Yes, Glacier is one of the parks requiring an entrance fee. The annual pass I bought is still paying dividends. Then guess what? The road became excellent once again. Maybe once you pay your $35 you are entitled to good pavement. The parking lots at Many Glacier Lodge and Swiftcurrent Inn were almost full. These are ground-zero for all the Many Glacier trails which head up into the backcountry, so even day-users will park in these two lots.
A couple of side notes. Last night I stayed in East Glacier Park, the entrance to the Two Medicine Lake area of Glacier NP. The Mountain Pine Motel well deserves the 4.7 stars it receives on Google. I will stay there again the next time I am up this way.
Second, if you drive through Browning and enjoy Native Indian history, be sure to stop at the Museum of the Plains Indian. Most of the artifacts and art in the museum seem to be Blackfeet and Sioux. I talked to one of the resident artists (there were three working on their various art forms). The gift shop has very fine Blackfeet pieces for sale.