A Month in Kalispell, Montana

Our campground choice in Kalispell, located on the Flathead River, is comfortable with quiet scenic views and cablevision (lol!).  We initially reserved our site for 2 weeks but when we discovered so much to explore in this area, we decided to stay a month.  With nice weather in the forecast, lots to do, new places to explore, several local farmers markets plus a centrally located campground it made for an easy decision.  

River views from Spruce On The River RV Park in Kalispell.

First on our list is to make the drive to Glacier National Park.  Established as a National Park in 1910, its landscape is unprecedented for the sweeping glacial-made valleys and tall, rugged mountains.  This is Lake McDonald located on the west side of the Park.  It's almost 10 miles long and over a mile wide.

Views of McDonald Lake from the Apgar Campers Village.

The pebbles in the water really are this colorful!

These red Ford buses, originally used in Glacier National Park in the 1930s and now newly refurbished, are used to take people on tours of the famous Going-To-The-Sun Road.  An Internet search tells me there are 33 of these touring buses still on the road today. Seventeen are actually from 1936, 11 from 1937, 4 from 1938 and 1 from 1939!  They are considered to be some of the the oldest touring buses in the world.

Weather here in the high country can change quickly.  When we left the campground for our scenic drive, the sky was sunny and clear.  Arriving to Glacier National Park (only 30 minutes away), the skies turned cloudy and the temperature fell considerably.

The Going-To-the-Sun Road is more dramatic and scenic than what we remembered!  Ronnie and I first visited Glacier National Park about 27 years ago.  We camped in a small 1971 model 13' Shasta camper.  Its only amenities (other than a tin roof over our heads) were a double-sized bed, booth seating, a two burner gas stove and dorm-sized refrigerator.  We did a lot of reminiscing about those early days of our camping travels.
 Looking amide this vast landscape and rough terrain, we were constantly amazed by the build and engineering of this road during the 1920s and 1930s.  Considered to be one of the world's most spectacular highways, it divides the Park traveling along two of its largest lakes and just below the Continental Divide.

Stunning views everywhere!  Construction of this "Historic Civil Engineering Landmark" was begun in 1921 and completed in 1933.  The road, created just for touring this National Park, is very curvy and narrow.  Two cars can pass by each other but just barely.  Car length restriction is 21 feet.  Winter snow accumulation can be as much as 80 feet on this road.

Waterfalls are seen almost everywhere.

You can see where the 50 mile long Going-To-The-Sun Road travels up the mountainside there on the left.

Every pull-out has an incredible view.

There are 2 tunnels on the GTTS Road.  Three hundred men where at one time constructing this scenic highway.  Model A's were the mode of travel then, therefore the narrowness of the road.

Burrrrr....says Ronnie.  We jump out, take a quick photo and get back in the Jeep. 

The heavy rains are coming but a sliver of sunlight pears out to illuminate the beargrass on the mountainside.

Located on the eastern side of Glacier National Park just outside the Park, we visit Johnson's Cafe.  We have fond memories of their hearty soups and hot meals from 27 years ago.  It was so good, I forgot to take a picture of our beef barley soup and BBQ pork on bun with BBQ huckleberry sauce. Yummy

Next, we travel to the Many Glacier section of the National Park.  Suddenly the rain changes to wet snow and ice.

This is the hotel at Many Glacier.  After experiencing sleet and snow, we duck in here to get a cup of hot coffee.

The cold rains clear but it is very windy.  Many Glacier Hotel sits on the shore of  Swiftcurrent Lake.

Time to turn around and travel back over the GTTS Road towards the west entrance of Glacier National Park and the town of Kalispell. Thankfully rains had stopped and the sun tried to come out.

A view of St. Mary Lake.

The east side of Glacier National Park has experienced recent forest fires.

The views returning back westward were as wonderful as those traveling east.

You can see the Going-To-The-Sun Road here as it skirts the mountainsides.  That's not overexposure of the photograph, it's more rain showers.

A view of McDonald Creek as it travels the valley below.  Going-To-The-Sun Road continues on down towards that valley and follows along back to McDonald Lake.  When can we come back?

More Scenic Views Later..
from a glorious sunny day in Glacier National Park.