The next stop on our Epic Road Trip 2020 after Grand Teton was Glacier National Park. If you missed the other posts from our trip, check them out HERE.
Glacier was a new park for us, and I didn’t know anything about it! But with the help of a good tour book I learned there is a lot of great hiking at Glacier, and the Going to the Sun Road (GTTSR) splits the park in half. GTTSR is usually cleared of snow by the time July hits, but it really depends on how fast the plowing crew gets their work done and the weather conditions. This year GTTSR had a large closure due to COVID-19! The east entrance of the park was actually closed, so our ability to hike in that area was taken away. No worries, the park is huge and there was still beautiful things to see!
One note about the weather in Glacier – dress in layers! Sometimes we were chilly, and it rained, and sometimes we were warm (on a hike!). On our first day, we made our way to a popular hike – Avalanche Lake, and Trail of the Cedars. We were surprised how clear and blue the water at Avalanche Lake was! And it was cold – because it came from a glacier.
The cedar trees smelled so amazing.
I was waiting for a gnome to come out of the woods because it certainly looked enchanted 🙂
Our most memorable hike was up to Apgar Lookout. There was a firetower at the top of the mountain. The views were breathtaking! Speaking of loosing our breath, that hike up was exhausting. The largest elevation gain on a hike we had been on!
Many of the facilities were closed, or inaccessible due to coronavirus. The Lake McDonald Lodge was open for guests staying there, but visitors were not allowed to tour it. That’s a shame because I’ve heard it was quite pretty inside!
If you’re in the area, you must stop out at the Polebridge Mercantile.
They are famous for their huckleberry bear claws, and we can agree, they are yummy!!
Even with the closures, there were pretty lakes and trails to explore. It was quite chilly and windy at this lake!
In addition to the scenic hikes we took, we also had a grand adventure on the GTTSR. That will be my next post, so make sure you stop by or subscribe to my blog! You won’t want to miss it!
Q: Have you ever been on Going to the Sun Road?
Q: Have you had any food made with huckleberries?
We had never heard of huckleberries before!
Thank you for sharing so many pictures! It looks like a beautiful place. In fact, Glacier National Park is on our bucket list and was one of the parks we were considering visiting this summer if COVID hadn’t hit. We hadn’t made any specific plans though because our oldest son was changing jobs and wasn’t sure what his vacation situation would be this summer.
Even though I’ve eaten huckleberries my entire life (there was a tree on my grandfather’s farm and they grow along our running trail), I’ve never made anything with them. Those bear claws look amazing!
Debbie @ Deb Runs recently posted…That Time the Angels Didn’t Sing When I Ran a 5K
I did see a lot of people canceling their trips to Glacier this year due to the closures in the park. I would agree that this year probably isn’t the best year to go there, but for sure you need to make the trip!