Summer Road Trip (Part II): Glacier National Park (Park #8)

Is this post SUPER late? Yes. Is it still worth reading because Glacier National Park is a must see? Absolutely. After our afternoon in Banff we headed back to the US to visit Glacier National Park. Glacier marks our 8th park in our fifty-nine park adventure. While I was very sad to bid adieu to Canada, I was super excited to see Glacier. I really wanted to add it to our 2017 summer road trip itinerary but it just didn't work out timing wise. We cruised into our campsite at dusk and were able to check a moose sighting off our list right away! Unfortunately, it was a moose silhouette sighting, given the time of day, and pictures weren't able to be taken, but it was pretty amazing watching a bull moose walk along the skyline with his antlers framed against the sky. Given that this happened within our first fifteen minutes in the park, I decided it was going to be a pretty spectacular place--and I wasn't wrong.

We stayed at Many Glaciers campground within the park (camping information linked here). Glacier NP is set up with entrances on two sides. The Many Glacier side was a great location with amenities such as a store, restaurant, motor lodge, hotel, shower and bathroom facilities, and access to great hikes. However, if you wanted to visit the other sections of the park, such as Saint Marys or the Going to the Sun Road, you will have to drive out of the park and down the highway to reach them (park map linked here). It is roughly a 30 minute drive to Saint Marys and the Going to the Sun Road is accessible from there. We did the drive and it was well worth it. All and all, I would not change where we stayed, it was a great base camp in a quiet area and we really enjoyed our time.

For our first full day in Glacier we decided to take the Swift Current Pass Trailhead to Red Rock Falls (trail guide here). The hike is just over 4 miles round trip with very little elevation change. It was very doable for our kids (ages 11, 11, and 4) and the scenery was phenomenal. Within the first 15 minutes or so you will pass an off shoot to Fishercap Lake. It’s a 2 minute walk to the lake and provides prime moose viewing opportunities. We ended up stoping at the lake three times during our stay. We always missed the moose but people spotted them at Fishercap several times a day throughout our stay. There is an "animal sighting" list in the Swift Current Motor Lodge where people record the what, when and where of their animal sightings which is fun to check out.

After Fishecap, continue along the trail towards Red Rock Falls. You will cross bridges, streams, and beautiful scenery throughout your hike. Once we reached Red Rock Falls, we ate lunch, dipped out toes, and took some phenomenal pictures. I suggest buying a small phone tripod and mount (here's the tripod we purchased). They are super easy to carry and greatly expand your photography options.

Given all the driving we had done the previous day, we spent the rest of our afternoon and evening in camp. Grizzly bears are very common in the whole park but Many Glaciers in particular. We let the kids ride bikes but only up and down the portion of the road we could easily see.

The following day we decided to take it easy on the physical activity given that one of our daughters took a couple nasty spills off her bike and tore her foot up pretty bad. As a side note, I could write something here about parents giving several warnings against riding bikes in shoes and not flip-flops. I could also mention that, sometimes, eleven year olds don't listen to their parents. Lastly, I could say that a ripped up foot was a natural consequence that may be a better reminder to make smart choices than your nagging Mom and Dad, but I won't, because I'm a bigger person than that, guys. I mean, really, who do you think I am?

Anyway... we took at drive to the Saint Mary side of the park and drove the Going to the Sun Road. While this is more of a sedentary day, I wouldn't pass it up. The views are great, there are lots of wonderful stops along the way, and animal sightings are pretty much a guarantee (even with our typical bad luck). People do say it is a gnarly drive that isn't for the faint of heart. While I will say that there are a lot of steep drop-offs and tons of curves, if you are used to driving mountain roads, or Highway 1 along the central California coast, at all, you'll be right at home.

We made a few short stops along the road and a longer stop at Logan's Pass. There is a hike behind the visitor center called the Hidden Lake Trail (trail guide linked here). We hiked a bit of the trail, which is typically in the snow until the later parts of summer, but weren't quite up for the slipping and sliding that came with the icy terrain. We were still able to make a mountain goat sighting along the trail, however, and we spotted a heard of Big Horn Sheep while leaving the parking lot.

For out last full day in the park we took the Many Glaciers ferry run by Glacier Park Boat Company to the Grinnell Glacier trailhead. The ferry in itself is a really fun experience. You ferry across both Swiftcurrent and Josephine Lakes with a short, 1/4 mile hike in between. You can walk to the Grinnell Glacier trailhead if you prefer, it is about a 2 mile walk. We took the ferry one way but walked back and it was a very pretty hike. If you plan to take the ferry, book tickets online or go directly to the ticket booth (located at the Many Glaciers Hotel) when you arrive to secure tickets.

Once we were off the ferry we took a short 1.5 mile hike out and back toward Grinnell Lake. The last portion of the trail was closed for repair but we were able to make it to Hidden Falls. This hike is flat up until the short uphill section to view Hidden Falls. It is very doable with small kids and the walk takes you across small creeks and boardwalks. I highly recommend this one.

After Hidden Falls we decided to go for it and try the trail to Grinnell Glacier. The last part of this trail was closed due to snow but we were still able to hike about 4-5 miles of it round trip. This trail has some significant elevation gain. The views are phenomenal but we did have to coax (read: bribe) the kids a bit to keep going to the trail closure point. While we didn’t see any animals, there were a number of fellow hikers who saw a Grizzly mother and cub along the way.

When we returned to our camp we were in for a surprise. Half the campground was cleared out as a grizzly had come through twice in the afternoon to steal food from campers. Given his lack of fear of humans, the Park Rangers had cleared out anyone in a tent or soft-sided trailer. Our teardrop was okay but the girls couldn’t sleep in our rooftop tent. We relocated them to the truck cab, reassured them several times that they were very unlikely to be eaten by a bear in their sleep, and called it a night.

The next day we drove to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho for a week with friends and, on the way, we spotted our very last needed license plate to amass all fifty (Connecticut)! Before heading home we made a short stop at Crater Lake National Park—which is up next!