Montana Vacation - Day 6

Day 6

We had a wet night in the tent.  Being in the mountains, it rains pretty much every night and as we discovered, our tent can't really handle it.  In the morning, I tightened up the fly and laid out our sleeping bags to dry, but we really need a tent made to handle a lot of rain. 

 

We drove to the Many Glacier area of the park.  We parked at the Many Glacier hotel, a beautiful structure build in a Swiss Chalet style, which opened in 1915.  We hiked around Swiftcurrent Lake.  It was an easy 3 mile hike.  It was a wonderful hike with lots of wildflowers and stunning views. 

Yes, this is living.  I could have sat here all day!

After our hike, the kids and I were hungry and tired.  We didn't sleep well and just needed to refuel and relax.  The guys, of course, were all set to go on a longer, more strenuous hike.  We parted ways.  The kids and I enjoyed a wonderful afternoon at the hotel.  We ate lunch, read in lounge, checked out the gift shop (note to self--don't forget the stocking caps next time.  It gets COLD at night here.  I found a really cute, wool, Sherpa cap for Morgan.), and sat on the balcony and just enjoyed the view. 

After we met back up with the guys, we headed to our favorite, reservation taco stand for dinner.  After eating, Hubby's friend, again, went back to the camp site and the rest of us headed to the St. Mary's visitors center for an evening program. We watched members of the local Blackfeet Indian tribe sharing their culture, dancing, and singing.  It was amazing!  Hearing a recording or video of these events is NOTHING like seeing them in person.  The beat of the drum and the singing really speaks to you on a very basic, emotional level.  Add the beautiful costumes and amazing dancing and it was spectacular.  I didn't take any pictures, I didn't want to miss a moment of it, plus it seemed to me to be disrespectful to do so, but I found this picture on line.  This is similar to what a 6 year old boy wore when we did the chicken dance.  He was amazing!

Another day flew by.  It was late when we got back to the campsite, but not too late for a fire and s'mores.  Having food outside made the nervous, but we were very careful and cleaned everything up.  For #1 son, it just wouldn't be a camping event without them.

Montana Vacation Day 5

Day 5

Yea!  Glacier National Park!  We made it!

Some of our first views of the park.

 

 

 

 

 

It was pretty much a four hour drive from Helena to Glacier National Park, but the scenery was gorgeous so we didn't mind the drive.  GNP has many first-come-first-serve campgrounds and after scouting out the situation, we found the last two campsites at Cut Bank campground.  It is about 15 miles from the St. Mary's visitors center and then 5 miles down a dirt/rock road.  It was a beautiful, rustic site near a mountain stream. 

 

 

 

 

 

 



The road to our camp ground.

 

 

We set up camp and then headed to the nearest place for dinner.  There are lots of bears in GNP and as a rule, I do not have ANY food at the campsite.  All snacks and even water stay in the car.  Something as small as a food spill on the ground or your cloths could attract a bear to your campsite and I, for one, do not wish to be awakened by a hungry bear sniffing around! 

 

 

The area just to the East of GNP is the Blackfeet Indian Reservation.  We constantly crossed in and out of the Reservation and the Park.  We ate at a taco stand just outside the St. Mary's visitor's center.  It was surprisingly good!

 

 



We hung out at the taco stand for a while, planning our next move and just relaxing!



After dinner, Hubby's Friend headed back to the campground, while Hubby, the kids, and me hung out and waited for dark so we could attend the stargazing program at the visitor's center. 

 

The night sky is spectacular at GNP!

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Montana Day 4

Day 4

This was to be our last day in civilization before we left to explore Glacier National Park.  We decided to drive to Missoula so #1 Daughter could check out the University of Montana.  If we are near a University and have time, we always visit.  We drove on a road that ran along the continental divide.  This is the area where to the East water runs into the Atlantic ocean and to the West the Water runs into the Pacific ocean. 

A roadside spring.

Hubby and friend were itching for a hike, so after a few minutes of campus exploration, they took off for a Mt. Sentinel hike.  The common hike is up 800 feet up to a big "M" then the hike to the peak is another 1200 feet beyond that.  I think after that hike, Hubby was cured of wanting to hike up mountains for quite a while. 

Mt. Sentinel and the "M"

Meanwhile, the kids and I had a great time exploring the campus, eating at the student union, exploring downtown Missoula, and riding on a hand carved, wooden carousel. 

 

It is a truly beautiful campus!



The Student Union

 

 

Of course there are new books in that bag!

Pizza!

 

 

Before leaving Missoula, we stopped at Bayern Brewery, the only German, Bavarian style microbrewery in the Rocky Mountains for a beer and a brat. 

 



Montana Day 3

 Day 3--Morning

We enjoyed a dry night sleeping inside.  After a short relaxing morning, we were off to experience a Gates of the Mountains boat tour.  The tour runs on Holter

lake 20 miles north of Helena between Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.  Lewis and Clark passes through the area and it was they who named the area Gates of the Rocky Mountains.  It was a really nice tour.  There were beautiful views and we even saw the local Bald Eagles.  We also saw the infamous "Mann Gulch" site of the wild fire that killed 13 smoke jumpers in 1949.

The Gates to the Rocky Mountains.

 

 



Mann Gulch

 

Just hanging out enjoying the view.


After the tour, it was off to lunch at one of Hubby's favorite restaurants--Buffalo Wild Wings.  We had a nice lunch and after drove around and saw a bit more of the Helena area. 

Day 3--Afternoon/Evening

I'm going to subtitle this as "The day my husband tried to kill me or The hike from Hell."  He really wanted me to hike up Mount Helena.  A local landmark and near by high peak.  He had been up once before with his friend and wanted to experience it with the family.  I was willing to try, but right away, I could tell I was in for a difficult time.  We hiked the 1906 Trail which is about 1.5 miles and climbs about 1,100 feet up.  I had to stop and catch my breath A LOT and at one point I didn't think I was going to make it.

The trail head. 



 This picture looks relatively flat, let me assure you, it was not!



About 1/2 way up resting in the "Devil's Kitchen"

 

It was a beautiful view from the top!

We took the Powerline trail down.  What took 1.5 miles to go up now took only .85 miles to go down the 1,100 feet.  It was steep and rocky and by the time I was finished my knees were screaming.  Ice helped and they were fine the next day.  I had such a difficult time that I didn't really get to enjoy the scenery, but it was a beautiful hike and view from the top. 

After my harrowing hike we were treated to Buffalo Wild Wings part duex!  Yes, Hubby and friend wanted to eat lunch and dinner at the same restaurant on the same day.  The kids and I were happy the staff was turned over by then!  The guys enjoyed a second helping of wings and beer!

Montana Vacation Odyssey

Day 2

Day 2 started when we were awakened by extreme winds at about 1 a.m.  We knew it got windy at Badlands National Park, but the wind was blowing so badly I was afraid it was going to rip the tent.  I was awake for a while, but it seemed to be holding up okay, so I fell back into a fitful sleep.  Then at 2:30 a.m., it started raining.  With the winds, the rain started seeping into the tent almost immediately once we heard the lightening start, we decided to abandon tent.  We quickly rolled up our sleeping bags and took shelter in the car, but by this time we were wide awake.  We quickly collapsed the tent and started driving. 

The breakfast of champions.

Still smiling after riding all night!

We drove through South Dakota, Wyoming, and finally, into Montana.  Since we were running ahead of schedule, we decided to stop in Crow Agency, Montana at the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument.  We watched the informational film, listened to a Battle Talk, toured the visitor center, and walked the Soldier's memorial and monument and the Indian memorial and monument.  It was very interesting and educational, making it a very worthwhile stop.  On the way out, we drove the 5 mile long ridge road overlooking the valley and battlefield.






 

The Soldier's Memorial

 

The Battlefield

 

Part of the Indian Memorial

 

After our stop, the rest of the trip seemed to take forever, but we finally arrived in Helena, Montana late afternoon/early evening.  We drove about 640 miles.  We were staying with Hubby's long time friend and were extremely glad for a shower and a dry place to sleep.  We had delicious pesto, artichoke pizza for dinner and the kids had cheese pizza at one of the local establishments.  

Montana Vacation Odyssey

My families' idea of an ideal vacation involved beautiful natural settings and very few people.  We like to experience the real places of the U.S., see the nation's great National Parks, and maybe learn something along the way.  So this year, we embarked on a 10 day Montana Vacation Odyssey.

Traveling:  Day 1

We had the family car loaded to the gills and we were on the road at 5:02 a.m.  The kids are great travelers.  They each, carefully pack a "fun bag" loaded with books, electronics, DVD players, notebooks, etc.  I put in a bag of snacks (I refuse to buy snacks at gas stations--can you say "waste of money.")  and a refillable water bottle.  I was armed with 5 books ready to go. 

 

We drove from Illinois through Wisconsin, Minnesota, and into South Dakota.  We stopped for the night at Badlands National park, arriving at 5:45 p.m.  We like to camp most of our vacations, it keeps us outside in nature (making Hubby happy) and is quite cheap (keeping me happy).  Over the years, we have become quite efficient and can have the tent out, pitched, and sleeping bags unrolled in probably the same amount of time it takes to check into a hotel.  We covered 850 miles in a little over 12 hours. 

 

After pitching our tent, we ate dinner at the Wagon Wheel at Interior, South Dakota just North of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. 

 

 

After sitting for so long in the car, the kids had some major steam to burn off.  Hubby and kids scrambled like mountain goats up and down the rocks.  We enjoyed some beautiful views and got our blood pumping.

 

 

 

 

It was a long day, but we were already in South Dakota.  The sunset from our campsite was gorgeous!