Mike & Kris - Enjoying The Ride

What do you find at the end of the “Road Less Traveled”? We found two of our favorite National Parks: Grand Tetons and Glacier. Our first stop was Grand Tetons National Park and even though it was our second trip here, we found even more to love. The wildlife is amazing and Mike and Steve were able to capture photos of moose, bear, bison, and elk. Of course the scenery is spectacular. This time we stayed in Jackson, WY, while visiting the park, and it is a hopping place! What a great western town with so many restaurants, shops, and outdoor activities available. It is easy to see why it is so popular and crowded! You can even buy a $6800.00 moose antler hanging chandelier if you are interested. The arches in town are made of elk horns and they were all collected by the Boy Scouts from a nearby Elk Refuge. They were then polished and framed into the arches by the Rotary Club back in 1953. I think we all agreed that Jackson and the Grand Tetons are well worth another stop in the future.

Next we traveled north and ended up in West Glacier, MT, for Glacier National Park. The famous “Going to the Sun Road” never disappoints. This year they are experimenting with a reservation system and we think it helped to not have so many vehicles on the road. We were able to pull off the road in all the turn-outs which was great. The parking lot at the top of Logan Pass is still crazy crowded and it took us two tries to get a spot to park. We had to leave before 6:00 AM but were able to get one of the last few spots available! Yes, traveling to National Parks does take some planning-but still, I think it is well worth it. Mike, Jill, and Steve were able to hike 7 miles of the famous Highline Trail which is one of the things you don’t want to miss.

We also drove to the east side of Glacier to any area named Many Glacier. They call it mini Switzerland with the high peaks surrounding a lake with a chalet styled hotel right on the waters edge. With flower boxes on the windows too. At almost $600.00 a night, we probably will stick to our trailer for now!

Finally, we drove north on the west side of Glacier on the Northfork Road. It is mostly gravel with two lakes at the end of each fork. It took us 5 hours for the trip which is a lot of driving on gravel roads! Talk about the end of the road…we stopped at the Polebridge Merchantile but that was not even half-way to the lakes. The shop has a little bit of everything but their highlight is their pastries. We may have bought a couple for breakfast. We also came across a cabin which was originally a homestead for a couple and their five children. Tragically the husband died during their first winter-yikes, they were tough back then.

Again, this is not our first trip to Glacier but we are always impressed and ready to head back for more. Stay tuned our next stop may involve a Coug!!