July 15, 2014 - Going to the Sun Road to West Glacier

Day 15 - Tuesday

A good breakfast at Rising Sun and a bag of ice for the cooler and we're off to experience the 50-mile Going to the Sun Road to West Glacier from St. Mary, Mt. The temps were heavenly and the traffic light at 8am.

The east side of the road (using Logan Pass as the dividing point) has even more road gravel and dust than had been there days before in our red bus tour but they seem to be making progress despite the long lines of tourists using this scenic drive.

We made a stop at Logan Pass and were rewarded yet again with Bighorn Sheep coming down from the snow-covered areas and running straight through the parking lot. One, the oldest of the group, hung back as the rest continued across the street and up into the meadows, crossing the snow area, and ending up at their "sitting spot".  One of the older Bighorn's paused on the snow and stood there, still as a statue, until the leader of their group finally made his way across the road 20 minutes later. The Old Man (according to the rangers) is stubborn and obstinate and doesn't like to "hang" with the young bucks. He has been known to buck cars and push people around who get too close. So we had three rangers in the parking lot TRYING to remind people to remain a minimum distance of 25 yards from him. He is, by the way, a wild animal! I guess they don't like bright colors so Ranger (Miss) Bullshoe, a Blackfoot native, pulled out a traffic vest and gradually moved him toward the rest. He finally decided to join the group but not hang with them closely. As they meandered up the mountain, he found a nice patch of grass and flowers and laid down. A total of 7 bighorn sheep in all graced us with their presence.

After all of that excitement right after we had arrived, we decided to check out the walks above the Visitor's Center. Here's the difference in snow a few days can make.

days later

first visit

first visit

days later

Glacier Lily

We were surprised to see so much of the snow had receded and more and more green was evident on the hillsides. With each receding patch of snow came greenery of wildflowers in bloom. What a gorgeous sight! A trip through the gift shop (which was closed last time) and we're on our way to new territory.

The prediction is that in the year 2030, no glaciers will survive the climate change where there are only 25 of the 125 right now. With all this melting snow, waterfalls abound and Melodie took the photos while I concentrated on the ever-winding road. Our first stop near Logan Pass was supposed to give us an overlook to the Going to the Sun Road but the walkway needed repair and so the overlook was closed.

But we ran into Ranger Bullshoe again and spent some time talking to her about her plans for the future and trying to see a wolverine in the vicinity. We scanned the hillside for quite a while and finally gave up the ghost and hit the road. We stopped at a few pullouts along the way and made a big stop at the Weeping Wall.

Weeping Wall

Bird Woman Falls

We climbed the embankment to a couple other waterfalls and then had our PBJ lunch. The Columbian Ground Squirrels worked their cuteness card as they tried to get handouts from us but we didn't succumb to their adorable faces.  The man sitting on a rock next to us fed them a little and he can be responsible for them developing aggressive behaviors in the future like the squirrels of Zion NP.

We passed meandering rivers and multitudes of waterfalls, including Bird Woman Waterfall
which drops 492'. Driving through a tunnel, we saw "porthole" style overlooks carved into the walls and just had to take some photos. So we parked and walked back to the tunnel.

Our next stop will be Trail of the Cedars which is a .8 miles loop, handicap-accessible boardwalk through a forest of mostly Cedars but also some Hemlock, Yew, and Cottonwood. These monstrosities reach up to 200' tall.

We paused at a reconstructed overlook called Red Rocks Overlook with its glacier-blue water and we contemplated the fate of our planet when the glaciers are gone and everything "down mountain" no longer has the benefit of these flowing streams and rivers.

We got to Glacier Guides Lodge around 4:30 after 8 hours on Going to the Sun Road and were the only car there. Greeted by Don, the relief manager, he showed us around the place and to our room. It has the atmosphere of a bed and breakfast instead of a hotel/motel. The room is lush and comfy and an information card tells us how they selected all of their recycled and USA or Montana-made furnishings. It's on the 2nd floor but built into the hillside so when you walk out the back door, you have the hill and table with chairs waiting for you.

A continental breakfast is offered each morning along with wifi in the room, a computer in the lounge area and a printer downstairs are all available to guests. A spacious room and bathroom and the room also includes a mini-fridge.