Northern Rockies: Day 3
Post date: Oct 08, 2013 3:39:45 AM
We got an early start on the third day of our road-trip and headed toward Glacier National Park just northeast of Kalispell, MT. Z had planned a day trip exploring what the Going-to-the-Sun Road had to offer. The overall goal was to stop at multiple viewpoints while driving the entire length of the road east to the St Mary entrance, turn around, and stop at more viewpoints on the way back west. To give you an idea of his obsessive planning for a road-trip, he used Google Earth to figure out what periods during the day in late September the views from each stop would be best. This led to the order of stops and why we skipped some stops while heading east and picked them up on our way west. You can buy a well done driving guide for the road at www.hike734.com, but we like planning things ourselves and learned a few things that may not be on that guide.This amazing road, a National Historic Landmark, was finished in 1932 and is considered one of the best drives in the US. It is the only road that traverses Glacier National Park and for most visitors is the only part of Glacier that is seen. The first stop on our itinerary was The Loop. The Loop is a sharp switchback west of the Continental Divide at the road's most northern point. The Highline Trail, a highly scenic trek (we've done it and it will appear in our "Montana" hikes soon), connects The Loop to Logan Pass via the Granite Park Chalet. Heavens Peak (8,987') dominates the view to the southwest and the view west up McDonald Creek Canyon is also noteworthy. On this day, we had arrived when the morning fog was just below The Loop and allowed for clear views all around.
After The Loop, we drove to the Bird Woman Falls/Haystack Falls pullout. From here you can get a nice view of Haystack Falls tumbling down the slope to the east and a distant view of Bird Woman Falls situated below Clements Mountain and framed by Mt Oberlin. Further up the road are many more pullouts including a nice large one below Bishops Cap. Our next planned stop was just below Oberlin Bend to view Clements Mountain and Mt Oberlin to the southwest and the distant mountains to the northwest. Shortly after this stop, we arrived at the Continental Divide at Logan Pass (6,646') where there is a visitor's center, large parking lot, a couple of trailheads, and lots of beautiful scenery. Because there are views in almost every direction this would be the first of two stops at the pass. We walked beyond the visitor's center to get a nice view of the Hanging Garden area, Clements Mountain, and Reynolds Mountain. Mountain goats or Bighorn Sheep can commonly be seen near this area and in summer it teems with wildflowers. The very popular Hidden Lake Trail leads visitors to a spectacular view of the lake while not trampling on the delicate alpine tundra (boardwalk). Arrive at Logan Pass as early as possible because the parking lot will likely be full between ~10:30am-2pm whenever the road is open.
Just below Logan Pass on the east side is a great pullout for viewing Hanging Garden Falls, a commonly overlooked waterfall below the road. You can also get a nice view of the road, the east tunnel, and Going-to-the-Sun Mountain. The next stop was the Jackson Glacier viewpoint off of the southern side of the road because the sun would be directly over the glacier later in the day. This is a pretty distant view of the glacier and there are a couple of places to see it. The first is the official viewpoint which has its own parking area. Immediately southeast of this is a trailhead (Gunsight Pass/Piegan Pass) parking area which has a slightly better view of Mt Jackson, but a worse view of the glacier.
We next tried to go to Sun Point but because of road construction it was closed. Z was bummed because Sun Point offers great views of the mountains west of St Mary Lake. We also passed a large pullout for St Mary Lake which was also blocked due to road construction but we were able to check this viewpoint out on the way back. The next stop for us was the Wild Goose Island viewpoint. This is probably the most popular stop on the east side of Logan Pass and as we pulled up it was pretty crowded. Therefore, we parked and walked back up the road a little ways to a couple of viewpoints we had spotted. Less than 700' north of the official viewpoint is another viewpoint with a use-trail down to the lake across the road from a small pullout. This view isn't as good as the official one but will definitely have less people. The best viewpoint is ~150' closer to the official viewpoint. The view is virtually the same as the official one (with Wild Goose Island shifted a little below the mountains) with one important difference for us--no one else was there. After checking out these viewpoints we walked back to the official viewpoint to find it unusually empty. We were able to get our picture taken together (which doesn't happen often) before continuing on.Our next stop was one of our favorite during the day. Just after the Wild Goose Island viewpoint is a sharp curve in the road with a pullout on the lake side near The Narrows. We parked in the pullout and followed a use-trail toward a rocky outcropping and the lake to the south. Here, we had the views and, seemingly, the lake itself to ourselves. The wind was brisk but we didn't mind as we snapped multiple pictures and laid down to enjoy the views. There are many bleached snags here that offered great foreground interest to the scenery. Almost everyone drove right past this viewpoint and no one else attempted to get to where we were. Consequently, we took our time before walking back to the car.
We next decided to skip the Rising Sun Picnic Area which is immediately east of the last pullout and continued past the Two Dog Flats pullout to the St Mary eastern entrance to the park. At the visitor's center we were a little disappointed with the exhibits inside. For a young family, this would be great but we weren't very interested, although Z was interested in the large 3-D map of the park. It was now time for us to start heading back west and pick up the stops we had skipped earlier.
At Two Dog Flats, Z ran down the use-trail to the lakeshore and got a nice road picture. We next stopped at the St Mary Lake pullout that was blocked with construction equipment. This pullout is not one of the best on this day but does offer a sweeping view of the lake. We also stopped at a couple of small pullouts with views that caught our eyes before heading back up to Logan Pass. Along the way, we decided to skip Siyeh Bend. At Logan Pass we found the parking lot completely full with a few vehicles prowling for openings at 12:45pm. After making a couple of passes, Z jumped out and took a few pictures looking to the southeast of Going-to-the-Sun Mountain, Red Eagle Mountain, Little Chief Mountain, and Heavy Runner Mountain while B slowly drove around to give him time. The view to the southeast, in Z's opinion, is the best from Logan Pass. Look to the slopes to the north to have a good chance at seeing Mountain Goats.Another great stop is just below Logan Pass on the western side at Oberlin Bend. Here are a few parking spaces (which some people use and walk up to Logan Pass when that parking lot is full) with a boardwalk leading to a fantastic viewpoint. From here, you look down the Logan Creek Canyon with the Garden Wall towering above and the Going-to-the-Sun Road following the profile of its slopes. Because the view is to the north, the light was perfect for pictures. We were even able to get someone to take a picture of us together!
On the way down, we quickly stopped at a superb viewpoint for the McDonald Creek drainage. A little ways after Haystack Butte and directly above where McDonald Creek turns from flowing to the southeast to flowing to the southwest is a small pullout with huge sweeping views. It is a perfect place for panoramic pictures. We took a few moments to listen to only the sounds of the wind, birds, and the occasional passing car. Below The Loop we passed the pullouts for Red Rock Point, Trail of Cedars (we've previously done this and the trail to Avalanche Lake), and Sacred Cascade. We also continued past Lake McDonald Lodge, which we highly recommend for anyone who hasn't been there before.
About two miles southwest of the Lake McDonald Lodge turn is a small pullout on the north side of the road. From the pullout we made our way down to the lakeshore and found fantastic views and perfect skipping rocks on the eastern shore of Lake McDonald. There was no one else in view. We spent a bit of time taking pictures, skipping rocks, and enjoying the outstanding view in solitude. B really threw some championship skippers. This was probably our favorite stop of the day. Stanton Mountain and Mt Brown frame the lake to the northeast and the top of Gunsight Mountain can be seen to the east-northeast. We also saw a grouse while walking along the shore. Another couple of miles down the road we stopped at another small pullout and made our way down the steep trail to the lakeshore for more outstanding views over the crystal clear water. Again, we were alone and thoroughly enjoyed that fact. For our last stop, B looked for souvenirs and Z checked out the view from near the docks at Apgar Village on the southwest tip of Lake McDonald. During Z's first visit to Glacier National Park in 2004, B set up a little picnic on one of the docks complete with candlelight. It was perfect.
The view from Apgar Village is most likely the first open view people have of Glacier National Park and it doesn't disappoint. The northern Rockies shoot up east of the lake and the view has an uncontrollably calming effect on those who experience it. What the Tunnel View is for Yosemite National Park, the view from Apgar Village is for Glacier National Park--a grand introduction to what our national parks are all about. The view swallows your everyday concerns and reminds you that "going to the mountains is going home." Unfortunately, at some point you need to make the decision to move on. Or don't. Stay in the nearby campground. Walk along a secluded forest trail. Find where it leads to. Perhaps never go back to work.
