Glacier

We arrived in West Glacier and found a nice spot in the Apgar campground.  The fall colors were in full bloom and we practically had the place to ourselves.  We got on our bikes and rode the bike path around to check out the area.  We stopped at Lake McDonald and practiced skipping stones.  Abigayle is still perfecting her technique, so I thought it better to keep by bike helmet on to avoid injury from an errant stone.

We were unable to drive the Going to the Sun road through the park due to construction near Logan Pass, so I had to be content with riding my bike up it as far as I could (yay!).  The views were awesome, save for the wildfire haze, and there was very little traffic.  Later that day, we all went for a hike up Avalanche Creek and around Avalanche Lake.  Again, awesome views and luckily no bear sightings.

The downside of our late season traveling is that a lot of park amenities/services are finished for the season.  This meant the shuttle bus service that normally takes you throughout Glacier was done, so the only way for us to see the east side of the park was to drive around the perimeter to East Glacier.  We arrived at Many Glacier campground in East Glacier in the late afternoon and drove to some of the lookouts to check for bears (the rangers indicated that bears had been spotted in the area).  We did see a black bear down in a valley feeding, but it was pretty far away.

The next morning we hiked up to Redrock Falls before breaking camp and heading for the KOA in St. Mary.  In St. Mary, we took a Red Bus Tour, which are the historic buses that have been running through the park since 1936.  On the tour we saw mountain goats, sheep, a black bear and a grizzly bear!  After the tour, we went to camp and had lunch and then I did a bike ride up to the top of Logan Pass while Abigayle did school.  The next day, we sadly bid Glacier goodbye and headed west, on our way to Seattle.

When teaching a 7-yr old to skip stones, a helmet is highly recommended (you can actually see the skipping rock if you look closely)

Riding the bike path at Apgar Campground 

McDonald Falls.

Glacier carved rocks on Avalanche Creek.

Exposed roots from a fallen tree on the Trail of Cedars Nature Trail.

Avalanche Lake.

Several glacial waterfalls feeding Avalanche Lake.

Earning another Jr. Ranger badge.

A view of the wildlife from the back of the RV.

Wildlife on Redrock Falls trail.

At Saint Mary Lake on the Red Bus Tour.

Riding up the Going to the Sun road on the Red Bus (with the top open).

Logan Pass via the Red Bus.

Hello from the Red Bus Tour.

This guy was just napping alongside the road.

Black bear grabbing some lunch.  Moments later, we captured the grizzly video below.

The lodge at Many Glaciers.  In the winter, the snow will be as high as the 3rd story windows!

View from the top of Logan Pass (it was much easier on the Red Bus).

Riding my bike back down the pass (the road is on the left ridge).

Nice KOA campground in St. Mary's Glacier.

Fall colors at Glacier as we say goodbye.