Wrapping up the last couple weeks in Montana. We got to spend a whole week with Eric, Thi and the kids. That always makes us happy seeing our niece and nephew! We definitely got some quality time in, driving around and hiking in Glacier NP for a few days. And as they left, Mike and I wrapped up our last work week before we go on vacation! Mike got a new job and will have 2 weeks off! I decided to also take my 3 week sabbatical while he’s not working so we can enjoy some vacation time together! I am so excited for our next adventure!
We really got to explore Glacier NP a lot more with Eric, Thi & the kids. Our dually wouldn’t allow for us to take the entire drive on the ‘Going to the Sun’ road, so squeezing in Eric’s rental car allowed for us to explore more. We hit the road around 2pm and made it all the way from the West side to the East Entrance in just a few hours. We made only a few stops on our way towards the East Entrance because our original plan was to make more stops on the way back home on the ‘Going to the Sun’ road, but that plan didn’t work out so well. We also planned on doing a small hike to stretch out our legs at St. Mary’s campground (near the East Entrance) but sadly they were closed and we didn’t know that before arriving. We turned around and started heading our way back towards the West Entrance. Before we got towards the end of the road, we passed by what looked to be a really bad accident. A truck had flipped over onto its side on the side of the road. It must have just happened when we passed by earlier, because as we continued down the road, there were many emergency vehicles rushing their way to the site. As we were making our way back towards the West Entrance, we knew we’d have to pass them again, but we didn’t realized they would have to close the road and it would take another 3 hours before they would open it back up again! We didn’t find any news on the accident and we hope that everyone survived and are recovering well. This forced us to then take the long route around the park back to West Entrance to pick up our Dually at Apgar. We were sad we did not get to stop at all the other spots we would have on the way back, but we knew we had the rest of the weekend to continue to explore some more.
The next day we made our way to Logan’s Pass to hike the Hidden Lake Trail. This 4 mile hike was breathtaking. At any moment, you could stop and take in all the views from all around you. On the way up, we were spoiled with seeing 4 huge male Rams, pretty close by just lounging around and relaxing as so many hikers made their way by not even noticing them behind the bushes. Sam had been hiking mostly with his Uncle Mike, ahead of Finley, Eric and Thi a bit; and I was in the middle, eventually catching up to Mike and Sam. Sam is so cute, he was asking me to take photos of him at specific locations that he liked along the trail and he also wanted to use my phone to take pictures of the Rams himself when he spotted them. So awesome to get some time with him to learn his new interest. Finley and the rest of the family eventually caught up to us at the Rams and we continued our way all the way up to the lookout together. Sam & Finley did so good hiking all the way up to the look out point. The view is just amazing. The lake is a beautiful turquoise color, just so eye capturing. The trail continues and you can get all the way down to the Lake. We were considering it, but then someone told us there was a mama bear with two of her cubs down there and she thinks they were making their way up the trail. We settled down to rest for a bit and kept our eyes out for the bears. Within minutes, we saw a grizzly mama with her two cubs making their way up towards where we were! They then headed up the mountains a bit, parallel with the trail. We were slowly heading back on the trail but stopped as it seemed like that’s where they were going. The bears eventually intersected with the trail and made their way down the valley. Thankfully, hikers had enough time to warn others making their way up the trail and no one got hurt. It was amazing to see how fast the bears move around. I knew they were fast but seeing them in action was pretty awesome. Scary at the moment, but so awesome to witness. We definitely were all lucky that day as the bears were just crossing and not interested in anyone or anything around us. I was thankful to be surrounded by many hikers vs being just our own small group. We were prepared, with our bear spray, just glad that we didn’t have to use it. With Sam and Finley there, I definitely was more panicked than I may had been if they were not there. Once we felt it was safe to continue back down the trail, we started heading back down and made it safely down the trail. That one definitely got my heart racing.
We went back to Apgar Village after the hike for some ice cream. We walked down to the dock at Lake MacDonald and last minute decided to reward the kiddos with a boat ride for doing such a great job on their hike and on the long drive inside the park. Thi had originally booked a boat tour but we wouldn’t have made it on time and Sam was pretty bummed about it. He got over it after that amazing hike and was even happier since he got to see rams, bears and go on a boat ride to end the day!
Our next day’s hike was just as amazing. We hiked Avalanche Lake Trail. This was about a 5.7 mile hike and I am so impressed with the kiddos! They did the whole hike, there and back without anyone carry them the whole way! Given that this way day two of hiking, I was even more proud of them! Thi did a great job finding and selecting the hikes for our weekend. I was a bit worried with the length at first, but so glad we did it as it led to such beautiful views! As you start of this hike, you’re spoiled with amazing waterfall views at the gorge. As you continue along you are covered in shade with trees all around. I love being surrounded by trees. It was really cool to see how nature changed just in a few miles as we headed up and got closer to the lake, it almost felt like we were in a jungle and it really reminded us of Hawaii. When you get to Avalanche Lake, the view is spectacular. The beautiful color of the lake water and the gorgeous mountain background with at least 4 waterfalls coming down into the lake was definitely worth the hike! We got in a nice rest there with the kiddos. We all took off our shoes and splashed around in the water a bit, skipped some rocks, relaxed and took in the gorgeous views. As we made our way back through the trail we had a little fun game going on with the kiddos. Sam & Finley were finding fuzzy caterpillars along the trail to distract their Uncle Mike. They asked Mike to take pictures and record it and they’d take off running and laughing, trying to get ahead on the trail and ditch us! They stopped us with a couple real caterpillars and also with a few invisible ones too! Silly kiddos, always so much fun with them around. Right before hitting the end of the trail, Mike saw a fox hiding behind the bushes! What a beauty. The fox looked like he was just waking up, casually grooming himself for a bit before running out of the bushes right in front of me and slowly running away. Perfect ending to our day! Love it when we see wildlife!
They had a few days to explore on their own since Mike and I had to work, but we got to spend our evenings together. Of course we took them to Sweet Peaks, our favorite ice cream place! So happy we found that on day one when we arrived here! We went into town and walked around and found a cute diner, Norms and we went here on their last day. Such a cute place, they have a fun soda fountain and the restaurant is also a candy store! The kids eyes were wide open with all the candy surrounding them, they were in heaven! After a quick lunch, off they went to the airport to head back home. Thanks so much Eric & Thi for making time to come visit with us! We always have a great time when you guys come. We love you guys lots and cannot wait to host you guys again sooner than later, we hope!
Last minute vacation due to Mike finding a new job, means last minute plan changes! We are checking out of Spruce Park a bit earlier and making our way up to Banff, Canada! Mike had mentioned before how bummed he was about the border being closed. So now that the border is open, I know this is the perfect mini vacation destination to celebrate him and all his hard work that he’s put in over the years to land him where he is now! One week in Canada and we’ll be heading to Portland earlier than originally planned. I am so stoked to see one of our best friends and meet their baby girl, Faye.
Mily Lourenço Adventures 