Glacier National Park, MT

We arrived at the Whitefish RV Park in Whitefish, MT on Friday, July 13.  It was about 4 in the afternoon and it was sprinkling, and later turned to showers.  And it showered off & on all night and into the morning hours.  But we weren't going to let a little rain stop us from heading to the hills.  No Sir!  Many of the sites at the RV park were occupied by a group of Adventure Cyclists from all over the country, around 50 in all I learned later.  They were about to launch the next morning (in the rain, YUK) on their third leg (44 miles) of a 252 mile 6 day ride.

 Here is a pic of the riders resting after a long day peddling their wares (sorry).  Note the rigorous training going on and the performance enhancement liquids being consumed.  Only 44 miles tomorrow; guess they can afford a little diversion the evening before.

We snapped over 300 pics during our two-day journey thru the Glacier NP.  Unfortunately, our blog can't hold so many pics, so I will try to include those that look the best and exhibit the true character of what most folks envision this grand national treasure to be.  Oh, and if you desire to see all the pics, and any other albums we have amassed during our journeys on the road, they can be viewed here:  https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos?tab=wq#photos/116420270075450223041/albums

 It was a rainy, dreary day in the park, but afternoon saw it clear up a little, but the wind picked up and it got chilly.  Who cares?  It was so awesome being here among these giant picturesque mountains.  We felt like we were on top of the world.

 It's rather difficult to view these pics and understand the true depth and magnitude of the enormous canyons separating these mountains and streams and cascades.

 A two mile section of the west side Road To The Sun was undergoing some major renovations and delays were approximately 30 minutes each way.  No worries as the scenery kept us entertained.

 The Three Arches, and waterfalls in the distance.  As you can imagine, there countless waterfalls and cascading water and streams.

 We couldn't believe that there would be so much "greenery" everywhere you looked.  It was a distinguishing contrast with the rugged mountains above the grasses and cedars.

 One of the rivers above and stream seeming to begin it's origin straight from the side of the mountain.

 St Marys Lake near the eastern entrance to the park.

 Above, tiny Wild Goose Island, and below a ranger program underway describing the Many Glacier Hotel and the surrounding landscapes.  Picswere taken on the back deck of the hotel great room.  We lunched here.

 The great room of the Many Glacier Hotel.

 Just to the east of the hotel about a mile, we came upon Momma Moose and her baby, and Momma Grizzly and her three cubs.  Her three cubs included two from last year and one very small light tan cub from the past spring.  Poor little fella had a hard time moving in the tall grass.  I'm not sure if we even got a good pic of the little fella.

 I think the little fella is beside it's bigger sibling above just to the right in the grass.

 Like I said before, it was a dreary weather day.  And the road is paved right into the mountain it seemed at times, and passage was tight when meeting other vehicles, especially in the curves.

 We loved the wildlife that showed themselves to us.

 where cold water meets the warm air, and late in the evening on St Marys Lake.

 Note the sharp tops and the rounded sculpture that the glaciers made thousands of years ago as they scrapped and clawed their way down the canyons.

Above, Jackson Glacier way off in the distance, about 12 miles from where we were standing.

 Workers going over the side, and another view of Jackson Glacier.

 The next day was a better weather day, so we decided to go north to the Waterton area of the park, which is in Alberta.  Above, folks awaiting their turn to present credentials for entry into Canada.

 While we agreed that the US part of the park was much more dramatic and aesthetic, Canada's contribution nonetheless had an allure of it's own.  Below, while wanting a pic of the sign, these "Things, VW type" were lining up for a group photo.  Must have been 20 of these things on a rally we assumed.

 The Prince of Whales Hotel at the Waterton Park.

 Lunch at Waterton at a streetside cafe.  Luch was yummy, my BBQ and her Cobb salad.  And a waterfall at Waterton.

 A strange looking white-footed hare munching on some greens late in the evening.

A view across Cameron Lake towards the US mountains.

A view from above Watern shops district looking south towards the US.

 On Chief Mountain HWY on the way back to the US, Nancy snapped a pic of this little fella (not so little) grabbing a snack.  A lot of the cattle ranches in the west permit their cattle to wonder "open range", so when traveling on roads that sign "open range", be very careful and vigilant.

 These pics were on the way back, late in the evening, of the moutains just east of Logan Pass on the Road to the Sun.

 And in the parking lot, of all places, of the Logan Pass visitor center, we found these two Rams (Bighorn Sheep) at odds and having a butting contest. 

 And while still in the parking lot, the clouds were just beautiful looking east with a spash of sun lighting the clouds and mountain.

Coming down the west side of the Road, stopped at the red light for the one way traffic construction area, Nancy squeezed off a last photo of our visit to this wonderful area of our incredible country.  What a day and what a visit.  One we'll never forget, and I hope you enjoyed the ride here as much as we did.  Thanks for viewing.  Till the next blog, Joe & Nancy looking for a good night's rest.