Glacier National Park, September 15-17

  We left Maura and David on Friday morning, although Maura and I took Deniro for another blood test at the vet's first.
   Then, we drove to Glacier National Park via the east side of Flathead Lake. Similarly to the last time we visited Flathead, it was rainy and overcast.

Flathead Lake

    We took Route 2 East (which is the way we go from NH to visit Maine, too) into Glacier National Park. En route, we saw a bald eagle. We stopped at the West Entrance and took a few photos. That side of the park is closed due to wildfires which we could see burning in the distance. Then we drove to the Isaak Walton Inn in Essex which is quite remote. The Inn was built before WWII to house railroad workers. The Great Northern still goes through daily including two passenger trains. It is tradition to wave to it when it goes by.
   The Inn is rustic - no tvs, phone in the rooms and internet (of sorts) in the lobby.
    We ate dinner there the first night. (There is no where else to eat nearby, so it's a good idea!)

     When we woke in the morning of the 16th, it was 28 degrees! And, it had snowed! We drove to the West entrance of Glacier which was about 60 miles. It was crystal clear with blue skies and white snow, very beautiful. Route 49 was circuitous and gave us wonderful views into the park. The entrance to the eastern side of the Going to the Sun Road starts in St. Mary. It was only open to Logan Pass, about 17 miles. We stopped a lot along the lake, took a few short hikes and lots of photos as it was a perfect day to do that. But, as we approached Logan Pass, elevation over 6,000 feet, it got increasingly smoky and when we got to the pass, there was no point in taking photos. Luckily, we'd had such a lovely morning.
      On the way back down, we did take some photos of the only glacier that can be seen from the road, Jackson Glacier, but it was definitely in the haze. Glacier has lost the bulk of its glaciers which is very sad. They may all be gone quite soon, so we felt grateful to be able to see what we could.
     We also stopped at another entrance, Two Medicine where we took a short hike to a water fall, Falling Eagle and to see one of the Two Medicine lakes.

      We ate at an inn in St. Mary - very good.
       When we got back to the Izaak Walton we went into the outdoor hot tub which was fun and not something we normally get to do in the cold.
       The next morning, we drove back on the eastern side of Glacier and up to the Canadian border.