Hey Guys!
This post continues our time in Glacier National Park.
Read Days 1-3 here, Day 4 here, Day 5 here, Day 6 here, Day 7 here – Read my post on 101 Things to do Outside of the Park here & Read my posts from when we went back to the park in 2021 to see the East side here.
Today is our last full day in the park so we decided to take it easy and not do too much.
We started our morning with coffee on the patio admiring the beautiful Lake McDonald.
Of course, I had to take a few more hundred pics of the lake before we went home! 😉
I spotted more of those tiny fish swimming around.
The rocks are so colorful!!
After our coffee, we decided we would head back up to the Hungry Horse Dam and drive further past the dam this time.
The road is actually a scenic loop drive. The entire loop is approx. 112 miles mostly on gravel road with no services other than Forest Service Campgrounds and boat launches.
Visitors often access from the west side, which is paved for the first 11 miles to Lid Creek.
The loop ushers you along the shores of Hungry Horse Reservoir and across the South Fork of the Flathead River. The area offers access to a multitude of hiking, fishing, water recreational activities and camping.
On this drive you have scenic overlooks, wildlife viewing, campsites, boat launches & more..it also makes for an exceptional fall foliage scenic drive.
Hungry Horse Dam is 564-feet and is Montana’s highest controlling flooding on Flathead and Columbia Rivers.
There is a visitor center nearby and tours are available in the summer months.
The drive is truly beautiful!
We spotted an old eagle’s nest and nearby was an Osprey perched on a tree limb.
Views of the dam from a distance
Ater driving about 15 miles of the road, we turned around and headed to the Huckleberry Patch for lunch.
I ordered the cheeseburger ($10) and my hubby ordered the french dip ($12)…both came with fries. The food was average.
Before we left, we ordered a slice of that famous Huckleberry pie!
After we ate, we did a little shopping in the gift shop that’s attached to the restaurant.
After leaving here, we decided we would drive down the Going to the Sun road and spend a couple of hours relaxing by Lake McDonald.
As soon as we arrived, we ate our yummy huckleberry pie!
We decided we would take a swim in the ice cold water …it was freezing!! The temperature of most lakes in the park never gets above 50 degrees F.
Lake McDonald is Glacier National Park’s biggest lake; ten miles long and 472 feet deep.
After getting out of the water, we laid out in the sun to warm up!
We somehow managed to get the place all to ourselves! So peaceful.
I spotted lots of berries nearby.
After spending a couple of hours here, we headed back to our room to relax for a while before heading to dinner.
Later, we headed back to Josephine’s for those yummy bison gyros! This was our 3rd night in a row eating here.
Read reviews here
After dinner, we decided to head back into the park and watch the sunset.
The sun was lighting up the mountain peaks!
Heading through the first tunnel..there are two tunnels on the Sun Rd that you will drive through…The East Side Tunnel is 408 feet long, while the West Side Tunnel is 192 feet in length.
On the way up to Logan pass, we spotted the moon.
As usual, I was taking tons of pics!!
A shot of Haystack Creek Falls
More shots along the way
A shot of Triple Arches Bridge….built in 1927, it’s one of the most unique bridges along Going-to-the-Sun Road.
We decided to pullover before Logan Pass to watch the sunset.
The views were spectacular!
There was a small waterfall nearby.
The sun was starting to set behind the mountains…so beautiful!
I highly recommend you visit the park during sunrise and sunset!
After leaving here, we continued our drive up to Logan Pass.
We pulled over at the Oberlin Pass Overlook...this pull out offers a short board walk to a raised wooden platform that gives stunning views of Going to the Sun Rd and Mt. Oberlin.
There were mountain goats in the parking lot! They were licking the pavement…not sure why.
If you look closely, you can see the Highline Trail above the Going to the Sun Road.
The views were incredible!
We then headed for the parking area at Logan Pass..
We walked a little ways up the Hidden Lake Overlook trail to take a few pictures.
After leaving here, we headed back to our hotel..
On the way, we pulled over so I could photograph the moon sitting on top of the mountain!
After arriving back to our hotel, we sat outside to watch the stars. I had downloaded an app called Nightcap…it allows you to photograph the stars, milky way & the aurora with an iPhone. The cost is $2.99 and worth it! It records also.
The next morning, we cooked breakfast in the room and sat outside on the patio before packing up and heading home.
I’m definitely going to miss these views!!
We had to get someone to snap our picture before we checked out!
A few shots of the hotel
After checking out, we headed to Kalispel for lunch…we ended up eating at Panera Bread.
After lunch, we headed to the airport…the airport is very small…we had to walk outside and up some stairs to board the plane.
The plane had very few people on it! It was great! 🙂
Shots from the plane
We had a layover at Dallas so we decided to find somewhere to eat dinner…we ended up eating at TGI Fridays.
I ordered salmon ($18) and the hubby ordered a burger ($12.50)…the food was really good.
Later we boarded our plane and headed home.
Thanks for reading!!
I hope this helps you plan your own trip to Glacier National Park.
Read Days 1-3 here, Day 4 here, Day 5 here, Day 6 here & Day 7 here.
Click here for the pullouts along the Going to the Sun Rd