Summer in Glacier, Part 1: The Adventure Begins

I had every intention of posting this blog way back in May. It was 95% written and just needed wrapping up and some photos. Then for whatever reason (partially being busy, partially just laziness/forgetfulness) the draft just sat there waiting for 4 months.

To be fair, we got pretty distracted by the beautiful Glacier National Park, where we were lucky enough to live and work all summer 😍 (plus some other unexpected things life threw at us).

Now that our time in Glacier is over, it's time to finally get some more blogs out in the world. This first part just covers our trip north and getting set up in St Mary, Montana – our home from mid-May until the end of August. In another post (or two), we'll share tons more photos and details of what we've been up to all summer. It's been an incredible adventure in a lot of different ways.

But first – after we left Moab, Utah at the end of April, we started driving north, making our way to Glacier. Here's where we stopped along the way.

Antelope Island State Park, Utah

We drove a few hours north after leaving Moab, watching the landscape change from dry, red, rocky desert to huge, snowy mountains. As we got closer to Provo and Salt Lake City, the highway wound through mountains that were super green and lush toward the bottom, and rocky and snowy up top. It looked almost like how I imagine Switzerland; it was beautiful.

The Wasatch mountains stayed on our right as we drove further north and passed the Salt Lake City skyline. It was like a different world up here compared to southern Utah. We were back in the city, passing huge suburban neighborhoods and every kind of chain store, everything very flat except for the mountains looming in the background.

We were on our way to a campground at Antelope Island State Park: an island on the Great Salt Lake, about an hour northwest of Salt Lake City. Entering the park from the town of Syracuse, you drive on a thin strip of land right over the lake for several miles before reaching the island.

Antelope Island is wide open, with green, rolling hills and rocky beaches. It's windy, and the salty lake makes it smell like you're at the ocean. It kind of reminded me of a Scottish or Irish coastline. It's beautiful. Oh, and it's home to a herd of buffalo, which we saw wandering near the campground sometimes.

We honestly didn't do much here this week, after our jam-packed past month in the national parks – we didn't even really explore the island besides driving around a little. But our site had a beautiful view of the lake and surrounding hills, and we had amazing sunsets every night. It was a bit chilly and windy all week, and VERY buggy with tiny flies/gnats everywhere. The campground was nice and very quiet though. Each site had a good amount of space, water and electric hookups, and there weren't too many people camping there.

We didn't end up going into Salt Lake City (although it's on my list – it was just more driving we didn't want to do that week lol). But we did go to REI to look at backpacking gear! They have an annual members' sale at the end of May that we wanted to take advantage of, since we planned on going on at least a couple backpacking trips in Glacier this summer and needed some gear. So we tried on packs there (the workers are super helpful) and started planning what we wanted to get.

Grand Teton

That weekend, we made a short detour up to Grand Teton National Park!

Grand Teton was one of our favorite spots from last year's trip, and since we were relatively close by, we wanted to swing through for a couple nights to see what the park was like early in the season.

What it was like: colder, snowier, and much calmer! Last year we visited Grand Teton in July/August during peak season, when the town of Jackson was absolutely insane and the trails were super busy. But this time, it was much easier to get around Jackson and the park. There were still people visiting, and it was starting to open up more for the season, but a lot of roads and places were still closed.

We camped at Gros Ventre again, and although there were a decent amount of people camping, the place is huge so everyone was pretty spread out. We basically had an entire side of our loop to ourselves, which was nice. The Tetons were much snowier than the last time we saw them – they looked beautiful.

We got there on Friday evening. The next day, we got up at the crack of dawn (4am) to go watch the sunrise at Schwabacher's Landing. This is a short trail that has the most iconic sunrise spot in Grand Teton; we got a great picture there last year (see below) and wanted to recreate it with the snowy mountains.

We successfully got up that early, bundled up (it was 20 degrees out), made coffee, packed the camera stuff, and drove over – but the road down to Schwabacher's was closed, blocked by a gate! We didn't expect that and debated going somewhere else, but in the end decided to park the truck off to the side and walk the mile down to the trail, hoping that it wouldn't be a problem.

It was still dark out, so we took flashlights from the truck and made our way down the road. We soon saw why the road was closed – part of it was still covered with a good amount of snow and ice. But overall, it was fine and easy to walk down, although a bit creepy in the dark.

When we made it to the end of the trail, we had the place to ourselves (in contrast to last year, when there were about 20 other people watching the sunrise too). It was starting to get light out and Joey set up the camera, waiting for the moment when the sun would hit the top of the mountains and light up the rocks bright pink-orange. We sat on a log bench, huddling together and drinking coffee. It felt like it was getting colder and colder the longer we stayed.

But it was totally worth it – the sunrise was beautiful, and it was so nice watching it by ourselves next to the quiet, peaceful pond in the woods.

On our way back up to the truck, we ran into another couple on the trail. As we were taking their picture, I asked where they were from and they said Raleigh! Small world.

Thankfully, Tex was still parked at the top by the gate when we got back. We blasted the heat and drove into Jackson to reward ourselves for getting up early by getting breakfast at The Bunnery Bakery & Restaurant – we got coffee, quiche, and an omelet, which were all delicious, and bought a couple pastries to take back for the next morning.

After that, we went back to the campground to hang out with Hollie for a few hours – we took her for a walk and just relaxed for a while. It got warmer as the day went on, getting up to the 50s and sunny. Mid-afternoon, we left again to drive into the park by the Jenny Lake area and go for a short hike.

Most of the hikes that go up into the Tetons were closed (or if they were technically open, they were very snowy and "hike at your own risk"). So we drove to the Leigh Lake Trailhead, thinking that a low-elevation hike around a lake would be a better option.

But turns out, even that trail was still completely snow-covered! But we could see a bunch of people's footprints and some signs marking the path along the way, so we were able to (at least mostly) follow it anyway. Every few steps, our feet would punch through the deep snow – which was startling and funny every time it happened.

The trail follows String Lake, a smaller lake right next to the popular Jenny Lake. You're mostly in the woods, but at one point we came out onto the snowy shore next to the lake and followed it for a while. Then we took a short detour to the edge of Leigh Lake – which ended up being completely frozen! It was beautiful and strange, seeing everything look so cold and wintery while being pretty warm outside.

After getting to Leigh Lake, we turned around and went back. The walk was only a couple miles total, but with all the punching through the snow it was kind of a slog toward the end. We ran into a few groups of people along the way, including some on cross-country skis and one couple who said they saw bear tracks. We kept an eye out but didn't see any wildlife.

We were glad that Dornan's Pizza just inside the park entrance was open for the season – we grabbed a pizza on our way back and ate it at the campground.

That evening, we noticed a bunch of people starting to gather near our site. Soon we figured out why – there was a moose! She (or he – they shed their antlers for the winter and regrow them over the summer) was just visible at the top of the hill right behind our campsite. A few people had climbed up and were standing WAY too close, maybe 10 feet away or so. The moose didn't like that and bluff-charged them, chasing them away. A ranger came by and kindly lectured the people who were standing too close. People definitely underestimate moose – they can be mean and dangerous. It was cool seeing it so close, though.

That's about it for our short weekend in Grand Teton. It was really nice being back in the park and seeing it in the snow!

Dillon, Montana

After leaving Gros Ventre on Sunday morning, we drove a few more hours northwest to Dillon, Montana, camping at Southside RV Park. I don't have much to say about our week here lol – we didn't really do anything. Dillon is a small-ish town with a college, and it has a couple cool-looking restaurants, but it doesn't seem like a whole lot is going on there. To be fair, we didn't really explore.

The RV park was nice enough; we had a decent site on a creek with hookups, and they had a good laundry room and showers. We saw lots of ducks and some rabbits hanging out by the creek (we even saw this big white rabbit almost every day – not sure if it was someone's pet?) But it was very cold, gray, windy, and rainy all week long. I think we ventured outside only a few times – otherwise just hunkered down inside, worked, and hung out.

Missoula, Montana

The next weekend, we headed up to Missoula, Montana – another repeat destination from last year. The whole area around Missoula is beautiful (green mountains, pine trees, rivers) and the college town is lively, quirky and fun.

We stayed at Beavertail Hill State Park, where we had camped for one night last year. It was first-come, first-served, and the campground isn't huge, but we found a nice spot in the woods. We had a semi-private picnic table area behind the RV next to the trees, and there was a walking trail along the river nearby.

That weekend was gorgeous – 70s and sunny – and the campground got pretty busy. It felt so good to be warm again. We relaxed in the sun, made some good food, and just enjoyed the outdoors.

One evening, we went out in Missoula. I got a haircut (desperately needed) and after that we went to the REI in town to try on more backpacks and look at gear again. Then we went out to eat at Iron Horse Bar & Grill, sitting on their outdoor patio – they had really good food.

But the best thing about that weekend in Missoula was seeing the northern lights! We were there over the weekend of the historic geomagnetic storm, which we suddenly started seeing a lot of people talking about online throughout the day on Friday. Conditions were going to be good for seeing northern lights almost anywhere in the country, which is super rare. And since we were so far north, they ended up being INCREDIBLE.

At first after it got dark, nothing was happening. We thought they might not be so good after all. But close to midnight, Joey thought he saw some faint color in the sky and took a picture with his phone, which showed the northern lights more than our eyes could see at the time.

But soon we didn't need our phones at all – we walked over to a more open area out of the trees, and the sky was totally lighting up with greens and reds and pinks. The intensity ebbed and flowed – sometimes they would be soft, not moving a lot, but then sometimes they'd glow brighter, moving in flashes up the sky, shifting to create shapes, looking almost like colorful clouds. At one point, the northern lights formed the shape of a giant eagle directly above us – like it was a spirit watching over everyone. It was a trippy, surreal, amazing experience.

Flathead Lake

The final destination on our push north was West Shore Campground on Flathead Lake, which is just south of Kalispell, the biggest town on the west side of Glacier National Park.

Flathead Lake is huge and beautiful – it's the largest natural freshwater lake west of the Mississippi. When it's sunny, the water is bright blue. And like pretty much all Montana mountain water, it's crystal clear and cold.

We initially were going to drive along the west side of the lake on the way to our campground. But when we got to Polson, a town at the south end, we were stopped in traffic on a bridge over the lake. Several cop cars and ambulances zoomed past and we could see there was an accident ahead, at the other side of the bridge. Soon, we started to see smoke – and then the smoke got thicker and darker. The cars in the accident were on fire! The flames got huge – everyone was getting out of their cars to look.

We figured we'd be there a while, and we couldn't turn our RV around on the bridge, so we turned off the truck and hung out, watching the flames and smoke until eventually the fire department put it out. After a while, a cop car drove by and started turning everyone around – sadly, there had been a death at the accident, and it was going to take at least a couple hours to investigate and clean everything up. Since we were too big to turn around, they let us wait for everyone else to leave and then we backed up all the way off the bridge until we could turn around.

So we had to go all the way around the other side of the lake, but that was fine – it was a gorgeous drive. There were some cute cabins and cool houses along the lake, but also a lot of open land and forest, and surprisingly to us, a bunch of cherry tree orchards!

We got to the campground, which was still first-come, first-served until that weekend when the season officially opened. We ended up getting a great spot – super spacious with electric hookups, in the woods with a lake view through the trees. There was no one directly next to us, so Hollie got to be tied up on her long leash, which she loved. And we had good internet for working.

I loved this whole area – I could see living here. The lake was gorgeous, with its clear blue water and shores covered in smooth colorful rocks, surrounded by pine forests and rocky hills. There were a handful of trails around the campground that meandered along the lakeshore and through the woods. All week, we worked, walked the trails, had a morning campfire one day, and enjoyed the mostly mild weather.

We drove up to Kalispell one afternoon for our last "big" shopping trip before heading over to our seasonal campground on the east side of Glacier, where it's much more remote. We hit up REI again, then Target, then Walmart for groceries and random things we needed. Then we watched the Hurricanes playoff hockey game at a local sports bar called Fatt Boys. The food and drinks were good and we had fun hanging out, but the game ended sadly. Maybe one day we'll make it back to the Stanley Cup...

Our last morning at Flathead Lake, I went back to Kalispell to get something else we hadn't had for a long time: Chick-fil-A breakfast. Then it was time to make our final drive with the RV for a few months!

Our home for the summer: St Mary, Montana

Our first time in Glacier was in late September of last year, when we stayed for a couple weeks at the end of the season (here's our blog about it). We totally fell in love – especially with the remote, wild east side – and knew we wanted to come back and spend more time in this stunning place.

Meanwhile, Joey's been getting burned out from working in insurance the past several years, and since his current company was about to be sold anyway, he decided to make a change and get a seasonal job for the summer. We'd be able to stay in one place for a few months (saving money on gas and camping fees), more easily meet new people, and have time to deeply explore one area.

Long story short – Joey got a job as a Boat Captain for the Glacier Park Boat Company!

The boat company has been around since 1938, giving scenic tours in four different areas of Glacier on their historic wooden boats. Joey was placed with the St Mary Lake crew (Rising Sun boat dock). This lake is on the east end of Going-to-the-Sun Road, with the tiny town of St Mary right outside the park entrance: our home for the next few months.

Normally, all the boat company workers live in shared housing together. But since me and Hollie would be there too (and we had the RV) we had to find our own place to stay. Luckily, after calling around earlier that year, we found a good option pretty easily – Heart of Glacier RV Park & Cabins in St Mary. The owner gave us a spot for the season with full hookups for $35/night. (Which was really good, especially for Glacier – the tourist rates there were between $60-75, and some RV parks in the area are even more).

We stayed in St Mary when we first visited Glacier last year (at Johnson's Campground right across the street) and loved it, so we were super excited to be back there. It's a great location – on the quieter side of the park, close to most of the best hikes, and with a handful of restaurants and stores to visit. St Mary is on the Blackfeet Reservation, which borders the entire east side of Glacier.

On Saturday, May 18, we packed up and made the ~3-hour drive from Flathead Lake to St Mary. If you can't travel on Going-to-the-Sun Road through the park (either because it's closed or becuase of the vehicle size restrictions), you have to take Highway 2 around the park to the south. It's a beautiful drive following train tracks and the Flathead River, surrounded by dense woods and huge snowy mountains.

We arrived at Heart of Glacier in the afternoon on a chilly, cloudy day, to find most of the campground still empty with only a few RVs there. But there was a pickup truck and a few people walking around the grounds, cleaning up and doing maintenance to get the campground ready for the season. We met the owners, plus their adult son and his dog Blue, who was running around –  she was a friendly dog who looked like a German Shepherd mix. They showed us to our spot so we could get set up.

We pulled into Site 14, a 30amp spot on the end of a row of 3 RV sites that were packed pretty closely together. People's campers would eventually be just outside our left windows once it got busier. But since we were on the end, our door on the right side opened up to a bigger grassy area and some trees, so it was a nice, slightly more private place to spread out a bit. We had a picnic table and put our bikes, lawn chairs, and Starlink out.

The owner's son had a fifth-wheel parked kind of behind our spot to the right, outside our door– he'd be living there when he started working in the park in June. And there was a mobile home near his RV, where several different campground workers would live as they came and went during the season (they called it the dorm). In between the RV and the dorm was empty when we arrived, but later in June two more trailers would arrive – a couple of astronomer park rangers who worked at the observatory at the St Mary Visitor Center.

Besides that, there were a few other seasonal workers spread throughout Heart of Glacier, but otherwise it would mostly be tourists staying for a few days or so at a time. There were around 40 total RV sites, several grassy tent spots, three small cabins you could rent, and one bigger rental house attached to the campground office.

I still had my full-time remote marketing job, so I'd just be working from the Airstream most of the time – luckily, Starlink worked well there, because our other internet wasn't great. But I also planned to work part-time at the campground, mostly some evenings after work, to help offset our camping costs a bit more.

It was still early in the season for Glacier, and it felt more like winter than late May. Summer is short way up there. The day after we arrived, it snowed hard for a few hours, covering the ground with a light dusting before melting again. The mountaintops were snowier and often shrouded with low, gray clouds. It was cold, wet, gray, and windy more days than not our first couple weeks there. Going-to-the-Sun Road would be closed at the higher elevations (from Jackson Glacier Overlook on the east side to the Avalanche Lake trailhead on the west side) until late June. Lower-elevation hikes were our focus for the first month, while the snow and ice melted.

But we were so stoked to be back in Glacier and ready to explore all summer. It's truly the most stunning place and a total hiking paradise. There's nowhere else like it (that we've seen, anyway).

We originally planned to be there until things started closing down again in late September. As you'll see in a later blog, we ended up having to leave a bit early – but we still had more than 3 months of incredible Glacier adventures, with some unexpected surprises along the way. We miss it already, but it's definitely not a forever goodbye. WE'LL BE BACK.

That's all for now – in the next part, we'll share about work and life in Glacier, some of our favorite places, and the unique quirks of living in the St Mary area. Then we'll have a separate post dedicated to all the hikes we did over the summer (plus a ton of awesome photos courtesy of Joey).

Thanks as always for following along if you read this far. Stay tuned for more soon!