10 and 2: The “Crown of the Continent”

Although we wanted to spend more time in Seattle, we had to make a quick haul east to Montana for a project that my production company was shooting outside of Glacier National Park. We loved Seattle — everyone was incredibly nice, the food and drink was excellent, and the city was beautiful. But, the mountains and Glacier National Park were calling our names, and we officially parted ways with the West Coast and began our journey east with the goal of arriving a few days before the scheduled shoot to explore the park.

Driving through Washington was gorgeous and more impressive than we anticipated, particularly Eastern Washington. The North Cascades are remote and they beckon for extended adventures, but we had to pass between the mountains and continue east. Crossing the panhandle of Idaho didn’t leave much time to appreciate all that Idaho has to offer, but we stopped for the night in Sandpoint, a small town at the foot of the Schweitzer Mountain Resort with tourist destination aspirations. After a quick trip up the mountain to check out the views, we continued on our way.

Although I’ve traveled to Montana several times to fly fish, I’ve never managed to make my way to Glacier National Park. As it’s dubbed the “crown of the continent,” expectations were high.  We arrived there late in the afternoon when most of the tourists were leaving for the day.  The dinner bell and late evening sunlight (it doesn’t start to get dark until 10pm or later here) worked to our advantage, as there was plenty of parking for our oversized van and plenty of time for us to prepare for the quick hike to Avalanche Lake. This is one of the most popular hikes in the park for several reasons: it’s close to the main entrance, it’s short and without too much elevation gain, and it ends at a gin-clear mountain lake nestled in the valley of towering mountains. I took the opportunity to make a few casts for the trout that live in the lake, but was more occupied with my camera as I attempted to do justice to the lake’s beauty.

After returning from the hike, we decided to take our van up Going to the Sun Road – against the advice of the park rangers. Apparently, they don’t suggest that vehicles over 10’ make the trip to the top of Logan Pass, due to rock ledges that encroach on the road. We decided that the risk would be worth the reward, and we were absolutely right.  If you ever find yourself in GNP, do yourself a favor: plan an early or late dinner and spend the normal dinner hour driving up to the Visitor Center at Logan Pass. We drove up the road at our leisure and passed only a handful of cars descending the narrow, winding road. We were the only vehicle in the pullouts at all of the viewpoints, and we had the observation deck just below the pass to ourselves. The soft golden light of the evening that fades to the color of rosé as the sun sets makes the park more beautiful than before.

I’ve been fortunate to travel to many national parks across the Western U.S., and I can say that nothing I’ve seen surpasses the grandeur and scale of GNP.  Everything here is huge.  The park offers nearly endless exploration, with nearly 800 miles of hiking and back-country trails and over 1 million acres of park territory. It’s a seemingly endless sea of mountains and glacier-carved valleys, and miles of rivers and lakes. The only thing that I have yet to see is a grizzly bear. Perhaps my next hike should include a steak necklace to complete my Glacier National Park adventure.

So what is 10 and 2? Ryan’s a man with a van, and we’re following along on his journey. Read his introduction here.