Got back last night from 8 days in Bigfork, Montana. Had a great time relaxing and seeing some of my old stomping grounds. For those that don't know, I was an intern and backcountry ranger at GNP for 4 summers, so it is a special place to me.

We were fortunate enough to stay in my uncle's vacation home.



The view from the house overlooking the Swan River Valley (at about 10pm sunset):



We did our first hike to Scenic Point which is in the Two Medicine area. It is a pretty moderate hike, ~7 miles roundtrip, but has fantastic views of the Blackfoot Reservations, Upper and Lower Two Med Lakes, and also many of the spectacular peaks in the area. The weather started off crappy but the end of the day turned out to be awesome.



(our destination)




(views from the actual point)





We also did the Hidden Lake hike. Very easy hike in the snow at Logan Pass and rather short, but the scenery is awesome.







Third hike was the Highline trail, total mileage varies, we did about 9-10 miles. Ended up hailing on us for an hour on the return trip, but well worth it.





Bad weather coming from west



Weather at Logan Pass




Last hike was to Apgar Mt. Lookout. Never done this one before and saw the views from the park's webcams, so we gave it a shot. Moderate hike with steep grades the whole route but well worth it.

Start off in a valley burned by the Robert fire in 2003.





Halfway up, view back towards West Glacier.



View from top





We saw turkeys and deer each night from the deck at the house. Pretty neat to eat dinner while they roam around the pastures.





I did manage a little fishing while there with no results.



Few tips:

-Go to Whitefish and take the Great Northern Brewing Company tour. It is awesome and owned by a Texan. Tour is free and a sample platter of all their beers is 10 dollars.



-When eating Mexican food, they charge you for chips and salsa. WTF?

-Go for the 4th of July and check out the parades. Lots of cool flyovers by old and new planes plus great way to spend a day.

-Buy your Tshirts/gifts in Apgar or West Glacier, they had the same as everyone else, but half the price.

More pics here:

http://texags.com/main/forum.reply.asp?topic_id=1443564&forum_id=34&page=last&opt=post

[This message has been edited by Vero143 (edited 7/11/2009 3:49p).]

[This message has been edited by Vero143 (edited 7/11/2009 7:04p).]

Sigh! Brings back very fond memories of our trip there in '06. Wish I was there right now! Thanks for sharing.

Thanks! Great pics! I would like to visit some day...perhaps, I can convince the Mrs. to go this fall...

Would you recommned this trip in late November? Trying to figure out a remote, romantic trip for our 10th wedding aniversary (one year late).

We were also bumfuzzeled by having to pay for chips and salsa!

I imagine it would be pretty cold, but still a nice trip. I dont think the majority of the snow has fallen by November, the locals told us early December. I would check out Whitefish, Bigfork and Columbia Falls and maybe call the hotels and get their opinions.

I don't think late Novmeber would be a very good time. The lodges shut down a little after labor day. The Going to the Sun Road is usually closed for the season by October 1. I believe the roads to Many Glacier and Two Medicine would probably be closed also. Most of the trails will be closed down or not passable unless you have the equipment and skills. Come up there this August and wear an Aggie cap and I'll make sure to say Howdy if we cross on the trails!

There is some good advice in the above post.That would be my recommendation as well. We went in mid-August and it was perfect weather and not too crowded.

[This message has been edited by LifeLongAg (edited 7/12/2009 2:58p).]

I still say you could have a nice getaway that time of year but like he said, the park would probably be closed. The GTSR is open partially that time of year up to the end of Lake McDonald, 11 milles from West Glacier if I remember right. Some of the St Mary side, maybe 3 miles is open too. You could probably have a good time just relaxing and visiting the towns in the Flathead Valley. My uncle does that with his wife at least 3 times a year from his house in Bigfork.

We are flying out to Glacier on August 3rd so really enjoyed this!!

Which airport is the best to fly into?? preferably continental...

You really only have one choice on airports unless you want to drive a little bit. We are flying into FCA (Glacier Airport) which is supposed to be only 30 minutes away.

Kalispell is the closest to the park. I've also flown into Great Falls which isn't all that bad if you're staying on the East side of the park. We always combine our trip to Glacier with a trip to the Canadian Rockies so we take a non-stop Continental from Houston to Calgary but thats a fairly long (but easy) drive to the park.