Since we were unable to complete our attempt at crossing the park via the “Going-to-the-Sun Road” from the west, we were anxious to try it again from the east. Unfortunately the road was still closed while the park repaired it from a heavy and late snow season.

At the park information center, we stopped to learn about campground availability, boat tours and status on the road opening. While there, we watched a bear safety video which was very informative and fascinated Asher who sat patiently through its 30-minute run time. We also stopped by St. Mary River Campground within the park to learn the process for obtaining a site – in case we wanted to extend our stay in Glacier a bit longer and do the dry camping thing again.

Flagmen, or women in this case, metered travel up the GttSR, which made our drive in longer. The first flag woman we encountered, “Kristie” or “Kristin” according to the hastily-written-in-Sharpie name on her orange vest, stopped by our truck to let us know what was going on and apologize for the delay. She was bubbly and cheerful, we assumed from getting to spend the day outside in Glacier. And she stuck around with us for a while to share a debate she was having with a friend about whether Spitz or David (which she kept calling Davis) brand sunflower seeds were better tasting. And which flavor – her favorite was dill pickle – was the best. I told her I like David Original best so she reached into her pocket and scooped out a handful of her Spitz Pickle flavored seeds to share. It’s hard to refuse generosity so freely given.

We got to just past the trailhead for St. Mary Falls before being turned back, so the most beautiful part of the GttSR remained elusive. Since we couldn’t find parking at the trailhead, we headed south to visit Two Medicine Lake for lunch and hiking there. Along the way we found time to pullout and search for mountain goats, bighorn sheep and bears.

First was lunch at a picnic spot just south of the lake where we enjoyed our usual PB&Js, fruit and chips to fuel up for the hike. Next, near the Two Medicine camp store, we sprayed ourselves with bug repellent, lathered on the sunscreen and grabbed the bear spray canister. Out on the trail, only about a half mile in, we met three hikers who said there was a black bear up ahead. We were interested in seeing bears, yes. It had been discussed among us for the past few days, yes. But meeting one along a trail or in the woods was not part of the envisioned photo op, so we turned tail and found a trailhead to Paradise Point instead. The diversity of trees within Glacier NP, and Montana for that matter, are beautiful and drew our attention throughout the hike. Oh, and the view from Paradise Point was incredible.

If you have the space when RVing and you have a power source, take a Crock Pot. That night we enjoyed pot roast back at camp. It was a great way to close out a long day.