Day 13

We woke up early, stopped for a quick breakfast then headed to Glacier.  We brought our passports along and Michael intended to drive the entire Road to the Sun then head up to Canada and see the Canadian side of the park.  We drove in and stopped to take a few pictures here and there.  As we approached Avalanche Lake we noticed a sign in the road and everyone turning.  At first we followed the other vehicles but when it was clear no one knew where they were going, Michael got out and asked the construction worker standing by the truck that was also blocking the way what exactly was going on.

There is still today between 40 to 60 feet of snow in the pass and they were unable to allow private vehicles up the road.  Instead, you could either hike around the lake or take the free shuttle up 8 miles then hike up there.  We opted for the shuttle (the shuttles run on propane by the way).  We waited in the line for about 20 minutes to take the shuttle then 15 minutes on the shuttle stuck in traffic.  When we arrived at the drop area I was beginning to worry if it would be worth it.  The guide told us we had 3 options.  We could take pictures and take the next shuttle down, hike a 4 mile hike up to the chalet and 4 miles back (the last shuttle left at 5 and it was almost 1), or hike 2.5 miles up the Road to the Sun as far as people were allowed at this point.  We decided on the last one and set off.

The road was uphill for the entire 2.5 miles which made it seem longer than it was.  We stopped and took lots of pictures and met some people on the way.  The views were breath taking and we both commented on how lucky we really were because usually you would drive this and with no room to pull off, miss half of what we were seeing.  When we finally reached the top the ranger there (who was originally from Long Island) told us that this is the latest the road has ever stayed closed.  It is usually open by the last week in June.  The only other time it stayed closed in July was until the first week in July and that was during WWII because they didn’t have enough people to help clear the road. 

The trip down was easier but it was hot.  When we got to the area to wait for the shuttle I got nervous because each shuttle holds 12 people and there were at least 24 in front of us.  After about 15 minutes 5 shuttles came up the hill.  We were able to get on the third and had a nice conversation with a retired couple for Oregon on the way down.  As we reached the bottom we heard someone say over the radio system that there were 80 people at the top waiting to come down.  We apparently have very good timing. 

By then it was 4pm and we hadn’t had lunch yet.  We drove back down the road to the lake, hoping it would be cooler, and had our lunch.  On the way back into town we stopped at a grocery store.  We got back to the campsite just in time.  Michael was able to jump in the creek for about 15 minutes before the storm rolled in.  It rained and thundered for about 2 hours.  We watched DVD’s in the camper.  It was a long day but well worth it.  Tomorrow Vantage, Washington to camp with my cousin Ryan and his wife Molly!