Dropping Cas off in the morning was hard. Being with her for 3 solid weeks was amazing, and then having to let her go home was definitely not my favorite. But she has a real job, and kitties to snuggle, so I suppose that’s reason enough. We say our goodbyes, and I head back to the hotel room to plan some more trip routes for when FiFi gets here.
When FiFi lands, we’re instantly off to the races. If you don’t remember who Felicia aka FiFi is, see back to when I was in Austin, TX around mid-March. I want to take her to see some of the best hikes Cas and I did while at Banff, plus I already have a sweet campsite figured out. So, we take the next 3 hours to drive north to Parker Ridge and hike up to get a glimpse of the glacier hiding on its eastern side.
After a quick and surprisingly empty hike (I’m not complaining), we headed out of Banff’s boundary to the campsite on the river. When pulling off the main road to start on the dirt path, we spot a large black bear. Fifi whispers “pull over pull over!!” I whisper back “why are we whispering??” This is our turn anyway, so I’m obviously pulling over… Regardless, the bear allows FiFi to get some amazing close up shots before heading for the road. Oh no, a truck is coming! FiFi starts calling the bear over towards her, “here bear! Come this way!” We don’t want it to get hit by the truck but fuck don’t call it towards us!! The oncoming truck sees the bear as it starts its lazy crossing of the highway. All is good. We continue on to our site.
We pull up to the exact same spot Cas and I had a week ago, start a fire, and open a bottle of wine. We were alone, but as the night wore on a 90’s gold blazer pulls up. Shit, this is probably some creepy dude… What pops out is a small blonde chick. Lindsay was visiting her grandma 14 hrs away and wanted to break up the trip. We chat for a bit, then head our separate ways to bed.
In the morning we have coffee with Lindsay, then head south to hit Peyto Lake. This is pretty much the exact same route Cas and I took, except FiFi and I decided not to hike down to the water. We snag a few pics, hike down a tiny bit to get some different vantage points, then head on our way.
The next stop was Lake Louise, but if you remember from my previous post, the traffic and parking is a bitch. Cas and I got lucky when we tried to park at the lake, so I try this technique again. But, I did not get lucky. We did find a picnic area to park at, but this will add 2 miles to our hike for the day. No matter, FiFi is a damn marathon runner and I could use some extra steps. We pack up, and start our walk to the lake. It’s raining at this point and we’re hiking on a damn road, but we don’t care. Just excited to be up and moving and heading to cool shit.
We get to the Lake and take our obligatory photos, but quickly move on to get out of the crowds. We’re going to follow the exact same route Cas and I did, hiking around the lake, up the Plains of 6 Glaciers to the tea house. There are less people up on the trails today, probably due to the rain. This makes me very happy. FiFi and I quickly hike the 5 miles up to the tea house and sit down for a cup of, well, tea. We sit and drink while hoping the glacier falls. Which it does. It’s thunderous aftershock flips heads around from every inch of the tea house. Fifi inquires about working there next summer, and the waitress takes her very serious, offering to give her an email to contact her. FiFi isn’t serious… well, is she? Who knows. And who cares at this point. We’re just two friends drinking hot tea on a damn mountain watching glaciers fall. Life doesn’t get much better!
After my oolong, we set off to visit the other tea house then head down the mountain. The section of trail between the 2 houses is my favorite, so I’m excited to see it again. It’s not as exciting as when Cas and I were there, as the weather has begun to deteriorate. The sky is now a slate grey, and the wind has picked up. We get to the second tea house right before a storm sets in, but there’s a nervous energy here. A helicopter hovers at eye level, dropping a basket to someone below. A rescue of some sort. The basket come up with a person in it, and the helicopter ascends straight up out of the tree line, then shoots off towards the park’s headquarters. A few moments later, the helicopter is back, picking up an employee (paramedic maybe?) and shoots off again. We decide to leave the tea house as the storm must have just skirted us.
Once back at the car, we talk about where to go next. The weather is shit, and we don’t feel like fighting for parking. We were originally supposed to stay in the overflow parking area for the night. Aka pay $10 to park in a shit gravel lot with hundreds of other people sharing a single bathroom. But this does not sound appealing to FiFi. We look up a camp spot towards the US border and head south. We can be close to Montana and cross the next morning, giving us more time in the American parks. Once in the car, we start listening to a podcast about toads. I’m totally sucked in.
The drive was short and full of scenic views. We drive about 10 miles on crappy gravel road to reach a mostly secluded site right along a fast moving river. FiFi attempts to climb down a steep bank to retrieve water and almost dies. We then immediately find a safer route 20 feet away. Typical. That night, I learned the game of Farkel, and immediately kicked FiFi’s ass in the game. Beginner’s luck. I should note that there appears to be an extended family living out of a trailer a couple hundred yards away from us. An entire camp with grill, outdoor patio furniture, UTVs, trucks, camper, you name it. They drive by to make sure we aren’t axe murderers. Nope, just two chicks playing dice, nothing to see here…
The next morning we head to Montana. Customs was slow due to only one line being open. The officer there didn’t give a shit about us, and didn’t search us. Which is good because I wouldn’t want to have to reorganize all the crap in here. We have to drive a ways to get to Glacier, and set our sights on getting poutine for FiFi. I mentioned to her about how amazing poutine was, and how Canadian of a thing this dish was and now she wants a taste. Maybe this brewery will have it? It’s a spot called Backslope Brewery and it’s just outside of Glacier NP. The name of the restaurant came up when FiFi searched ‘poutine near me’ so we’re going.
Of course they didn’t have poutine, but they had some of the best burgers and fries I’ve ever had. Seriously. It was amazing. We sat at the bar and were able to watch the food coming out of the kitchen and everything looked so good we couldn’t decide what to order. Of course we figured it out eventually, but it was tough.
Leaving our new favorite restaurant, we decided to get some groceries and head back into the woods. Glacier NP was calling so of course we answered. We started at the SW section visitor center named Apgar, and then hit Lake McDonald. FiFi went for a swim, but it was too damn cold. I took the photos. After our lake trip, we decided to hike Avalanche trail which leads you up to an alpine lake. We found some sweet Buffleheads here, and talked to some other birders about finding 3-toed woodpeckers. Ohhhh that would be a treat to find! After a few pics at the lake we turn around and head back to the trail head. Once to the car, we decide to drive the Road to the Sun and camp on the east side of the park. This road was terrifying and amazing. I was super thankful to do it at a non-busy time, as it was pretty much just a few cars limbering around cliff walls. Broken glass on the road was all that was left of people’s side mirrors. A few wrong moves, perhaps a sneeze, and you’re pretty well fucked! I drove, FiFi photographed. Along the way we saw a mountain goat and kid, as well as marmots and cool birds like the western tanager. PS I almost wrecked the truck I was so excited to spot this damn tanager. In my defense he was stunning…. We also stopped at Logan Pass, but the visitor center was closed for the day. Oh well. Onward to try and find camping!
Of course everything within the park was booked solid, so we opted for a private RV park. For $30 we got a spot and two showers. Not a bad deal! It would have been perfect if our camp site had any level ground within its boundaries… But it didn’t matter. We were just happy to have a place to sleep and a shower.
