Glacier National Park

On August 14, I started by motorscooter adventure to Glacier National Park.I left Cheney, Washington at 8:00am(PST) and road I-90 into Spokane taking the Argonne exit north to Trent Ave (SR290). Upon entering Idaho it turns into State Route 53 and in Rathdrum, Id it turns in State Route 41.Just before Spirit Lake, I turned right onto State Route 54 to Athol, Idaho. After s short break in Athol, I head north on Highway 95. In Sandpoint, Highway 95 and Highway 2 merge as I ride into Bonners Ferry. At the local Safeway, I buy lunch and a snack to go. I also make my first fuel stop. A few miles north of Bonners Ferry I turn right to stay on Highway 2 as Highway 95 continues north to Canada. While looking over the Moyie River, I have a snack. A couldn't find a good place for lunch, so I stopped a trash receptacle station in the Kootenia National Forest to eat my sandwich. At about 3pm (MST), I arrive in Kalispell, MT where I had reservations at the Kalispell Hill Top Inn. It was a nice clean place with wifi, and a great value. The weather was sunny and very hot, but there was rain in the forecast for tomorrow. I woke up at 2:30 in the morning and looked out my window to see it raining. I was just hoping the forecast was right in predicting that tomorrow afternoon would be sunny. When I woke up the next morning the rain was gone and there was some blue sky, but not much. I packed up and headed for the Park.

While riding along Lake McDonald, it looked like it was going to be great day for a motorcycle ride; cool and party cloudy. After I passed The Loop, I stopped to take a picture of Heavens Peak and the McDonald River valley. It was at this point, the weather started to change; cloudy, cold, and rain. There was road construction in the Park and I sat in the drizzle for 20 minutes waiting our turn to continue up the road.

I took the opportunity, to connect my heated gloves and vest. When the pilot car arrived, I continued up the road. On the way up, the rain stopped but the cold and clouds did not. The views were amazing as I made my way to the Logans Pass Vistors Center. I see beautiful plants around the vistors center but clouds were in the way of seeing any mountains. I started my way down the other side of the Continental Divide. I stopped to see Jackson Glacier but the cloud cover made it difficult to see. It was a nice ride out to St. Mary at the eastern entrance to the park. I ride down to East Glacier where I got fuel and followed Highway 2 back to the west entrance to the Park.

At this point, I look up and noticed the clouds have lifted and it was a nice day. I really wanted a picture of Jackson Glacier, so I went back into the Park. I took a few more pictures on my second trip up the road.

I road passed the summit and straight to Jackson Glacier. I was glad to be on a motorscooter, because by the afternoon, the Park was crowded. There was no room for a car at the glacier, but I made room on by bike and got my picture. It was a great day. The next day, I left Kalispell and 6:30am(MST) for my trip back to Cheney. I took Highway 93 south and watched the sunrise over Flathead Lake. Turning left onto State Routes 28, 200, and 135 I made my way into St. Regis.

I had breakfast at Jaspers. I stopped at the Old Mission on my way through northern Idaho. A great rest stop and very interesting. I arrived at home on August 16, at noon(pst). I drive a total of 823 miles, used 15.16 gallons of gas, and averaged 54.3 mpg.