Glacier Tease

The reason we chose this specific truck stop was because according to the North American Truck Stop Network, it was the only truck stop in Montana with a shower, a fact that Katie was excited about to say the least. In the morning, we headed in from the van to the truck stop to find out where the showers were. Once we located them and inquired about keys, the attendants informed us that the showers were exclusively for commercial trucker use and that we were not allowed to use them. We were directed to try the stop across the highway which may let us use them. Dismayed but not daunted, we headed across the street to inquire about showers. Katie went in first to ask while I filled up the van with gas. After filling up, I pulled off to a parking spot and went in to see what was up with the showers. As I entered Katie was finishing up talking to the attendant who informed her that it would be $8 to shower. When she began to tell me the news, emotion took her and she began to cry, thinking it outrageous that a simple shower would cost $8. The attendant, upon witnessing her distress, called me over and said that he would give us a free shower as long as I left some sort of deposit for the key. Who says crying about things doesn't get you your way! From then on out, it has been a big joke between Katie and I about crying over something to get her way. After her shower, we took the road north toward Glacier. We took the road less traveled, as advised by the mechanic who changed our oil the previous day, and headed east along Flathead Lake into cherry country. Bombarded

by roadside signs, we eventually gave into stopping at one of the many cherry stands along the route. We enjoyed a pound of Rainier Cherries for $3.00 and continued on our way. When we finally made it into Glacier, there was a problem... no vacancy :( Our original plan was to get a campsite and make it our home for 2 maybe 3 nights and then head on north. However, since we arrived so late on a Saturday, there were no spots open in the entire park to camp. After talking with a ranger, we found out that there was overflow campsites available after 5p.m. It being 2p.m. at the time we arrived, this information didn't help us out too much. We were advised by the ranger to do the Avalanche Lake Trail hike, a 4 mile round trip hike and then come back to inquire about overflow. Overflow, keep in mind, meant that we would be sharing a campsite with 3 to 4 other people, no guarantee on a fire pit, aka dinner, and also would be far from any facilities. Basically, we wanted to be the first to check in at this site, both to ensure us a spot, but also to ensure something decent for the night. Originally, we planned on doing half

the hike then turning around, but once we made it half way, there was no way I wasn't going to see the end, even if it meant running back to the car to get our spot. Eventually we made it there and we were both stricken in awe by the beauty of the lake. 3 waterfalls cascading down at least 1000 ft into a crystal clear lake, a sight that can only be comprehended in real life, which no picture can do justice to... Unfortunately, we were strapped for

time, so we could not fully enjoy what Katie would later call the most beautiful place she had ever seen. On our way back we realized that camping in overflow for the night was a waste of money since we would have to pack up our campsite anyway and find a new home for the next 2 days anyway. We decided the van would again be our home once more, and headed back to Kalispell MT for the night, after I took my own version of a shower by bathing in Lake McDonald. We ended up

having some amazing, albeit expensive, Thai food for dinner in the heart of downtown, then headed over to a coffee shop to pass some time. Once it was fully dark and we were sufficiently tired, we headed to some hotel parking lot and slept the night in the van once more.