For the next 3 nights we were booked into Fish Creek Campground on the west side of the park. We had popped into the campground the day we drove the Going-To-The-Sun road to see if they had any sites available that would keep us in one site for our entire time there. Well, luck was on our side as we were able to obtain a better site than we had originally booked and for all 3 nights.
We camped in Loop C which we would highly recommend if you camp here. There are no hookups and generators are not permitted in this loop. The reason we like this loop is that the sites are quite large and some of them even back onto Lake McDonald. Our Site was one of those sites that backed onto the lake. While the site doesn’t open up right onto the lake, there is no one behind you and it is a very short walk down through the trees to be on the beach. This is especially nice when your children decide to wake up early in the morning since you can take them down there for a nice walk or to throw rocks.
Or even an early dip! We did go for a nice swim later in the afternoon as well when the air had warmed up considerably more.
We decided today would be a good day to take it easy so we didn’t overdo the hiking with the kids. We spent some time playing board games and walking around the campground in the morning.
When the kids started to get a bit antsy we headed over to the visitor centre in West Glacier to see what they would recommend for hikes with the kids or anything we maybe weren’t aware of. We also used this time as a chance to go for a drive and get a better lay of the land and a sense of how long it would take to get to trail heads from the campground.
A fun stop is Apgar Village where there is a nature centre. This is a log home nestled in the trees, with interactive hands on exhibits about the park. This a great place to drop in on a warm day as it is located in the shade. It is a great place to learn about the park and the wildlife you may possibly encounter. The rangers here had a wealth of knowledge and information to share with us and we had a great time chatting with them about the changes they have seen over the years in the park. There are scheduled ranger led talks in front of this building throughout the summer.
After dinner was the perfect time to go and check out McDonald Lake Lodge. The kids thought it was a neat lodge with the log beams, and even more exciting was the fact that the Red Jammers are parked here at night. They also enjoyed checking out the gift shop and seeing if there were any items they wanted to use their spending money on.
We finished off the night with a special treat at Eddie’s Cafe in Apgar Village. You can sit out on the patio and enjoy watching the people go by while watching the lake. A slice of Huckleberry Peach Pie, an order of Huckleberry Cobbler and a slice of Chocolate Overload Torte were what were ordered. My husband and the kids had dessert and shared bites of each. The servings were quite large, and I was surprised the kids finished theres. My youngest said the Peach Huckleberry pie was the best and delicious.
When you travel with kids, do you build in a rest/quiet day? Do you plan out your trips in advance or just roll with it?
If you missed the previous posts about Glacier National Park, you can find them here:
Day 1 – Getting our Bearings in St Mary
Day 2 – Waterfalls & a Boat Ride
Day 3 – Driving The-Going-To-The-Sun Road
Day 4 – Hike to Iceberg Lake