After the typical GRR to ORD hopper it takes to get anywhere, I met up with a handful of friends in a great little mountain town in Montana. A few of them were part of The Gang Goes To Europe.
The early crew hiked around a nearby trail, but we didn’t want to push it too hard – since the group would be doubling for a long weekend of hiking in the northern Rockies.
Whitefish, MT
The main point of being in Whitefish is, obviously, Glacier National Park. The huge, snow capped mountains were amazing. The forests, unfortunately, were still in the process of growing back from the Sprague Fire earlier that year. But that didn’t stop us from biking [6 miles of, and definitely not because of me] the Going To The Sun Trail. The Park also has kayaking, horseback riding, and miscellaneous outdoor activities to explore the area, but I’d really recommend biking it if you can. Heads up on the way down, though, since we almost t-boned a very large black bear on the ride back down the mountain.
We stayed only a few miles outside Glacier National Park, in an Airbnb that fit 16 – which we maxed out. The house was also pretty close to downtown, so a few of us were able to explore their craft scene, and of course, a distillery or two. We also found the currently leader of Best Burrito I’ve Had, from a food truck parked by the whitewater rafting drop off…which we also partook in.
Add the scenic hikes and scenic bars together, I think we averaged 2-2 per day. So I would say I found Kalispell, and Glacier, very entertaining, and highly recommend going with an insanely large group of friends.
