Posts by lew88_88

  • June 29 - July 2 - Edmonton - Going to the sun road road-trip - 2 of 2

    July 1 - Canada Day


    Up early (6AM) and hung out at the tent till 8 AM for breakfast. Breakfast was included with our stay and was great! Talked to the owner of the place to find out what she suggested for a scenic drive for the day. She recommended a trip around Flathead lake. Headed out and first thing i notice is my engine light on. Not going to lie.....it was bitter sweet as you hear alot of people that have the engine light come on for various reasons, well in 20,000KM, mine had never been on and i was kind of wondering if it actually worked. After a little research on the forums we figure out that the code is the O2 sensor and assume that because of the slow speeds and stop and go from the Going to the Sun Road the day before that it did something and hoped it would go off after a few miles like other peoples had after slow drives like that. So we continued on to Kalispell and south on 93 knowing that we are going to stop at the "big casino" in Polson. Stopped at the casino and spent a few hours there and actually walked out a few bucks ahead. Went out to Kerr Dam, but the GF seen a sign about bears and would not go down to the dam. I suggested that she could sit in the SS and close the doors if a bear came and i would go down to the dam. She did not find it as funny as i did. So we both took a look from afar and continued on our days journey. Headed east out of Polson on highway 35. I found the east side of the lake to be more scenic and as it was more of a secondary highway, did not have so much traffic on it. Did not feel pressured to keep a decent speed. Was amazed at how many cherry orchards there were.


    Stopped at the Whistling Andy Distillery for a bathroom break and a beverage. Our first time in a distillery. Now, I don't know if it was because it was a distillery or if in Montana the spirits are usually mixed that strong but we both had a cocktail and there did not seem to be any mix. I chalked it up that they are trying to highlight the taste of there spirits. Finished our drinks and continued on north back into Kalispell. The day before we were told about Moose's Saloon and thought we would give it a try for dinner. What an amazing place!! We walked in there was sawdust and peanut shells on the floor and names and what not carved in anything wooden in the place including beams, wall, tables, booths and chairs!! We grabbed a seat and waited for our server. After about 10 minutes and not getting served, we figured it might be something different. Went up to the bar and asked how this works as this is our first time hear. Well......they do not have servers come to you to take an order. Order beer and peanuts at the bar and food in the back corner. They bring the food to you when it is ready. We ordered two draft bud lights. $3.50......I gave him $9.00 assuming he meant each..... Nope $3.50 for the two of them!!!!! Now just because i could i had to have some peanuts to throw my shells on the ground! We each had a 7" pizza and a ceasar salad. This pizza ranks in my top pizza i have ever had, and it was probably one of the cheapest pizza's i have ever had. The ceasar salad was amazing. I have no idea where they get their dressing from but it was out of this world. In total, 2 beer each, 1 pizza each, a large peanuts and a large chicken ceasar salad to share cost us a total of about $30.


    Headed back to the tent and had another early night. - No SS's seen


    July 2


    Up early once again (6AM) original plan was to leave camp after breakfast, but up 2 hours early so we decided to pack up and head out as we had a 9+ hour drive ahead. We back tracked the way we came all the way to the same boarder crossing, knowing on a Monday of a long weekend, lines were going to be long. Our trip west to east of the Going to the Sun Road was even more spectacular and beautiful. The weather was great throughout the road, except for 2-3 minutes of some small hail, which had me a tad worried about what might follow it, but it was all sunshine. I assume traffic was slower because the weather was a lot nicer than on Saturday. We did see one red SS on the East side of the road, gave a honk and a wave, but i think he was admiring the views. About 10 minutes from the boarder it started to rain lightly and about 1 mile from the boarder we had to pull over and get our rain gear and full face helmet on. Got to the boarder and only three cars in line. The amount of bikes we seen on this stretch of the two parks in the two countries was probably around 25. No issues at the boarder and 10 minutes later the rain let off. We knew that from there on it was going to be scattered showers as we checked before we left, so we kept our rain gear on.


    We headed north on highway 6, east on hwy 3, and north on 2 all the way home. About 20 KM south of Clairsholm the rain started back up. Rained all the way to Red Deer. We did have to make a stop to warm up and get a bite to eat as temps were dropping down to 7C and we were doing speeds of 80-120 KMH depending on the amount of water on the road. After Red Deer, it was all sunshine and rainbows. Got home about 8:00 PM - 1 SS Seen


    Lonesome Dove Guest Ranch


    If you are adventurous at all, stay here. The main reason i booked it was because i am to cheap to pay the $300+ USD that is wanted per night in the area in and around GNP. We payed $170 CAD total for the two nights. They have some cabins, 2 outfitter tents and 4-5 teepees. All accommodations include breakfast. This is not your typical buffet or continental breakfast. There is actually a menu to order from and it is all fresh. There are two buffalo that stay on the ranch that you walk by to get to the bathhouse. They rescue and take in unwanted horses and break them for trail rides. The staff was friendly, the accommodations were warm, even with night time temps of 8-10C. The last 1/2 Mile or so was gravel and the driveway in was a tad rough, but if you pay attention, you should not have any issues.


    Summary
    40,000+ pics ...... go pro was set up on time lapse for the trip down and till it started raining near the boarder on the way to take a pic every 1 second and 0.5 second for the Going to the Sun road
    72 hours
    2200kms
    2 SS seen
    2 ways on Going to the Sun Road
    1 trip around a huge lake
    Great food
    Great People

    1 Amazing Weekend


    Now for a 900km trip on Sunday July 8 followed by oil change!!


    10,000 characters...... oops

  • June 29 - July 2 - Edmonton - Going to the sun road road-trip - 1 of 2

    The better half and I made it down for this after cancelling last year to attend the Sundre Sling Fest.


    June 29
    Both of us worked, and have family in Chestermere Alberta. Headed out about 4 PM on a long weekend Friday down highway 2. Had to stop at Red Deer's Gasoline Alley for a burger at Peters Drive In and Gas. Continued down to Chestermere with nothing eventful or no issues - NO SS Sightings


    June 30
    We were planning on leaving early as we expected the boarder to be busy as it was a long weekend in Canada. Wanted to be up and gone by 6 AM, however, we never ended up leaving till around 9 AM......we should of been at the boarder by this time!!! Some quick planning on my down to Okotoks and decided that the well known main border crossings were probably going to be very busy. We left Chestermere, utilizing Stoney Trail (Calgary's Ring road) to Highway 2. Stopped in Okotoks for gas and went west on highway 7 to Black Diamond. South on 22 to Lundbreck and East on highway 3 to Pincher Creek and through Waterton Lakes National Park. This was much more scenic than than the original plan to go straight down highway 2 all the way to the boarder.
    There is a little boarder crossing called chief mountain separating Waterton (Canada) and Glacier (USA) National Parks. Got to the boarder and only 3 vehicles at the boarder when we got there. It was about 5 minutes and we were up. This was by far the most friendly interaction with the US boarder patrol we have ever had, weather flying or driving. After getting thru and spending a few minutes trying to remember how to switch the SS to historic mode (MPH) and to put my helmet away, we were on our way.


    Continued on down 17, Cheif Mountain Hwy, noticing a lot of cow patties on the highway. Not really thinking or used to having open range land i was quite surprised when I came around the corner and there were a few dozen head of cows in the ditches along the highway.....maybe ill do the speed limit.


    Hit 89 and headed south to Babb. Stopped in Babb to fill up and get a bite to eat. Stopped at Two Sisters Cafe just south of Babb. The food was great, the place was a lot cleaner than i expected based on the outer appearance. To access the washrooms you had to go outside, no big deal. GF had a BLT and mentioned that it was the best she had in a long time. I had the chili cheese fries. They were okay, but nothing special. Continued down to St. Mary's and the time was here.


    One of the first roads I heard about that was a must do on something like the SS. Going to the Sun Road!! Weather looked great, the line up was not too bad. The first 10 or so miles the weather was decent than we started to get a little bit of rain. No big deal as the sights were all spectacular and a little bit of rain was worth it. The rain started to get a little harder so we pulled over to get our rain gear on and my full face helmet. Continued up the road and the rain was off and on and the temperature dropped to about 8C. Still loved the scenery and the different things to see. After Logan's Pass i was admiring some of the mountain ranges from afar when i heard a honk and the GF elbowed me in the side. Low and Behold it was another SS. I just caught a quick glimpse. It was either black or blue and pulling a trailer with an American flag on the bag. I will have to check the go pro to see what color it was.


    We finish up our drive down the Going to the Sun Road as the rain lets up and head down hwy 2 east of Kalispell to the Lonesome Dove Guest Ranch.


    If you are at all adventurous, I highly recommend this place. We pre booked the John Dunbar Tent. More about the accommodations later. After checking in we went back into Kalispell to see what was going on. We ended up at one of the "Casinos"..... I use that word very loosely, like the people in Montana. I am used to going to a casino and having 300-700+ machines in them. This place had maybe 15....but the beer was free and the machines let you play a little while. We spent a little time there than went to Fatt Boys Bar and Grill for dinner. Food was decent, beer was cheaper than what i am used to paying. Headed back to the tent and out of nowhere it started to rain pretty hard. I have heard the hydroplaning stories and was fully aware of the water in the depressions from the four wheeled vehicles in the road. I thought that I would just keep my center wheel in the middle of those and i would be good to go. Boy was i wrong!!! there was a spot in the road where the water was deep enough that it went across the two depression..... only like a foot wide. When I hit that I seemed to get sucked over and into the left depression and a little hydroplane, was probably about 25-30 degrees facing the ditch going down the road for a second or two when my back tire grabbed and I got the SS under control. It was the most intense part of the trip. Continued down the highway doing about 45 MPH with no issues. Got back to the tent and crashed pretty early. - One SS Seen


    Link to 2 of 2
    June 29 - July 2 - Edmonton - Going to the sun road road-trip - 2 of 2

  • Going to the Sun - Glacier National Park - Kalispell - June 30 - July 2

    Quote from wjfyfe

    I grew up in Glacier Park so if you have any specific questions I would be glad to try to answer them. That time of year Logan Pass will just have opened so there should be lots of snow still and plenty of running water, where you may want to don waterproof jackets just in case you get forced under a waterfall. The view from the SlingShot would also be best travelling from west to east. Otherwise, unfortunately, the places that I would mostly recommend are off of the beaten path and not exactly SlingShot friendly.


    Enjoy!


    Bill

    Thanks wjfyfe, I was thinking of doing it from both directions, what are your thoughts on this. I know it will be a super busy weekend as it is a long weekend in Canada.

  • Going to the Sun - Glacier National Park - Kalispell - June 30 - July 2

    Quote from KayTwo

    @Ross


    @lew88_88, this is the route I am running when I go to Sundre later in July, except I am going from the south end of Beartooth up through MT and hitting Going to the Sun before crossing over into CA.


    If you learn anything on your ride that might be of use, I'd be obliged if you would share it.

    KayTwo, I am really looking forward to meeting those of you that are coming to Sundre. You will not be disappointed. Anything I learn, I will share with you for sure.

  • Going to the Sun - Glacier National Park - Kalispell - June 30 - July 2

    Thanks for that, I think the Beartooth and Yellowstone will have to be another trip. I am more looking for stuff that would put me back in Kalispell each night.

  • Going to the Sun - Glacier National Park - Kalispell - June 30 - July 2

    I have been wanting to do the Going to the Sun road since I purchased my SS last January.
    Heading up there June 30th from Calgary, going to stay a few nights at the Lonesome Dove Ranch and head back to Edmonton on July 2nd. Hoping the entire pass is opened up by than. What other rides do you recommend in that area? What else do you recommend seeing or doing? What and where are the hidden gems of scenery, food and twisties? What other recommendations do you have? Thanks for any info you may share.