OFF THE GRID in Glacier National Park, MT

The past four days have been quite the experience.  If you have not had the chance to go OFF THE GRID (not requiring utilities such as electricity, water, etc.), it is worth the effort.

We arrived at St. Mary Visitor's Center and Campground on Thursday, June 16, after a harrowing 3 hour drive from Great Falls, MT.  (Note to self:  Never, ever again travel Route 89 from Browning, MT, to St. Mary, MT.)

Upon entering the park, a fee of $25 gave us the opportunity to travel anywhere in Glacier NP for seven days.  The nightly campground fee was $23/night.  We watched a movie about the early years of Glacier NP development, stood in line with backpackers at least half our age or younger carrying BIG backpacks, and obtained maps.  Whereas their questions focused on trails and maps, my questions focused on where to eat and the locations of the Glacier lodges.  (Note to self:  age matters when selecting activities at a national park with mountains.) 

Brad assured me all would be well in living OFF THE GRID for 4 days.  We decided to give him an actual job title, "Power and Water Czar."  From the time we arrived and set up camp (by the way, setting up camp without any hookups is relatively painless as you just pull in the RV and disconnect), the wind, rain, and cold were ever-present.  We found what we believed to be a nice high site, overlooking the Rockies and the St. Mary's lake; the downside was the wind, rain, and cold.  Every morning, Brad reviewed our game plan for the day which involved when and if we could shower, when and if we could turn on any lights, and when and if we could run the heater.  He reminds me even yet today, that "if I had known there were no hook-ups at Glacier, I could have planned better for this event."  Oops!  (Note to self:  always communicate with Brad when we have no hook-ups for the RV ahead of time as when we are OFF THE GRID.)

Needless to say, the first night was really cold--about 40 degrees; RVers were pulling out off and on for the next 24 hours.  We braved it with our RV mainly because we had enough propane, two batteries with a solar panel, full water tank, and empty holding tanks.  We brought out all blankets from the RV and truck and ran the heater for 30 minutes to take off the chill.  However, the next morning when it was warmer (50 degrees), Brad had to brave the elements and fix the heater, as it was making a terrible clanging noise.  After about an hour, he got it to work beautifully.  (Note to self:  make sure you have an RV repairman with you when camping OFF THE GRID.)

Highlights from our four days OFF THE GRID included

·        visiting Glacier Park Lodge - yes, those trees in the lobby are as big as they look in the documentaries, approximately 4 feet in diameter, and they were brought in on rail from CA

·        visiting Many Glacier Lodge at Swiftcurrent Lake - our pick for a Glacier NP stay because of location, scenery, and amenities

·        visiting Two Medicine and hiking a short nature trail of medicinal plants to waterfall

·        driving "Going-to-the-Sun Road" for 13 miles in from east side; about 27 miles of the road was still closed because of earlier heavy snowfall; park personnel hope to open the road by July sometime

·        riding the REALLY COOL restored, 1930s White Motor Company (Cleveland, OH) red jammer touring busses.  (http://www.nationalparkreservations.com/glacier_jammer_tours.php)

·        visiting  Prince of Wales Lodge in Waterton, Alberta, CAN, located in the International Peace Park; a related park to Glacier NP which meets at the U.S./CAN border; took High Tea (excellent tea and views of the lake)  (Note to self:  repeat this experience of High Tea at Prince of Wales as often as possible--pure vacation!)

Animals viewed on drives and tours:

·         Day 1:  an adult moose (150 feet away) and big beaver lodges (100 feet away) - road toward Many Glacier

·         Day 2:  six mountain goats (10 feet away) - road toward Two Medicine

·         Day 3:  twenty mountain goats (grazing on steep hillside) and one black bear (40 feet away) - road toward Many Glacier

Interesting side notes for any foodies reading this blog….

·         Huckleberries were the delicacy (pie--mixed with blueberries, ice cream, taffy, twizzlers, jam, jelly, and cordials).  Taste was delicious; we were reminded, however, that huckleberries were not in season yet.  (Note to self:  any huckleberries served are from last year's crop, no matter what the waitress says.)

·         High Tea at Prince of Wales was extra special with harp music, waitresses in Scottish dress, and a picture-perfect view of lakes and mountains.

Advantages of being "Off the Grid"…

·         lots of reading with books (not Kindle or I-Pad)

·         walking and talking to new people, including retirees who held summer jobs at Glacier NP and were living in dormitory-style housing

·         peace and quiet

·         confidence in knowing you could do without if you had to

·         time to work on card playing skills

Disadvantages of being "Off the Grid"…

·         limited showers

·         no Internet access

·         no television

·         still had to cook

Update June 20:

We have moved on from Glacier NP.  Spending tonight in Cochran, AB, CAN, near Calgary at a beautiful, five-star RV Park owned by the local Rotary and Lions clubs.  Proceeds are used for philanthropic projects in the Cochrane area.

Note:  Six loads of laundry (from being OFF THE GRID) cost $39 dollars CAN.  Groceries at local Safeway with Safeway card totaled over $100.  Example:  1 gallon of milk (actually 4 liters of milk) was $4.99 CAN.  Diesel is running $1.12/liter CAN.  Easy border crossing from U.S. to CANADA--handled at the truck window--passports, vehicle registrations for truck.  We answered typical questions about where we were going, for how long, and where we were from.

Good news:  We are BACK ON THE GRID!  :)