Long Time Gone: Day 21 — Glacier National Park

Dear Natalie,

As we went to bed last night, we could hear loud music blasting into the campground from not far away. Although we were all exhausted, it look us a long time to fall asleep to the sounds of cover band hammering out “Livin’ on a Prayer,” “Can’t Stop the Feeling,” “Party Rock Anthem” and “I Gotta Feeling.”

This morning, I peeled my body off the mattress. It’s going to take some time for my muscles and my joints to repair after yesterday’s hike.

I have to say: This tent is deliciously comfortable. Under Canvas advertises that they furnish the tents with Caspar mattresses, and indeed, as I nestle under layers of comforters, it’s like sleeping on a cloud. With the wood stove burning, this place is snug and cozy. It makes the traffic noice (and the loud party music) that much more regrettable. This place, with its charming tents and elegant approach to “camping” could be so interesting — so rustic and restorative. But it is basically a campground next to a busy highway.

We found out later that the music last night came from a wedding reception. There’s a special events lodge not far from here. And this leaves Keith and I scratching our heads. With the emphasis at Under Canvas on luring people outside and getting them to connect with nature, with all the time and thought put into designing these tents and setting up this campground, why buy this property, with the highway and the trains and the outdoor wedding receptions? It’s such a letdown. If this place were truly set in the woods, it could be so special.

After breakfast in the village of West Glacier, we ambled across the street to Glacier Rafts to meet up for our 10 a.m. river-rafting tour, something that Charlie sweet-talked us into. (He had a great time rafting the Colorado River with Grandma and Papa Mac a few years ago, and he has never forgotten it.)

I was not wild about the idea of being herded onto a bus with a bunch of other tourists, but after we got about five miles up the river and disembarked, we got sorted into our boats. I was much more comfortable in a smaller group with our guide, J.W., who was soft-spoken but friendly and professional. For about two and a half hours, he expertly guided us down the Middle Fork of the Flathead River, through rapids with names like “Freddy Flip Zone,” “Bone Crusher” “Jaws” and “Pin Ball.” It wasn’t too terrifying, but the white-water was wild enough to get us completely soaked. With the sunshine and the stunning scenery, it shaped up to be a really great morning.

Crystal-clear water

Toward the end of the trip, we all had the chance to jump in off the raft. Charlie did, of course. It was cold!

Pro photos taken from the riverbanks. Everyone agreed that we had to buy them, simply for the expressions on my face in each shot.

From there, we went down the road to spend the afternoon at Amazing Fun Center, which Clare sweet-talked us into. We went to play mini-golf and ride go-karts, but we discovered that the place also has a giant maze and a challenge to get your ticket stamped in all four corners before you find the exit. I thought this would be a 10-, maybe 20-minute endeavor. But this maze was huge and completely confounding. Clare was done in 30 minutes. Dad, Charlie and I were wandering around for AN HOUR AND TEN MINUTES. Dad finally had to get out through an emergency exit. Charlie and I found the actual exit, but not without help from an attendant. I was so confused and so disoriented, and so hot with the sun beating down on me for more than an hour, I felt quite unhinged and, to be honest, physically sick.

Get. Me. OUTOFHERE!

After that, we rode go-karts, played 18 holes of mini-golf and played on the bumper boats.

We grabbed a quick taco dinner at a food truck parked in a driveway down the road, The Wandering Gringo.

After an entire afternoon in the hot sun, we felt a little crispy. So we drove to a spot about a half-mile up river from the village of West Glacier to an old bridge — the original access from the town into the national park. It’s now a pedestrian bridge. We had passed it on our rafting trip this morning.We sat on the rocks, cooled our feet in the clear water and watched kids jump from the bridge about 30 feet into the water. Eventually, of course, Charlie decided that he needed to do it. So he joined the kids on the bridge and worked up the guts to jump. Twice.