Mile 3102 - More Glacier, Kalispell and Friends, MT

Glacier National Park is one of the most user-friendly parks that we have been to. The Going-to-the-Sun Road may have a far-too-long name, but it offers a fantastic tour of the highlights of the park. And they even offer red jammer tours for those that want their history with a little class or who'd like to look at more than the sharp curves ahead. Their campgrounds are well maintained and they even have a number of fancy lodges to stay at for a more "indoor" outdoors. We did enjoy one night in their campgrounds, but lucky for us, we were also in Montana to visit the Wilkins.

We were pretty excited to see Howard and Karen, to enjoy the historic blue couches, but we had no idea what a treat we were in for!The Wilkins Property brings back memories of an epic New Year's eve trip in high school which was "Sweet-Fun". When we called Karen on our way into Montana, not only were we welcomed, but it just happened that Janice Monkowski and her sister-in-laws were there for a visit.  Now let me give you some context so you can understand the amazingness of this chance meeting.  Two of Aaron's best friends from high school were Adam and Melanie, and now they're married.  Melanie's mom is Karen, who now lives in Montana, so we were expecting to get to see her.  Adam's mom, Janice, lives in Danville CA, and once a year, she gets together with her sisters-in-law, Carol and Annette. This year, that get-together just happened to be hosted by Karen and Howard at the same time that we just happened to be driving through Montana. Now if that doesn't sound crazy awesome, we just haven't written it right. 

Now you may be thinking, "So they hung out with their friends' moms? This was fun?" It was so much fun! All four of these ladies came for some good hikes, and they know what they were doing.  Karen knows Glacier like her own backyard because, well, it kind of is her backyard. She can hike as fast as a normal person can jog. Janice has known Aaron since elementary school and is always good for a long conversation, and when you throw her sisters-in-law into the mix, there's usually four or five conversations happening simultaneously.  

When we arrived in Kalispell, we were sat right down to some warm creamy chicken lasagna, a perfect salad, huckleberry pie, and chocolate bread pudding. Seriously. You can't follow up a day of hiking much better. Oh, wait, we also got our own bedroom and bathroom and in the morning Karen made fresh croissants and blueberry muffins. C'mon; I love going to see the Wilkins.

The next day, we were right back on the trail, and this time it was Sarah, Aaron, Janice, Carol, and Nettie. We were headed up to the Hidden Lake Trail, a hike Sarah and Aaron had foregone since they were avoiding the crowds. The trail starts at a visitor's center which sits at highest point on the park road and has attracted so many people over the years that they built a wooden boardwalk to lessen the crowds ecological impact. The thought of crowds and a boardwalk were deterrents for us, but Karen sold it in style: she pulled out a painting that a local artist had painted for her based on one of her photographs. If all those people want to see what's up there, it must be worth a look-see.

The trail is a three mile round trip boardwalk that gradually gives a better view of the area as the grade inclines. There are plenty of visual appetizers along the way of almost all the best of Montana's wildflowers. You're also bound to run into a surly mountain goat or a marmot going about his business. The view at the end is also quite breathtaking. Glacial water never disappoints. Blue, beautiful view of blue.

Aaron caught up with Janice and Sarah chatted with Carol and Nettie, and we all took pictures. It was a good time. At the top we enjoyed our lunches and watched the nearby animals. Aaron really wanted to get a close-up of the Marmot, and so he hid in the shade of nearby tree. It turns out that the spot belonged to a mountain goat, who came right over when he saw it had been stolen. The mountain goat won. We all hiked a little more, talked a little more, and snapped our little cameras silly.

This chance meeting was bound to end, so the next morning the girls were off to the airport. Thanks for letting us invade your special time, it was really special for us!