Flathead Lake, Montana - May 4th to 5th, 2022
Traveling is always an adventure. Things do not always go smoothly. It’s how you react to the issues that pop up that determine whether the issues are just a bump in the road or ruin your trip. Remaining flexible and having a positive attitude is essential. Flathead Lake in Montana was one of those bumps in the road.
Wednesday was a beautiful drive from Helena to Flathead Lake in Montana. As we were leaving Helena, Ann searched our route on Google Maps to see that there were no gas stations along our route. Luckily, we had not yet passed the last gas station in Helena, so we stopped. While we were topping off our gas tank, we decided we should make one last bathroom break as well. The Sinclair station we were at did not have bathrooms, but the Ace Hardware store next door did. Feeling a little guilty using their bathrooms, we bought a water pressure reducer for filling up our fresh water jerry cans, something we were meaning to buy anyway. Checking our route for gas stations is probably something we should make a habit of for the rest of the season. We added it to our breaking camp checklist.
The scenery was gorgeous. We went through national forests, over a mountain pass, and had views of snow-capped mountains almost the whole way. We also spotted some wildlife along the way, such as deer and elk. There was some wetland areas alongside the road that looked like prime moose habitat, but we didn’t see any moose.
Oh, and Google Maps was wrong. There were some gas stations along the way, not a lot, but a few. We’re not sure why Google Maps did not list them, a weak cell signal perhaps? There was also one rest area, at the junction of MT 200 and MT 83, so that is where we stopped for lunch. Maybe we should check the GasBuddy app next time to confirm what Google Maps is telling us.
After turning onto MT 83, we drove alongside one lake after another. Again, very scenic.
It was early afternoon when we arrived at Wayfarers Unit Campground in Flathead Lake State Park. Ann’s notes were that it was first come/first serve. As we drove through the small campground to pick out a site, we noticed reserved tags on the posts which panicked us for a moment. We breathed a sigh of relief when we realized that the reservations did not start until two days later. Oh, it must be off-season until May 6th. There were already a few sites taken, but we had no problem finding an available site.
There was a trail right next to our site that led down to the lake. Right after setting up camp, we went down the trail to check it out. The shoreline is very rocky, at least at the end of the trail. It was a little bit of a scramble to get down to the actual shoreline. We worked our way towards the boat ramp, where the was more of a rocky beach. Quite a few of the colorful rocks on the beach were great skipping stones, so Keith couldn’t resist skipping a few.
The water level of the lake looked really low by looking at the height of the docks and the water lines on the rocky shore. It seemed like the wrong time of year for the lake to be low. You would think it would be high in the spring from the snow runoff. The lake is not a dammed reservoir, it’s a lake carved out by the glaciers. Was the snowfall in Montana extremely low this past winter?
After we relaxed by our campsite for a little while, we decided to stretch our legs some more and check out the short trail that loops around the property. The trail is only 1.5 miles long, but goes up to an overlook with views out over the lake. It was a very pleasant walk through the woods.
It was warm enough and not raining so we could cook dinner and eat outside at the picnic table. We were getting a little tired of the cold temperatures and the rain so far this season, so it felt really good to sit outside.
Rain was in the forecast for Thursday, again. However, it didn’t look like it was going to rain all day. The forecast kept changing when exactly it was going to rain. We wanted to go on a hike, so we decided to just go for it and see what happens. Of course we packed our rain gear and the temperatures were in the 50’s and 60’s, so it shouldn’t be uncomfortable even if it rains.
There were two hikes listed in AllTrails over in Herron Park, just outside of Kalispell, about 25 minutes from our campground. It is a Flathead County park and has a network of multi-use trails for hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding. The Herron Park trails also hook into the Foy’s to Black Tail Trail, a longer distance trail. The one hike in AllTrails, “Notch Trail, Overlook Trail, and Plum Creek Road”, was 3.5 miles long. The other hike, “Herron Loop”, was 7.6 miles long. The first hike seemed a little short for us and the second seemed a little longer than we wanted to go, especially since there was a high chance for rain. Ann did a little more research on Herron Park and was able to find a map of all the trails inside the park. We pieced together our own route which we thought would be about five miles long: Notch Trail, part of Overlook Trail, Boundary Trail, Plum Creek Road, and Direct Route.
The Notch Trail switchbacks through the woods with views along the way. Even before reaching the Overlook Trail, there is a nice overlook along with an informational sign about the glacial lakes. We believe some of the mountain peaks in the distance are part of Glacier National Park. The national park was only about 40 miles to the northeast of us. We felt it was a little too early in the season to visit Glacier National Park this time, so it is on our list to visit in a future season.
At the end of Notch Trail, we headed over to the overlook on Overlook Trail. It is a nice view, but we liked the overlook along Notch Trail better. From there we headed down Boundary Trail. There were not as many views from Boundary Trail, but it was still a pleasant walk through the woods. Near the end of the Boundary Trail, we stopped and sat down on a rock to eat our snacks. Not long after that, we turned left onto Chase Trail to get over to Plum Creek Road. The sun had peeped out from behind the clouds and the birds were singing as if rejoicing. Plum Creek road is a wide (double-track) trail which is pretty straight and easy going. Butterflies led us down the road. Turning onto the Direct Route, we were back on a narrow dirt path that took us back to the trailhead.
When we reached our Red Tail Lodge (our van), Keith realized he no longer had his van key. Oh no! We were not too happy about that, but we didn’t panic. We still had Ann’s van key. We used the restroom and sat down a minute to asses the situation. We checked around the van, inside and out, no keys. Keith checked all his pant’s pockets. When he hikes, he normally carries his key in a pocket with some type of closure, such as velcro or a zipper. He must have been carrying the key in his open pants pocket. The only place we sat down was when we had our snack. It must have fallen out then. Looking on the map, we guessed it was about 2.5 miles back to that location. That would mean another five miles round trip on top of the 6.3 miles we already hiked. It was only 1:45 pm, so we had time to do it. Was it worth it to not have to get another key made? Those keys can be rather expensive. So we refilled our water bottles and started retracing our steps back up the trail.
We kept a pretty good pace. We reached our snack location, 2.3 miles from the trailhead, in about 50 minutes. But there was no key on the ground when we got there. Bummer! Maybe someone picked it up and brought it back to the trailhead. Maybe an animal picked it up and carried it off, like a crow. Maybe it wasn’t in his pocket at all during the hike. Maybe it is still somewhere back near the van. We know he used his key to drive the van here, so it has to be somewhere in the park. Keith contemplated continuing to retrace our steps all the way. Ann refused. That’s another four miles instead of just 2.3 miles downhill back to the trailhead. Our bodies agreed that it was time to turn around and head back.
On the way back down, we passed a couple of mountain bikers. We asked them to keep their eyes open for a set of keys and bring them to the trailhead if they find them. We appreciated their willingness to help. As we thought a little more about what might have happened, we remembered that Keith started out the hike with his rain jacket on, then took it off and stuck it inside his pack. Perhaps the keys were in his rain jacket? Keith decided to wait until we reached the van to open up his pack to check. We were so ready to be done hiking.
When we reached the Red Tail Lodge again, we looked around for keys laying on top of fence posts or on our van hood, just in case anyone found them. We searched again around the van. Keith pulled his rain jacket out of his pack. No keys. Then he checked the pockets of his sweater that he had left in the van. There they were! Yay! We were so glad we found them. It would have been a pain to find a Ford dealer and arrange to get the key replaced. However, that also meant we did an extra 4.6 miles of hiking for nothing. Oh well, it wasn’t like the extra miles killed us. And it never did rain on us during our hike. The rain started right when we finished. That was nice of it to wait for us.
Our bodies were pretty tired. Eleven miles of hiking with a total elevation gain 1670 feet was pushing it for us. It definitely counted as hike number 11 of our 52 Hike Challenge for 2022. To treat ourselves, we decided to eat dinner in Kalispell instead of cooking. Ann found a place called Moose’s Saloon on Main Street that served pizza and looked like it had some character. Walking inside, the place reminded us of a college bar. It looked like they were prepared for the place to get rowdy. It was dimly lit with sawdust on the floor. The wooden walls and benches were covered with layers of carved graffiti. Adding to the effect of a college bar, the music playing was classic rock songs from the time when we were in college. However, it was not rowdy when we were there, but it was early on a Thursday evening. A group of what looked like locals were seated around the bar calmly socializing with each other. The pizza hit the spot. It was a thin, cracker-like crust. Not the best pizza we’ve ever had, but it filled our bellies nicely.
Half a mile down Main Street was Sweet Peaks Ice Cream. That sounded good. Normally we would walk half a mile down a Main Street to check it out, but not today. Our bodies did not want to move any more than they had to, so we hopped back in the van and drove the half mile down the street. Sweet Peaks makes their own ice cream. It was delicious. Ann had a scoop of Chocolate Love and a scoop of huckleberry. Ann was surprised that Keith did not have huckleberry. He went back to his favorite, a vanilla shake. Now that our bellies were full, it was time to head back to the campground and just chill for the rest of the evening, letting our bodies recover.
The campground had showers and they were open for the season. However, the bathhouse was not very warm and showers cost $3 for six minutes. A bird bath using the sink inside the warmth of our Red Tail Lodge was more inviting. As Keith was washing up, he discovered a tick crawling up his leg. Thank goodness it had not latched on yet, so it was easy for him to get rid of it. It was a good reminder that we should be checking ourselves more regularly for ticks considering how much we hike.
Friday morning, as we were sitting in our Red Tail Lodge (our van) eating breakfast, Ann noticed a tick crawling up Keith’s coffee mug. She watched as Keith grabbed a tissue and tried to pluck the tick off his cup. Somehow the tick escaped. It was no longer on the mug and not in the tissue. Neither one of us saw where it went. We looked all over, on the floor, on Keith’s clothing. No tick to be found. Now we were a little paranoid. We finished our breakfast nervously looking for signs of the tick. About twenty minutes late, Keith felt it on his neck. This time he was able to brush it off his neck into the sink where we were able to snatch it. Two ticks within 24 hours. Are there more we haven’t found yet?
Despite lost keys, sore bodies, and worries about ticks, we had a wonderful time at Flathead Lake. This time we remained calm and solved our problems when they arose. We don’t always react that way, but traveling is slowly teaching us to go with the flow.
Check out our related video: Flathead Lake, Montana
(Ann)