West Coast Trip 2012 Day Six

Today We went over the top!  After a very nice drive up US 89 along this on the west, the northern Rockies.  (Normally it would have been much clearer but the smoke from all the wildfires made everything hazy.)

 On the east there was this!  Montana is the only place I've been where there are so few true foothills.

Just the High plains then the mountains.  The object of this drive was Glacier-Waterton Peace Park and the Going to the Sun Road.  I began on the east end at St Mary's MT and drove over to the west.  I had really anticipated this, in fact had driven many miles out of the way just to do this drive.  I wasn't terribly impressed.  Don't get me wrong it is beautiful!  Also very busy.  The road is only open a few weeks a year-July 4th to maybe Labor Day and it's a narrow two way road.  You go over Logan Pass (6, 626 ft or there about) but you're never really above the tree line.  I'm used to Trail Ridge Road in Colorado which is open from Memorial Day to first heavy snows and goes way above tree line!  I never got the feeling of standing on top of the world that you get on Trail Ridge (or on an actual mountain top!)  Anyway, I only got a very few photos as there were no parking spaces available anywhere along the way up or down--these two I shot while waiting for the light to change in the construction zone.  Guess I should be grateful for construction!

It is quite beautiful!!

Down on the west side we were soon out of the mountains and into Kalispell, MT for the night.