Sunday, June 8: our first full day in Montana

We began our morning with breakfast at Cat Eye Cafe, and highly enjoyed their cat-themed decor and delicious food. Then it was time to say goodbye to Bozeman and we got started on the long drive to Glacier. After a stop in Columbia Falls for groceries and Whitefish for lunch, we reached the cabin we were renting for our stay in northern Montana. The cabin was part of an original homestead, completely refurbished to make for a charming vacation home.

diamond doll in Glacier

After settling in, we drove into Glacier National Park to get an early peek of where we’d be spending the most of our next several days. We stopped at McDonald Lodge to enjoy the view and visit the gift shop. Like we would discover in most of northern Montana, the shop was full of huckleberry-flavored treats.

us at Lake McDonald

Lake McDonald Lodge

Since we were visiting early in the season, the famous Going-to-the-Sun Road wasn’t fully open yet. It would take several more weeks for crew to finish clearing the snow from the higher passes. We drove the 16 miles that was open, up to Avalanche Lake.

scenic view along the Going-to-the-Sun Road

On our way out of the park, we stopped to get information on boating permits for our two kayaks and talked to a friendly ranger about the various lakes within the park that would be good for kayaking. He confirmed that our choice of Upper Kintla Lake would be a good one, and we became even more excited for our first full day in the park.

We headed back to the cabin where Kurt grilled up a delicious meal of salmon and corn on the cob, paired with some local beers including the Great Northern Brewery’s Wild Huckleberry Wheat. The sky stayed light until 10:30 pm, as we were far north and near the western edge of the Mountain time zone. Our first night in our little cabin was cozy and peaceful.

our perfect little honeymoon cabin