Project GT Chapter 2 Vacation Photos
The Crown Jewel of the United States

by Ryan King
Edited by Patricia Kalin
Photos by Ryan King and Patricia Kalin
9/05

It was Monday when I finally got the suspension rebuild finished up. The day before Patty and I were going to be leaving for Glacier National Park in Montana.

I had stopped by Ken's Tire that morning (before picking up Patty) to have the suspension aligned. That night, long about 11 PM, we finished giving the GT a quick bath in the dark. I had briefly tested the chassis on the freeway during the trip to pick her up, and was pleased save for a twitch left in the steering. The twitch wasn’t bad enough to cause any unpredictable or unmanageable steering problems and I felt the suspension was finally safe enough to drive on the daunting Going-to-the-Sun-Road. I knew this road well and had good reason to be wary of the trek. I'd taken this journey since I was five, knew most of the stories and seen first hand on many occasions the dangers of this stretch of road, but this would be the first time I'd be driving it myself.

When Tuesday finally came, we got out a couple of hours late, but the GT proved to be in great shape and made quick work of Snoqualmie Pass.

From the top of the pass to the Columbia River Gorge, the decent lasts for a solid two hours of driving. The cool weather and beautiful greenery of Western Washington rapidly fades to the tans and browns of the scorching Eastern Washington desert.

Halfway down the decent to the Gorge, we stopped in Ellensburg for some lunch. The Perkins there was a traditional stop for me on this trip so I thought it was fitting we should stop there so that I could give Patty the full experience. Since neither of us had breakfast we were starving and it gave the GT a chance to rest. A rest didn’t mean a chance to cool off, the 90+ degree temperature and the well heated black top saw to it that the GT remain nice and warm for us when we got back out to it.

The View from Vantage
From Ellensburg, there's a long slight ascent before the twisting highway that drops to the town of Vantage and the Columbia River Gorge. The GT's new front suspension performed well on this section of the drive, hitting speeds above the posted limit even through the tight S-curves. It wasn't long before the Columbia River Bridge came in view. Click image to enlarge.

The Mighty Columbia
On the other side of the bridge, Patty caught sight of a sign for Wild Horse Monument that promised a scenic view. I'd never been their myself, but was glad we stopped. Click image to enlarge.

River Road
Our first stop over was Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and from there we headed up the panhandle. There is some really beautiful scenery out there. The Kootenai River quickly became our constant companion throughout our trip through Montana. The GT drove well and the plains flashed by in a couple of hours. The GT handled and cornered considerably better than it did before the suspension work. In fact there wasn't a corner it needed to slow down for. Click image to enlarge.

At the Feet of Giants
Long before night fall, we were heading into the foot hills of the Montana Rockies. The drive was so pleasant I didn't even bother to notice the turn off for Glacier until we were an hour past it. Click image to enlarge.

The Sun Setting on the Flathead
By the way, the entire Flathead Lake area near the entrance of the park is beautiful and well worth the trip all on its own. But we were now running late, and in the town of West Glacier, the sidewalks roll up and the hotel clerk goes home. We ended up arriving late, but managed to get into our room and get some dinner. Click image to enlarge.

The Road to Lake McDonald
Day three saw us make our way into the park where we were greeted by the pristine beauty of Lake McDonald. The lake itself was carved by glaciers, which is one of the reasons the park has its name. The road running along Lake McDonald to Lake McDonald Lodge is the very beginning of Going-to-the-Sun-Road. Not treacherous, this portion of the drive is very scenic, relaxing, and entertaining to drive. Click image to enlarge.

The General Store
Once we got to the lodge complex, we were treated to an incredible view. Here Mt. Brown sits behind the General Store, and a trio of 1930's Ford tour buses (that take passengers throughout the paved portions of Glacier) are parked. These were the original buses used in the 1930's for the same purpose. Ford recently restored these buses for the park, and they add to the feel that the place has changed little over the last 100 years. Click image to enlarge.

The Great Continental Divide
The morning of Day 4 I knew that "Going-to-the-Sun-Road" awaited me. As much as I've driven, as fast as I've gone, facing this road still filled me with dread. As we left the Lake McDonald area behind, the Logan's Pass portion of Going-to-the-Sun-Road loomed ahead. High up on the mountain, you can see in this picture the cut out of the tiny twisting road near the top of the Continental Divide. At 6600 feet, Logan's Pass makes Going-to-the-Sun-Road one of the highest in the world. Click image to enlarge.

The Switch Back
Here's a shot of the road right before the switch back that turns a pleasant, scenic road into a skinny, winding, undulating, and deadly nightmare for drivers that has claimed more than one driver and his/her passengers in its time. Click image to enlarge.

Going-to-the-Sun-Road
As soon as the road switches back it begins to ascend rapidly before depositing you on this section of the road. The lanes are not much wider than the Mustang and the much wider tour buses are the only large vehicles allowed on the road. These vehicles are wider than some parts of the road and have to take up parts of on coming lanes to make it around certain corners, this one in particular. The short foot high wall is the only sort of shoulder between you and oblivion. Make a mistake and find out what it feels like to drop thousands of feet. Click image to enlarge.

Bird Woman Falls
The road itself is very much a part of the mountain. In this shot you can see Bird Woman Falls passing under a stone arch that makes up one of the many bridges that have allowed cars to make the drive since the 1930s. The road was under construction this year to shore up the road erosion that has become a problem. Click image to enlarge.

On the Road of Life...There are Goats
As you approach the top of Logan's pass, the road becomes wider and much less treacherous. It was here that this rare and amazing occurrence happened. A mountain goat and its baby were licking salt from the road way, and we managed to get close enough for a photo. Click image to enlarge.

Swiftcurrent Lake
Our destination was the Many Glacier Hotel, where we spent three days relaxing by Swiftcurrent Lake and enjoying the truly incredible scenery. Although the hardest destination in the park to reach by car from the west side of the park, Many Glacier shouldn't be missed. Click image to enlarge.

The suspension rebuild and the brake job were largely a success and made for a much more pleasant and successful trip than would have happened without them. Our trip through Glacier showed Patty and I this is truly one of the most incredible drives in the world, and as far as we are concerned, the park deserves its title as "The Crown Jewel of the United States."