Jackson Hole, Teton, Glacier, Banff

[dobryan]

_________________
Dave O
'87 Westy w/ 2002 Subaru EJ25 and Peloquin TBD

"To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive." Robert Louis Stevenson

MD>Canada>AK>WA>OR>CA>AZ>UT>WY>SD
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=620646

Building a bus for travel in Europe (euroBus)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=695371

The Western Syncro build
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=746794

[Alaskaberrys]

[joetiger]

We embarked on a rainy Sunday morning in Denver. I had everything packed up with a storage tub on the rack, a bike slung over it, and a tray on the roof bars next to the cargo basket. I didn't like the bike sticking up so high on the van, so I undid everything and started over. Big box up top, soft gear in the Yak box, paddleboards and kitchen in the back, bikes on the rack. Finally, we headed north.

Here are the girls, ready to go. Below that, you see the same two girls ready for Yellowstone in 2011. Time flies.

That big round thing behind them in the upper pic is a pop-up tent I bought for the trip. (More on that and other first-time gear later.)

Because we were going through Ft. Collins, we had to make a quick stop at Rocky Mtn. Westy to get a photo.

We drove up the Poudre Canyon to Cameron Pass, and at the top of the pass in a marshy area we saw four moose grazing. Our first wildlife of the trip.

We were headed to State Forest State Park, near Walden. At the Moose Information Center, we stopped to stretch our legs and say hello to the white Wolfsburg that had followed us up the canyon. It was Carlos, who I'd met at Solstice! Didn't get a pic of his van, but it was cool to stop and talk for a few minutes. The Moose center was pretty interesting. They had a giant stuffed (taxidermy) moose in the lobby that a hunter had shot accidentally.

From there, it was on to the State Forest campground. It appears that the campground was once in a beautiful grove of towering pines, but pine beetle kill had reduced it to a field of stumps. Kinda sad. Because it was 4th of July weekend, the campground was full. Lots of American flags and ATV's. The ATV traffic going around and around the loop went on until 10:00 at night. It was great to be out under the stars with a good fire, but the ATV's made it easy for us to get going out of there the next morning. There was one other Westy in the campground, a white '85 with a canoe on top. I went down to talk to the owner, but they were away and kids were obviously under strict orders not to talk to grown-ups. I can totally relate.

We then headed through Walden and north to Wyoming. Walden is a great little town. It was full activity for the holiday weekend, and the local high school was selling breakfast burritos and having a car wash on the main street. Good burritos.

North of there, we had a whole lot of this.

This little store outside of Saratoga, WY (I think) where we stopped for a bathroom break was selling guns right at the counter. I could have picked up a .45 for $299.

We had a good trip from there to Jackson with the exception of I-80. I swear, Vanagons simply were not designed for that highway. The long rises, constant headwinds, and aggressive Semi's are just too much. There were times when I was wide-open throttle going 40 MPH. Scary stuff.

We did see a Savannah Beige Syncro Westy heading east as we got on the highway. I was jealous. Not of the Syncro, but of the tailwind he had.

More to come.
_________________
Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'04 GTI 1.8T
'04 Golf R32

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Available Now! Vanagon to Louisiana--A Two-Lane Reckoning Through Past and Present

www.josephtrussell.com

[MidwestDrifter]

[joetiger]

[Love My Westy]

Great photos joetiger! I'm glad you made the Beartooth Hwy. We're heading up there in a couple of weeks on our way to or from Sheridan, Wyo. Only problem is we will be hauling our Casita trailer with our truck. No Westy this time, and I'm not looking forward to the Beartooth Hwy with a trailer behind.

[joetiger]

[Love My Westy]

[joetiger]

We saw a bunch of Casitas on the road. I really like those things. Considering how wet we were for a good part of our trip, one would have been welcome at our camp.

So we had finally made it to Glacier. We went to Fish Creek, where I'd made a reservation back in February. The nice ranger at the station gave us bad news, just as a steady rain began to fall. "I don't have you checking in until tomorrow, and we're full." We were kinda screwed--8 PM in Glacier with nowhere to stay. We went back out to West Glacier and were able to get a room at the Glacier Highlands Lodge. It turned out to be a nice place, even though they offer free earplugs due to the train noise across the road, which I actually enjoyed hearing.

The next morning it was raining steadily and we couldn't check into our campsite until 2 pm, so we had breakfast at the lodge's little restaurant, unable to figure out why they were playing 1950's Christmas songs on the stereo, and decided to tackle the Going to the Sun Road and do some laundry over at the East Glacier KOA. Quite a laundry run.

As I've stated here in the past, I wanted to get to this spot and take a similar picture:

I didn't get it exactly right, but pretty close. I've daydreamed about that spot from my desk at work for years.

What a beautiful drive. As we went further north from places we'd been, the scenery just became more and more astonishing. Glacier is just incredible. There was rain and a bit of sleet at the top, which would be come a pretty constant theme for the rest of our trip northward.

We did our laundry in East Glacier (the KOA folks were very accommodating) and headed back over to our campsite.

It was a good spot, a short hike to Lake McDonald and to the amphitheater where we enjoyed several ranger talks. In Apgar Village, we saw this fantastic Vanagon in the parking lot, obviously being used for what it's intended for:

The next day, we decided to go hike Bowman Lake in the northwest corner of the park. The road was only partially paved, muddy in spots and some washboard, but the van did fine. The little Polebridge community was extremely unique and worth the trip. I bought some outstanding bacon and a beer coozie at the Polebridge Mercantile.

Into the woods, the road to Bowman Lake. Very twisty, narrow, and bumpy, but easily passable with 2wd.

We saw a white '86 or '87 GL along the river on the way up to the lake with a young kayaker hanging out next to it.

Bowman Lake was stunning, just like all of Glacier. We watched a storm move in over the lake, then headed out for the hike after the rain had stopped.

Walking down a very secluded trail, the girls were talking, making noise (like they're supposed to) when I heard a very loud branch snap.

I looked about twenty yards off the trail and saw the face of a very large bear staring back at me. He took a look then ducked his head down, moving towards the trail, and I saw the girth of his massive body. Loudly, I told the girls to turn around, let's head back, and we all talked loudly and let the big fella know we were there; he didn't seem to concerned. We turned tail and briskly headed back to the trailhead.

I didn't get a picture because, well, I didn't think my family's safety was worth a picture. We talked to a ranger at the trailhead, and he said yep, it's a big black bear (red in color) that is foraging around for ants. He had been around the campground the night before. He commended us for handling the situation exactly as we're supposed to. The whole thing definitely got our blood pumping and reminded us of where we were!

That night, back at camp, I slept alone upstairs while my three compatriots, now acutely bear-aware, slept on the bottom bunk. I kinda felt like that white goat on the platform in Jurassic Park, but soon settled in and had a good sleep.

Very dirty van from the Polebridge trip:

We used a tarp and big clamps to create a rain shield for the awning:

Also in the pic above, you can see the GoWesty front door screens and a generic reflective windshield cover. Our old OEM front curtain has seen better days, so I decided to try this method out and couldn't be happier. The screens are very well built. The old curtain hung straight down and really took away a good bit of the cab when inside, but with the screens and windshield cover, the interior feels much more open.

After a couple more days in Glacier hiking, paddleboarding, waiting for the rain to stop, more hiking, and sightings of deer, elk, but no more bears, we decided to check out Waterton. We could have spent weeks in Glacier, but it was time to move on.

Oh--worth mentioning, this is a restaurant attached to a gas station on US 2 just west of West Glacier. It's called The Trap Line. It had the best breakfast that we had anywhere on the trip. We went out of our way to go back there after going the first time. Get your gas, free air for your tires, and the best breakfast between Denver and Glacier, all in one stop. Never judge a book by its cover!

The trip back across Going to the Sun was a bit nerve-wracking...Clouds moved over the road at the higher elevations creating near-zero visibility. Everybody was driving with flashers on at about 5-10 MPH. Still beautiful, though. And of course, my daughters renamed it the "Going to the Clouds Road."

Glacier couldn't be more different than Yellowstone. It actually reminded me more, as far as the layout of the park, of Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park; it's made for backcountry hiking and discovery. I miss it already and can't wait for a return trip.

Next up, Banff, Jasper, and the long ride home.
_________________
Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'04 GTI 1.8T
'04 Golf R32

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Available Now! Vanagon to Louisiana--A Two-Lane Reckoning Through Past and Present

www.josephtrussell.com

[tschroeder0]

just awesome!

[joetiger]

Thanks!

Just to add a bit of clarification, we originally had not planned on going to Waterton, even though it was suggested by another Samba member. We were going to go back through Kalispell and up the western side of the Rockies, hitting a few hot springs on the way.

However, we'd hit a snag. While doing laundry at the KOA in East Glacier a few days earlier, we'd accidentally picked up a KOA sweatshirt in the laundry room and put it in our bag. In the pockets were keys and an Iphone, which had to be returned. So, we booked a room at the Northland Lodge in Waterton and went east.

The girl at the KOA was a beside-herself screaming excited mess when we returned her stuff, so it was totally worth it. On a long road trip in an antique, I'll take all the good Karma I can get.

We headed north to the Candian border. This was a big deal for me--the first time I've ever driven across an international border. We had Red Barchetta by Rush playing when we crossed over at Chief Mountain.

As far as cities and towns go, the town of Waterton Lakes Park was our favorite by a mile. Driving through, with deer walking down the streets, it reminded me of Northern Exposure. I pulled up to the back of the Northland Lodge, a house converted to a bed & breakfast.

A young woman was sitting on the back porch with a beautiful Taylor guitar in her hands. "Name please?" She tapped my name into her laptop and invited us in. I told my wife later that I felt like we were staying at a great aunt's house. Very, very soothing after hiking and rain and camping in Glacier. We cleaned up and strolled by the waterfall down to the pizza place in town.

...and saw a sweet Canadian Eurovan:

The next morning, I awoke to this outside the window.

We ate at Waffleton for breakfast (highly recommended) and headed up to the Prince of Wales Hotel:

I can't say enough about the town. The vibe, the people, the lack of crowds...Little did I know then, it was the anti-Banff.

Our next order of business was finding a car wash. The nearest one was in Pincher Creek. Finally, a (temporarily) clean Vanagon.

We then took Alberta 22 through the foothills to 40, through Kananaskis Country. It was rainy and cloudy, but jaw-droppingly beautiful. Thank you, Samba, for the suggestion. Talk about an introduction to the Canadian Rockies...The mountains are so imposing, shooting straight up out of the ground. Very different from Colorado. I didn't get many photos in Peter Lougheed due to the driving rain, but take my word for it!

The Trans-Canada highway, entering Banff.

Banff was a mixed bag. The park is astonishing, the mountains, rivers, lakes...There are no words. The town, on the other hand, was super crowded and difficult to get around in. Banff Street Brewery was good (our first-ever Poutine) but otherwise I felt like I was in a much larger Breckenridge. Speaking with a sales guy at Patagonia, he said their door traffic was up 30% over last year. So yes, it was crowded.

We got a bit stuck in Banff. The weather was very rainy and our campsite, at Two Jack Main, was just not good. I don't think it was the whole campground, just our area, that was in a state of disrepair. We stayed at a couple of different places there and went out on daily adventures when we could.

Poutine! Very tasty.

Nice '85 Westy. We also saw a PERFECT later-model silver tin-top Syncro in Banff.

The Bow Valley Parkway was fantastic. We went near dusk and saw a grey wolf! The thing was huge. It took three bounds to cross the road. Never seen one in the wild, and it was too fast for a photo.

"Camping" at a hotel in Banff:

Bow Lake...We hiked to Bow Glacier Falls, one of the prettiest hikes I've ever been on.

We decided to leave Banff after a few days and go up to Jasper. Further north than I had planned, and further and further away from home in the van. Slight anxiety, but OK let's go.

Here's a photo of the psychotic tour bus on the Icefields Parkway that tried to run us off the road for going the speed limit...Very aggressive, angry driving. Writing a letter to his company.

The Icefields Parkway was the most beautiful drive of the trip. Even if I'd taken good photos, they wouldn't do it justice.

We drove about halfway up the Parkway, still technically in Banff, and found a spot to camp at Wilcox Campground, near the Glacier Center. The sites were small, but well-maintained and private. The rain stopped long enough for us to set up camp.

When it wasn't raining, the mosquitos were out and aggressive. I wanted to thank whoever it was here who suggested a generic $10 screen from Amazon for the sliding door, it worked very well!

Jasper!

I'll wrap it up in one more post.
_________________
Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'04 GTI 1.8T
'04 Golf R32

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Available Now! Vanagon to Louisiana--A Two-Lane Reckoning Through Past and Present

www.josephtrussell.com

[warrenmzz]

Great pics !

Gear question. What size and make is the basket on top of your van ?

Thanks.

[joetiger]

The town of Jasper was more relaxed than Banff and a bit more our speed. Their weren't nearly as many tourists and the town just felt more laid back. And, we saw two great Vanagons in town.

We had lunch in Jasper, and my wife suggested that we go to a hot springs for the afternoon. The nearest one was Miette, about an hour north of town. I was not enthused, honestly. I didn't want to keep traveling north, but I trust Vanessa when she has suggestions. Out of town on the highway, we turned off on a rainy, twisty switchback road through thick forest next to yet another deep, rocky, amazing whitewater creek. The road went up and up, and opened on Miette Hot Springs, one of the highlights of the trip. The place was crowded with people from all over the world. Germans, Russians, Indians, Japanese, Chinese...The UN in the middle of nowhere. The clouds were so low that they were indistinguishable from the steam coming off of the pools. We met some nice folks up there. I loved it.

Leaving Miette.

On the way back to our site, we spotted a black bear off the Icefields Parkway.

It rained all night at Wilcox; we were up early to break camp and head down to Calgary to drop off Vanessa at the airport. She had to get back for work.

We saw this '85 Westy on the Trans Canada heading into Calgary.

After a nice meal and a hotel stay in Calgary, we dropped off Vanessa, a crucial member of the crew at the airport. I didn't expect it to take as much wind out of our sails as it did. Our younger daughter was especially distraught and I was too tired and probably too distraught myself to keep the expedition completely afloat.

We made the decision to take a direct route back to Denver. In retrospect, I should have stuck to my guns and headed west, down through Idaho and Utah back to Denver.

But, we did get a cool photo at the Bomber Museum in Claresholm:

And we stopped a Head Smashed In...Another great Samba suggestion! The girls loved it.

After that, it was a whole lot of hot, windy prarie through Montana.

Back in Wyoming, looking at the Beartooths from a different angle:

A long, desolate section of the beautiful drive into Cody:

...With an overnight at the Safari-themed Days Inn of Thermopolis, honestly one of the most unique and unmissable places in Wyoming (this was our third stay there.) Below, Lindsey and Megan dramatize what would have happened if the bear in Glacier had been hungry for people:

And finally, back home in Denver two afternoons ago.

All of that planning, research, gear...Things that worked, things that didn't, what a journey. Stories that we'll never forget. I don't know if it was life-changing in any way, but we packed a lot of adventure into two and a half weeks of travel in an old VW Van.

I have to also make clear that The Samba built my van. I've had very few innovative or original thoughts on this thing; I've taken my cues from what others here have had success with and applied them to my own van. So a big group hug thank you to everybody here.

2017 Pacific coast trip planning starts now.

Cheers!

_________________
Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'04 GTI 1.8T
'04 Golf R32

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Available Now! Vanagon to Louisiana--A Two-Lane Reckoning Through Past and Present

www.josephtrussell.com

[joetiger]

[kamzcab86]

<---- Seriously jealous! Someday, me and my van will make the same trek.

Thanks for sharing those fabulous photos and trip report!
_________________
~Kamz
1986 Cabriolet: www.Cabby-Info.com
1990 Vanagon Westfalia: Old Blue's Blog
2016 Golf GTI S
"Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance." - 孔子

[PopTopDreamer]

Terrific report & pics, Waterton is by far the nicest Canada Parks town in AB, Banff is spectacular but I always leave with a headache (unless we go during the off off season). Jasper is nice & mellow too.
_________________
'86 VW Westy, Brown, 4spd.
'82 VW Rabbit Karmann Convertible, 5spd

[jackbombay]