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Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on....
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jimf909 Premium Member
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 7:38 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Hooray!!! I love this trip report.

Thanks.
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CanStan
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:12 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

joetiger wrote:


The next morning I caught the hotel shuttle to NAPA and encountered a very surly Monday morning counter person:

"Year, make, and model?"

"It's all custom. I need to see your molded hoses to see if I can find something I can use to replace this."

"We wouldn't have anything like that. We're a small shop. Everything's overnighted from Edmonton."

"I understand that. But I know you have a whole rack of molded hoses back there."

"I can't help you."

"I can see the hoses from here. I'm a long way from Colorado. Please, I need you to work with me."

Just then the manager came out, took a look at my hose, and with unexpected excitement, said, "Mm Hmm, mm hmm, I see. Give me a minute here."

He disappeared to the back and after an awkward amount of time where I stood with the counter person, he came out with a long, bendy hose. "It's the right diameter and the bends are close, maybe it'll work for you."

"Yes! It's perfect. Thank you so, so much!"

$100 CDN later, I was in possession of a fresh roll of emergency tape, a can of intake cleaner, and this beautiful, perfect hose:



That reminds me of every single time I've walked through the doors of a NAPA. Except for the part where the helpful guy actually took the time to find what you needed. I've never experienced that before.

Great trip report! It sounds like you had a good time! Sometimes all we hear about are the issues and problems people have with their Vans, so it's really refreshing to hear about the fun trips people do as well. And we get to live vicariously through each other.

You didn't miss much by skipping Lake Louise. It's an amazing place, but trying to go there in the summer (especially a weekend in the summer!) is the most chaotic and frustrating thing you can do. The whole place gets so full of traffic, they literally close the entrance to town and run shuttle buses from that overflow parking lot 10 mins away. When that lot gets full, it's pure insanity. It's hard to enjoy the scenery when the crowds are tighter than Times Square during the NYE ball drop. If you find yourself there in the spring or fall, before the high tourist season, it can almost be enjoyable.
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Jake de Villiers
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:32 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Terrific report as always Mr. Tiger: informative, entertaining and educational, with really nice pix!! Cool

As a Canadian, let me apologise for the dick at NAPA... Shocked
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Jeffrey Lee
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:35 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

joetiger wrote:
Should we keep going north? We had the time and the resources, so why not?

This was your only mistake. Never say such carefree and optimistic things within earshot of the van, or she will find it necessary to change your plans ...

AWESOME TRIP REPORT! A reminder of why we all do this ...
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mikemtnbike
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:43 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Out of the 6,000 plus NAPA stores, all but about 1100 are independently owned. I have a GREAT independently owned store near my house that has had a shocking selection of vanagon parts in stock (they're all out of NOS blue caps now, though...because I bought all 3) and another, also independently owned, near my work that I will never deal with again. So, the variability in experiences- in my opinion- relates to their business model.

Great report Joe, I like the update style.
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dobryan
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:47 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Great read!

(Rescue tape does seem to expire. All my tape was a few years old and it lost ability to bond to itself when stretched. Had to throw it all out.)
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IdahoDoug
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 9:16 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Thanks for the tip on aging rescue tape. Mines a few years old and I'll get some new before this weekend's trip to Lostine, OR (blatant plug for anyone who knows cool stuff in that area to chime in...).

I agree that NAPA stores are awesome. When I see a NAPA in a tiny town as we're on a Vanagon trip, I make a mental note of it in case up the road I have an issue. It's kind of like being on the ocean in heavy fog when the navigation buoys you are following appear in the mist every couple hours. Reassuring. I have had them lend me tools, let me come in back to use their shop workbench, and stay open a few minutes late to let me finish shaping a marine plug into a plug for the Van's overflow tank. I can rattle off a list of little towns that have NAPAs from memory. As the OP cites, I have also spent more than an hour trying to match a Syncro hose up with their extensive hoses kept behind the counter hanging. It was in Idaho, and he was kind enough to just lead me to the rack and turn me loose. I found a couple hoses that were perfect substitutes for pricey or NLA Syncro hoses and posted their numbers on Samba about 10 years ago.

Loving the trip report. You're in and around our stomping grounds and had I known about a trip underway I'd have posted some super cool side trips and things for you that we've discovered over our 25 years of adventures. First in our LandCruiser FZJ wagon, then in our Syncro, now in our Wolfsburg Vanagon. Stoked you found Maligne Lake.

Doug
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joetiger Premium Member
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 10:37 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Thanks again. I hate to admit it, but I'm such a Samba nerd that I have the trip report in mind when we're on the road.

Going south from Jasper to Banff is arguably a more stunning drive than going north, partly because there seem to be more turnouts for stopping and gawking. We were lucky to have another beautiful afternoon and could see for miles.

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We arrived in a very hectic and crowded Banff late in the afternoon. There were no campground spots available, so we stayed at a hotel in town. The hotel thankfully had surface parking for oversized vehicles; my nine foot tall beast wasn't fitting in an eight foot garage.

While waiting to check in, a retired nickel miner from northern Manitoba walked up and talked my ear off about how much he liked the van. Same first question as everybody else: "Is that thing really four wheel-drive?"

We had a good conversation; it never gets old.

We dropped off our bags and went out to find some dinner. Stopping by the van to grab a jacket, I found this:

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A fresh puddle, this time gasoline. I got some tools out and got under there. It was slowly dripping from the front hose on the fuel pump. I started prep to disassemble, then I thought, what if it's just the clamp? I tightened the sucker up and the drip stopped. Whew. I feel very fortunate to have caught it before something really bad happened.

It had been since Cody that we'd had Mexican food, which is unacceptable for my crew and I, so we went to Magpie & Stump in Banff. It's a very lively place that has an all-Australian crew of snowboarder waitresses.

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We gave the place great marks for effort and vibe, but the food wasn't all that great. We all giggled when the waitress brought my wife a plate of "polo enchiladas." I drank several Pacificos and had a giant pile of perfectly acceptable nachos.

The last time we were up in Canada, we kind of lingered in Banff. I don't know what the deal is; it's not the greatest town ever but it sucks us in, probably due to the need to be stationary after traveling so far.

Again on this trip we spent two days here doing absolutely nothing but walking around and checking stuff out. It's not that different of a town than Breckenridge or Estes Park in Colorado, but we just couldn't seem to leave. We ate, drank, had arguably the best ice cream on the planet at Cow's, and saw two Vanagons.

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Bow river at dusk

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Banff Springs Hotel...My kids are into haunted stuff and this place is supposed to be crawling with ghosts. But at $800 CDN per night, I wasn't willing to find out. It certainly is an imposing structure, though.

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We finally pulled ourselves away from Banff and drove down through Kananaskis Country to Waterton. We couldn't remember if we'd gone this route before, but if we had, it was cloudy and raining. This time, we again got lucky with a clear day.

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We stopped for a bathroom break here and there was a sign on the post that said "CLOSED--Mama Grizzly and two cubs in area."

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After Kananaskis, we were out in the foothills when a cold storm blew in and gave us driving rain and heavy winds all the way to Waterton.

As far as towns go, Waterton Lakes was our favorite stop on our last Canada trip. My fear was that because we'd stopped there immediately upon crossing the border, maybe our enthusiasm clouded our rosy judgement of the place. Happily I was wrong, it's simply a wonderful place. I think I want my ashes spread there (if it's not possible for my remains to be dipped in chocolate and shot into outer space, of course.)

We'd reserved a campsite in the town campground. The sun came out just long enough for us to set up.

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This campground is mellow and quiet. There were a couple of overland-type Toyota Troopies there as well, really interesting vehicles. I didn't take pictures of them. They're not Volkswagens.

...but this Saab was too cool to pass up.

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We had dinner at Zum's restaurant and I tried their World Famous Fried Chicken. It was pretty good. Not Louisiana good, but...

Back at the campsite, Megan learned how to Yoyo.

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Then we settled in for a podcast about the ghosts of Waterton's Prince of Wales hotel. We'd tried to stay there but it was booked up.

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(Notice the bluetooth speaker hanging from a magnet hook above the slider door. Perfect for camp podcasts.)

The girls all slept downstairs for the first time on the trip and I slept up top. It's nice up there, especially with a steady rainfall and great ventilation from the windows. I did wake up once in the middle of the night thinking I was in a coffin, but soon got my wits about me and fell back asleep.

The next morning, we went to Waffleton, the best waffle place we'd ever been before and one of our main reasons for coming back to Waterton. I told the staff we'd tried to replicate their waffles in Denver and had not been successful. They were pleased to hear it and gave us excellent service, coffee, and, of course, peerless waffles.

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I met a couple who were field researchers outside the restaurant. They loved the van, wanted to know all about it, etc. The husband had previously had a Hiace and said the turbodiesel was terrible in winter and he'd been looking for a Syncro. Nice folks.

On the way out of town, we stopped by the Prince of Wales hotel.

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It was like The Shining in there.

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I can't say enough nice things about Waterton.

After that, it was time to ride down to the Chief Mountain border crossing and back to the US. We still had a few things left to accomplish.
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Big Bull Shooter
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 1:39 pm    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Awesome trip report, thanks. Glad you were able to find that hose in Jasper, anything for VW is not available in town. Sorry about the surly NAPA attendant, I'm guessing it was the female working there? She's well known for her charm.
Also good to hear that you enjoyed Evil Dave's Grill, my friends own it!
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Slimvest
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 2:38 pm    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

I took pics on a trip for my samba post too. No shame!

That hotel lobby is awesome. Bottle of wine and I'd sit there and stare out those windows until it's gone.

Great trip report!
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 3:56 pm    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Big Bull Shooter wrote:
Awesome trip report, thanks. Glad you were able to find that hose in Jasper, anything for VW is not available in town. Sorry about the surly NAPA attendant, I'm guessing it was the female working there? She's well known for her charm.
Also good to hear that you enjoyed Evil Dave's Grill, my friends own it!



I love this about The Samba. Someone goes on a trip in their antique rickety VW (tongue and cheek here guys) and feels way out in the middle of no where basically ready to die if something breaks, but rather this community shows again that it's strong and wide spread. An experience with that NAPA attendant in the 90's or earlier would have been an old wives tale. The Samba brings it home and reminds you that you're not alone and that you should push on in your old VW. Makes me want to take a road trip!
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E1
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 6:31 pm    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Fabulous report, Joe!

You'll be pleased to hear that as I read it, 2112 is on... best viewing was 5th row center, Milwaukee, 1978. Cool

An aside... who did your pinstriping? I'll be doing three 1930s classics in Castle Rock by early September (including a Boattail Speedster and a Pierce-Arrow).

Looks like Louie's striping to me...

Glad the trip was epic!
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joetiger Premium Member
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 10, 2019 8:59 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Big Bull Shooter wrote:
Awesome trip report, thanks. Glad you were able to find that hose in Jasper, anything for VW is not available in town. Sorry about the surly NAPA attendant, I'm guessing it was the female working there? She's well known for her charm.
Also good to hear that you enjoyed Evil Dave's Grill, my friends own it!


Ha! That's her. I think there was a bit of "a case of the Mondays" going on as well, so I can't blame her for that. Let your friends know that their restaurant provided a great evening when I was in a bit of desperation about our next move. Good food and drink were the tonic we needed and that place delivered. I'm in the process of putting up some web reviews and I'll give Evil Dave's my best. I forgot to mention that I had a lively conversation with a very proud Jasper native on the way back to the resort; he was a nice kid who loves his hometown.

Quote:
You'll be pleased to hear that as I read it, 2112 is on... best viewing was 5th row center, Milwaukee, 1978. Cool

An aside... who did your pinstriping? I'll be doing three 1930s classics in Castle Rock by early September (including a Boattail Speedster and a Pierce-Arrow).

Looks like Louie's striping to me...


We also listened to Neil Young, Triumph, and Bryan Adams while in Canada (to the chagrin of my wife and children--I'm not a Bryan Adams fan but it's fun to watch the girls squirm with disgust from time to time. Smile)

The pinstriping is signed, "KolorCraft 2003." This van is from Upstate NY, and and from a Google search I found a guy named Lenny Smith in Syracuse who passed away in 2013 who operated under that name, so maybe that's it. It was a very high-quality job, although they used crappy clear coat on the rest of the van.

Quote:
You're in and around our stomping grounds and had I known about a trip underway I'd have posted some super cool side trips and things for you that we've discovered


Doug, I usually post a pre-trip synopsis to get ideas, but I was so busy trying to get the van ready at the last minute that I forgot to do it! Samba members have always provided us with the best suggestions and I fumbled that one for this trip.

*********

As I mentioned earlier, we still had a few goals to meet: My younger daughter wanted to cross the Going-to-the-Sun Road and to get a Glacier sweatshirt, my older daughter wanted to see a Grizzly (we had seen over a dozen black bears but no Grizzlies,) and I had to see the Tetons. I love the Tetons and can't travel to this part of the world without at least a glimpse.

Passing through Chief Mountain, we spoke with a tough but relatively friendly border agent who warned us about cows and horses on the road ahead. We made our way to the St. Mary's entrance of Glacier. The weather was cold and windy with very dark skies over the park.

I met this couple at the gas station, they drive their '85 GL out to Glacier from SoCal every summer to work in the park.

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Unfortunately Going-to-the-Sun wasn't opening until the following day, so we went as high as we could before encountering driving rain, a bit of snow, and socked-in mountains. It was still beautiful and still teeming with poorly-driven, rented minivans.

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We went back out at St. Mary's, picked up a Glacier sweatshirt (checked that box) and went south on Highway 89/2 in order to get over to West Glacier. With heavy construction on 89/2, I decided to turn onto MT49 and see where that took us, and I'll be damned if that didn't turn out to be the best route we took on the entire trip.

The road was in atrocious condition with steep dropoffs and blind corners galore. The views into the park, with the mountains dark and a storm raging, were sensational.

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I've learned over the years that any road that makes me giddy and my wife nervous is usually a good one. Smile

We stopped in the town of East Glacier for lunch but the only Mexican place in town didn't open until dinner time. It was sunny there, but as we drove up Highway 2 to West Glacier, the rain started coming down in sheets.

We had dinner and a slice of delicious pie at Glacier Highlands restaurant then went to Kalispell for the night. We'd wanted to camp somewhere, but it was wet and nasty out and we were beat. We ended up at a nice hotel by the airport and the girls were happy with their pool and hot tub. I hit the bed and didn't wake up until dawn.

We'd come back this way to avoid the east side of Montana. I'd gone through Great Falls last trip and didn't want to do that again, hundreds of miles of yellow foothills and prairie. Our goal the next day was to hit the north entrance of Yellowstone, cruise through with the slim hope of spotting a Grizzly, then get my Tetons view before overnighting in Jackson.

We got to Yellowstone around 5, and we naturally got to witness the worst of it. The full summer onslaught had begun while we were gone. At Tower Junction, a black bear was foraging about 100 yards off the road and scores of cars were stopped, people walking in the road, giant cameras, Rangers with bullhorns, the whole deal.

We picked our way through slowly and headed up the pass to Mt. Washburn. Our van and a big SUV from Ohio were the only vehicles up there. As we cruised up the hill, I looked off to the right and saw a bison...Wait, that's not a bison.

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(screen capture from my wife's Instagram video.)

He walked right past us, so close that my wife felt the need to roll up her window.

Finally, a Grizzly Bear, close enough to touch. We cruised out of Yellowstone on a cloud, a Vanagon full of happy campers.

Heavy Summer Solstice snow greeted us on the south end of the park.

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But then we caught this sunset over the Tetons.

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We made it to Jackson soon after. It was Friday night and the town was packed with people, except for the little Mexican restaurant by our hotel, the San Juan Restaurant. The food was great, the Pacifico cold, and it was uninfected by the scores of tourists that were everywhere else.

We had a tailwind across Wyoming the next day, followed by hail at the Colorado border and rain heavier than any I've never seen outside of Louisiana.

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...and we had to swing through the parking lot of the Mothership in Fort Collins.

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It was good to be home. We pulled into the driveway and I said, to the shock of my passengers, "I cannot believe that this Vanagon made it all the way there and back."

*****


Along with the coolant hose in Jasper, we had another mechanical failure on the trip:

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Two months old and it disintegrated like dust. Thankfully, a small carabiner saved the day and actually seems more durable and functional than the original piece.

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Here's the heroic plastic food bin turned coolant drain pan:

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...and the old girl getting aired out from fifteen days on the road.

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It was fun and gratifying to see that most of my ideas for this van really worked well on the trip. Having a full queen-size bed downstairs, for instance, was a blessing. And the new top stayed attached through wind, rain, hail, and snow, much to my relief. Smile

I have a few things to fix and some upgrades I'd like to make but overall I think it performed well. Most importantly, after being pretty upset with the sale of Tatanka, the family seemed to enjoy the new van.

Thanks so much for reading!
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'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
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dobryan
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 10, 2019 9:08 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Awesome that the girls are on board with the syncro. Very Happy
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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
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coqcitywesty
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Location: Coquitlam, BC
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 10, 2019 9:17 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Great trip report - we depart next Tuesday for a reversal of your trip starting from BC to Lake Louise, then Waterton, then Glacier, Yellowstone, then CO/UT/ID/WA then back home to BC. As we are staying in a couple of the same campsites, this was an excellent read. We are taking GTTS road from Waterton to Fish Creek Campground in Glacier, which I am hoping will be one of the early trip highlights. Fingers crossed for no mechanical issues.....

Thx for posting.
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SCM
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 10, 2019 9:22 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

joetiger wrote:

We'd come back this way to avoid the east side of Montana. I'd gone through Great Falls last trip and didn't want to do that again, hundreds of miles of yellow foothills and prairie


I did a lot of driving that way last summer. It has it's own charm but is an acquired taste. Even more boring is the ACTUAL east side of Montana (Plentywood, Sydney, etc.). If you do find yourself in that area again, north of Great Falls is the town of Fort Benton and it's well worth a stop for lunch and to stretch your legs walking around the river along Main St.

Shoot, dinner at the Grand Union alone is almost worth the 4-hr drive from my house http://www.grandunionhotel.com/dining.htm

Also, Rt 89/287 along the east side of Glacier / Rocky Mtn Front is a gorgeous way to get from East Glacier to Helena - at least in the spring when the wildflowers become enough of a distraction as to be dangerous.
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joetiger Premium Member
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 10, 2019 9:47 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

SCM wrote:
joetiger wrote:

We'd come back this way to avoid the east side of Montana. I'd gone through Great Falls last trip and didn't want to do that again, hundreds of miles of yellow foothills and prairie


I did a lot of driving that way last summer. It has it's own charm but is an acquired taste. Even more boring is the ACTUAL east side of Montana (Plentywood, Sydney, etc.). If you do find yourself in that area again, north of Great Falls is the town of Fort Benton and it's well worth a stop for lunch and to stretch your legs walking around the river along Main St.

Shoot, dinner at the Grand Union alone is almost worth the 4-hr drive from my house http://www.grandunionhotel.com/dining.htm

Also, Rt 89/287 along the east side of Glacier / Rocky Mtn Front is a gorgeous way to get from East Glacier to Helena - at least in the spring when the wildflowers become enough of a distraction as to be dangerous.


I should have been more specific--On our last trip up there we went from Lethbridge to Denver via I-15, I-90, and I-25 and I was losing my mind. It was hot and windy too and the Westy got battered around the whole time. I imagine East Glacier to Helena is gorgeous. East Glacier is a cool little town, one of those places we wish we'd had time to hang out in for a day or two.
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michaelbteam Premium Member
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 10, 2019 10:23 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

What a good read! Makes me want to abandon all my "important" projects and jump in my van with my dog and just GO! Thanks!
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danfromsyr
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 10, 2019 11:01 am    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

Kolorcraft Syracuse http://www.kolorcraftautobody.com/contactus553.py
I've never used them but Drive by them all the time
https://www.autoyas.com/US/Syracuse/1580520698944006/Kolorcraft-Autobody

think I 'vaguely' recall there being a van in the lot..
I'd have to ask my van buddy who lives in that side of town. he'd know.


small world. happy travels..
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jlrftype7
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 10, 2019 7:12 pm    Post subject: Re: Trip Report--Yellowstone, Glacier, Kootenay, Jasper, and on.... Reply with quote

My mom is from Washington State, so even when we lived in Texas, we were piled into a car or station wagon several times to head back to her neck of the country.
Tetons, Mount Rainer , Yellowstone, Yakima, Puget Sound, and lots of Idaho and Wyoming.
All in the early 70’s.
Nice to see your pictures, brings back some memories for sure.
Never saw a a Grizzly, but Black Bears were around.
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