The Great American Road Trip: Part 2
- Melissa Meares
- Nov 17, 2024
- 6 min read
Updated: Jan 21
Glacier, Banff, PNW, and Redwoods
Welcome back to our National Park road trip that my husband, dog, and I took which spanned 5 weeks, 19 states, and 13 National Parks! If you missed part 1 where we visited the Badlands, Grand Teton, and Yellowstone, you can read it here. In part 2 we will traverse Montana, Alberta and British Columbia Canada, and Washington. If you want to watch our van build you can see that here!
Montana
Montana was a beautiful state to drive through and one of my absolute favorite places we camped was right on the Missouri River. Because it was shoulder season, the campground was open but free (there is a fee during peak season) and completely empty- we had the entire campground to ourselves! It is called White Earth Campground and the coordinates are N 46°31'23.76", W 111°35'20.88"
Glacier National Park, Montana
Glacier was the park I was most looking forward to and honestly the most disappointing. BUT HEAR ME OUT: only because we were too late in the season. Our trip spanned October and November and the only place that was truly past peak fall colors was Northern Montana. If we were a few weeks later and it had snowed, I'm sure it would turn into an absolute winter wonderland. I will definitely be back in the summer because from seeing photos from earlier in the year, it truly looks like one of the most beautiful national parks in the country.
If you visit Glacier, be sure to drive the Going to the Sun Road, which is the only road that cuts through the park. It is important to note that not all of the park entrances will take you all the way into the park or connect. Some of the entrances, like the Two Medicine entrance, are dead ends (pictured above!).
The entire east side of Glacier is bordered by the Blackfeet Indian Reservation and they do not allow any wild camping, so we paid to camp at Saint Mary Campground in Glacier. The Going to the Sun Road is absolutely stunning, although it was probably the scariest road we drove on on our trip. This was partly because it was raining heavily that day and partly because there were minimal guard rails.
Banff National Park, AB, Canada
If there is only one place from our road trip that I would want everyone to visit, it is Banff. Kyle and I came to Banff for Christmas in 2022 and it is an absolutely magical winter wonderland in the winter. We stayed at Lake Louise for most of our time in Banff on this trip. I didn't know how fall would be but we both agreed that fall is even more stunning because you can see the deep turquoise of Lake Louise. There are trails you can follow along Lake Louise that take you to two tea houses if you go far enough (they are closed in the winter).
I could talk about Banff all day because it is probably the most magical place I've ever visited. But alas, I must move on (but I'll leave a few more photos at the end).
North Cascades National Park, Washington
From Banff, we drove through the rocky mountains into Washington to visit North Cascades National Park, Seattle, and Mt Rainier National Park. We got to see some "snowliage", which is where the top half of the mountain has snow, and the bottom half still has fall foliage.
We went to North Cascades, sort of. But technically we did not actually set foot in the park. North Cascades is actually split into two halves and divided by the main highway and the Ross Lake National Recreation Area. So technically the only way to enter the park is to hike for a couple of miles into the park.
The drive through "North Cascades" (it was really Ross Lake Recreation area) had a very ethereal feel to it. It was very misty and rainy and covered in thick foliage with steep rock faces and waterfalls throughout. I can't imagine how gorgeous the hikes are! We will definitely be back when we can try some hikes without Dolly (our doodle!)
Seattle, WA and Mt. Rainier National Park (almost)
Kyle and I stopped in Seattle only long enough to share a Dungeness Crab roll and walk along the shore (and see a proposal - you'll have to watch that on our YouTube Channel!)
We also drove to Mt. Rainier that day but unfortunately, we didn't see it due to fog. Fun fact: when I was a kid we visited Mt. Rainier in the summer when it was still covered in snow, but very warm. I got mad at my parents for an unremembered discretion and to pout, I sat down in the snow, getting my pants completely soaked, resulting in my mother trying to help me dry my cold denim-clad booty with a hand dryer in the bathroom. It did not work. Bless her.
Vancouver, WA
We stopped in Vancouver (a suburb of Portland, OR) for a few days to visit our friend Noah. We spent a lovely day getting brunch and walking around Camas and then hiked at Lacamas Lake (they allow dogs!) Camas felt very Stars Hollow and had so many cute stores! We had brunch at Natalia's cafe and I had the best waffles of my entire life.
Driving the Oregon & California Coast (Highway 101)
Kyle's main request for this portion of our trip was to drive down the 101, sometimes known as the Oregon Coast Highway or the Pacific Coast Highway.
We stopped at Haystack Rock on Cannon Beach for a morning stroll, drove down the coast all morning, and then stopped for lunch at this stunning viewpoint. Everything was going perfectly until...
... the van started smoking, power steering shut off, and we had to be towed to a mechanic. Finding a mechanic that could take a diesel Sprinter van AND wasn't booked out for weeks was a miracle in and of itself. To make a long story short, the serpentine belt seized up and broke, which caused damage to several other parts. We ended up being at the mechanic from Tuesday - Friday. Luckily we had filled up our water tank and had plenty of groceries, because yeah, we still stayed in our van at the mechanic. One of the cons of your car also being your house.
We continued on our way down the coast and stopped for a sunset walk along the beach. We found a pullout on the 101 that allowed overnight camping and so we were able to sleep along the ocean that night. We were parked next to "Thor's Well," which is a sinkhole in the ocean that swallows the waves.
Thor's Well, our campsite for the night, and Kyle and Dolly overlooking Thor's Well
Redwood National & State Parks, CA
I will end today's post in the Redwood forests of Northern California. The redwood forests contain most of the tallest and oldest trees in the world. The history of the colonization of the redwood forests is horrific. The hunting and killing of the indigenous people was legalized and paid for by the government when the land was being settled in the mid-1800s. Those tribes were displaced and only in 2022 was a small portion of land returned to them. In addition, only 5% of the old-growth redwood trees remain today due to excessive deforestation.
Despite its dark history, the Redwoods are a very peaceful and beautiful place to visit (and the smell is divine!) I highly recommend driving through Howland Hill Road, which was our favorite scenic drive in the parks.
Thanks for being here, and a big thank you for making it this far! Stay tuned next Sunday for the 3rd and final part, where we will travel to Arizona, Utah, and Colorado.
A few other pictures I can't resist sharing
Have you visited any of these spots? Let me know in the comments!
xoxo,
Melissa
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