***Trip is closed! Contact Ken East to be put on the waitlist***
This 10-day trip combines rides on one of America’s iconic trains, the Empire Builder, with a week of hiking and paddling—or just lounging—in and around a jewel of the National Park system, Glacier National Park. Looking for a room with a view? You’ll get it from all three spots we’re staying. And two of our three hostelries are historic park lodges. Space is limited on this trip, so book early to ensure you’ve got a spot!
The trip begins in Chicago. We board our train on a Friday afternoon and spend the first afternoon traveling along the Mississippi toward Minneapolis. When we awake the next morning, we’ll be crossing the Dakotas toward our Montana destination for Saturday evening of East Glacier, on the edge of the Park. Once off the train we’ll pick up our flotilla of SUVs, which will be the source of our mobility and flexibility during our stay. There should be one SUV for every four or five people on the trip. That will give us great flexibility to split up our activities and daily destinations during the trip. Everyone must change lodging in sync over the trip. And most days will have suggested activities. But we won’t be doing monitored hikes where everyone keeps together. Even when we start on the same hikes, we’re likely to subdivide by pace and ambition. You can be as ambitious or as modest as you like.
We spend the first two nights in the historic Glacier Park Lodge, the railroad hotel opposite the train station near the park. Our rooms all have shared balconies and views. Sunday we’ll explore the Two Medicine area in the Park, including a boat trip across Two Medicine Lake, where many hiking options await us. We return to Glacier Park Lodge after our outings.
For a more detailed—but still evolving—itinerary, email Kenneth East at eastkenneth@gmail.com. I’ll forward you the current version of the itinerary. But you might want to go online to investigate the multitude of hiking options within the park. You should be able to find something that intrigues and challenges you—whatever your fitness level.
Explore the internet for more information about various components of this trip. There are many sources of advice on hiking, but Hikingglacier.com looks helpful. Google “Empire Builder” for background on this historic train trip. At The Guardian’s website [www.theguardian.com] I found the article: “Taking the Empire Builder train across America.” You can see photos as well as TripAdvisor reviews of all our accommodations: Glacier Park Lodge, Village Inn at Apgar, and Many Glacier Hotel. Also see TripAdvisor and other sites if you’re interested in the Museum of the Plains Indian.
$500 deposit due at the time of registration
Balance due 4/1/2017
***Boat trips are sold out***