RV Road Trip from Denver to Seattle: One Day in Glacier National Park

August 23, 2024

The American Northwest is home to some of the country’s most iconic national parks. We embarked on a two-week RV road trip from Denver to Seattle, exploring six stunning national parks in between. Tag along for the second part of our journey as we travel through Montana to visit the gorgeous Glacier National Park.

Day 6: Drive from Yellowstone to Glacier National Park

After three days of camping in Grand Teton and Yellowstone, we continued our journey north through Montana. This corner of the country is dotted with towns that wouldn’t be out of place in a western movie. We stopped for lunch in the colorful cowboy town of Ennis, which managed to hold on to its western roots like it was still 1875.

Lunch at Gravel Bar Grill marked the last activity between the four of us on this trip, or at least that’s what we thought. After dropping off my future hubby at Helena Regional Airport in Montana, I gained my first driver’s seat time in the RV. Montana’s roads to infinity are a great place to get used to driving a house on wheels.

Stay: St. Mary / East Glacier KOA

Despite its remote setting on the border with Canada, Glacier National Park is very popular. National park campgrounds were full months before our trip, so we reserved a spot at the St. Mary / East Glacier KOA. Kampgrounds of America is the largest system of franchised campgrounds in the world. KOAs offer great amenities like swimming pools, hot showers, laundry rooms and full hookups for RVs, but we prefer the simplicity of national park campgrounds anytime. The East Glacier KOA does have a stunning mountain backdrop.

Day 7: Glacier National Park, Montana

With one full day in Glacier National Park, we intended to make the most out of it. We started at the Many Glacier Area of the park, a half hour-drive from East Glacier KOA. The shimmering glacier lakes drew us to the water immediately. A small boat rental company behind Many Glacier Hotel rents out kayaks, canoes and rowboats by the hour.

We rented two kayaks with the clear instruction to stay on Swiftcurrent Lake. But adventure loomed around the corner, and we couldn’t resist entering the small creek connecting Swiftcurrent Lake with Josephine Lake. We spent most of our time in the water pushing the kayak upstream, hardly advancing but just enough to get amazing views of the mountains.

After a picnic on the sunny back porch of the Many Glacier Hotel, we changed our flip flops for hiking boots. The Grinnell Glacier Trail promises 11.3 miles of panoramic views in return for climbing 2,080 feet. The trail rises above Lake Josephine and Lake Grinnell before coming to a spectacular end at Upper Grinnell Lake.

To reach the refreshing air of Upper Grinnell Lake, we had to break a sweat. I was fueled by the fear of facing a bear, following sightings on the trail by several hikers. Since we only ran into a bighorn sheep, my brother decided to give us a bear-scare.

The finale at Upper Grinnell Lake was worth every drop of sweat. We couldn’t get our feet into the turquoise water fast enough, but got them out even faster. Once again, my brother proved to be the polar bear of the family.

On the way down, we had the trail practically to ourselves. A perk of starting the hike when most people are already on their way back.

It was Murphy’s law that my brother was behind when we finally had our first bear encounter. As we were approaching the RV, we heard leaves rustling next to the side of the road. Just when we gave up on a good view, the black bear crossed the road.

Stay: St. Mary / East Glacier KOA

Day 8: Drive to the Pacific Coast

We spent the next day driving to the Pacific Coast, traveling more than 600 miles through Montana, Idaho and Washington. Much of the 11-hour drive is accompanied by beautiful scenery. Our road trip continues in The Evergreen State, home to a more than fair share of natural beauty.