SNOW SNOW SNOW!!!

..... and I didn't get to play in any of it. (15 ..yes, fifteen inches in the last 24 hours at the summit of the Whitefish Mountain Resort in Whitefish, MT)

I hope I am proven wrong, but I do believe that we have seen the last snowfall of the year.

It could be that because the plowing of the Going To The Sun Road in Glacier National Park has begun (they anticipate full road to be open on June 13, unless Mother Nature feels otherwise) and I am looking toward the opening of the park and thus the availability to get the hiking boots on again.

or

Maybe it's the longer sunlit days and melting snow over the last 2 weeks that has me ready to hit the road on my 2 wheeler that hasn't seen daylight in over 4 months.

Whatever it is, summer will be here soon enough and even though GlacierAdventure.com has all your Glacier National Park vacation information. We felt it could be better. So Hill and I cuffed ourselves to the desk and watched the snow dump through the office window in downtown Whitefish, MT. We updated the homepage with some very cool hikes in the park and also updated our radio show page. Check them out, let me know what you think jay(at)glacieradventure(dot)com.

Obviously if you are reading this you know we have a blog, but did you know we have a newsletter?!? That's right, and if you want to stay abreast of all the cool happenings in the Flathead Valley, click here to subscribe. ... and NO, we don't sell, transfer, give away, show, tell, barter, post, or email your address to anyone, at anytime, for any reason. So sign up now!!
Also know that if you find our newsletter not up to your standards, you are only 1 click away from never receiving another newsletter from us ever!! .... I am confident however, after reading your first one, you will eagerly await the next. ... well at least I hope you won't opt out.

This week I have committed myself to hiking up and riding down the Big Mountain at The Whitefish Mountain Resort. I figured this (and maybe next) week will be my final opportunity to before I have to wait for next season. I'll try to talk Hill into it as well. Hopefully it is a clear morning when I do because I hear the sunrise from the summit is something to see. I'll be sure and have the camera so you can see too.

See you at the summit party ... 7:00am Tuesday or Wednesday.

-jay

Cool Day!

Yesterday was a great day. I started off in Eureka stopping in to meet, greet and hand out business cards. I also met a couple of cool people who gave me quite a bit of information on Rendezvous Days. Someting we will be covering and bringing you pictures, video and audio of all the happenings.

After cruising back down and picking up Hill, we headed out with the recorder and took the afternoon to record for our radio show Glacier Adventures with Jay & Hill on WhitefishRadio.com.

The first stop was 'New York Hot Dawgs' for some authentic, real deal hot dogs. Straight from New York, the cart, the food, and the ladies could just as easily be on Broadway and 21st st in The big Apple. Liz and Shari are behind the courthouse in Kalispell on First Avenue from 11 - 3 daily and ready to transport you 3,000 miles in your first bite.

Our next stop brought us to Mexico as we visited with Steve and John Espinoza at their tamale stand on Rt. 2 (near 4th st.) in Kalispell. It's an amazing story and you can hear it this Friday on Glacier Adventures. After feeding us, Steve sat down beneath the green awning, propane burners cooking away in ther background, and talked to us in depth about John's Golf Course and how he came to be selling the best tamales in the Northwest just miles from us.

And finally we ended up at the Kalispell Regional Medical Center to talk with Chuck Curry, flight paramedic with A.L.E.R.T. air aimbulance. That whirly bird is like an ambulance on steroids that flies. It makes me want to go back to EMT school.

... and we topped it all off with frozen pizza for dinner. mmmmmm

What a day! Make sure you tune in to check it out. http://www.glacieradventure.com/ and click on the radio logo.

Glacier Adventures on Whitefish Radio. Every Friday @ 10:00am MST and anytime on demand.

Fly Me to the Moon

Happy Spring, everyone! After what seems to be a trend of exceptionally busy weeks of late we took the night off and last evening joined the fun at the top of the Big Mountain at the Whitefish Mountain Resort for one of their Full Moon Dine and Ski events.

These fun evenings happen throughout the season, and are a great opportunity to see the late afternoon shadows across the peaks of Glacier National Park and the Canadian Rockies.

We had the good fortune of seeing a Bald Eagle fly right over the new high speed quad, what an amazing sight against the azure sky.

The views from the Summit House are expansive and breathtaking, offering a backdrop of Montana majesty for the perfect night of fun.

Be sure to tune in to our show this upcoming Friday at 10am MST on whitefishradio.com to hear the whole enchilada, complete with interviews, a play-by-play account of the black night skiing that concluded the evening, and a great slideshow of photos like those included in this blog. If you can't make it, enjoy the show On Demand (read: anytime the mood strikes), available the same afternoon.

Spring has sprung, and we look forward to bringing you some amazing Glacier Adventures!

- Hillary

Flathead Valley in a Nutshell

What another busy week here in the Flathead Valley. Spring skiing up at the Whitefish Mountain Resort on the Big Mountain. The Going To The Sun Road is open past McDonald Lake Lodge for cross country skiing and snowshoeing. With the warm weather here it shouldn't be long before they start the plowing of The Going To The Sun Road. I'll be sure to post links to the plowing pages when they begin. Thay have some amazing machines that move tons of snow.

After they get a bit of the road open they allow bikers and hikers to use it. This is a great time to get out because there is absolutely no automobile traffic. We are still waiting to find out when the moonlight bike ride will take place. You ride up the Going To The Sun Road, then you coast down it my moonlight and headlamp. It is amazing!!

We've got a great radio show coming up this weekend at 10:00am or anytime On Demand. We're going to talk to Jason Smith, search leader for Flathead County Search and Rescue. He'll talk to us about how to avoid becoming lost, what to do if you do become lost, and the essentials you should never hit the trail without.

We're also going to be talking to Jane Ratzlaff, the director of The Glacier National Park Fund. She will explain to us what the fund does and how you can help preserve Glacier National Park for our grandchildren's grandchildren.

The trail we take you to this week will be a combo trail. the Trail of the Cedars and the Avalanche Lake trail. Two very popular trails that are right off the Going To the Sun Road with a fantastic water feature.

You'll also go live on location for the annual snow rodeo with Jay and Hill at the Izaak Walton Inn in Essex, MT.

Oh, ... I almost forgot, we spent the first half of St Patricks Day at local watering hole Casey's. From 8am through our corned beef and cabbage lunch, digital recorder and all.

The new park page is up at the site and it is looking pretty good. We have tons of hikes to add. Stay tuned!!

GlacierAdventures every Friday at 10:00am. Go to GlacierAdventure.com and click on the radio logo to listen as it airs, or anytime on demand at whitefishradio.com

see you on the trail!

-jay

Snow Rodeo in Essex, MT

It seems everytime we do a segment for our show it starts off with food. This blog shall be no different. The Huckeberry Cobbler was the best I have ever had!

Today we went to The Izaak Walton Inn in Essex, MT on Rt. 2 between East and West Glacier National Park for thei annual snow rodeo. What a trip. They had (wooden) goat roping, barrel races on cross country skis and snowshoes and everyone had a great time. It snowed at the beginning and then cleared up with patches of sun shine that let you know spring is just aound the corner. People from all over were there, joking, laughing, skiing and just enjoying the day.

Lunch at the Inn was great. Hillary ordered up the chicken and dumplings and I have to say that she won the lunch competition. I had the pulled pork wrap and it was good, but I am not THAT much of a red onion fan, no matter how much you carmelize them. Next time I will order 2 orders of the chicken and dumplings so I can take one home when I am done with the first.

Dessert as I mentioned in the second sentence was, how do you say, ..... superb! Huckleberry Cobbler A La Mode, still warm from the oven. I guess now would be a good time to mention that The Izaak Walton makes all their food on premises (cobbler included) and they have a fantastic selection of regional food on the menu.

We will be there at the snow rodeo next year with one very important change. I will don my cross country skis and enter the competition to prove to you all that I am not a natural at this sport.

You can hear all about the snow rodeo, including interviews with competitors, the clown, and spectators too. Tune in to Glacier Adventures with Jay & Hill on WhitefishRadio.com

Also on our next show we will have Jason Smith, the Search Leader from Flathead County Search and Rescue talking about common mistakes people make when heading out in the backcountry and pack contents. Jane Ratzlaff from the Glacier National Park fund will also be joining us in studio to tell us how you can help preserve Glacier National Park.

Glacier Adventures airs every Friday at 10:00am(MST) and is available On Demand always. Go to www.GlacierAdventure.com and click on the Whitefish Radio Logo to hear past shows as well as current WhitefishRadio.com programing.

See you on the trail, or on the air!

-jay

Spring is in the air...

Greetings Park Lovers!

Having just turned our clocks forward in anticipation of warm breezes and bluebird skies, our thoughts turn to summer days in Glacier National Park as we prepare for another season in this incredible part of the country.

We have been working into the wee hours preparing content and scheduling upcoming adventures in an effort to bring you the best the area has to offer.

We are excited to announce the launch of our internet radio show Glacier Adventures with Jay and Hillary, airing on WhitefishRadio.com every Friday at 10am MST and On Demand anytime thereafter. Be sure to check it out! We make no bones about it, we aren't experts, but we'll have them on the show. You can look forward to learning more about park history, trail conditions, hiking in bear country and more.

Our first show aired last week, and our second show premiered today with guests Jill Evans from the Stumptown Historical Society and personal trainer/physical therapist Jason Falcon. If you are preparing a vacation to Glacier Park this summer, get started now preparing physically for the adventure. It is NOT a short trip from the couch to the trail! We also have a fun segment on the Flathead Lake Brewing Company, located in Woods Bay, Montana.

Speaking of trails, we also cover a different trail in the park each show, as of now you can listen to our experiences on the Hidden Lake Lookout trail and Okotomi Lake trail (bring bug spray).

CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE SHOWS!

Tomorrow we're off to enjoy more glacier adventures as we travel to Essex, Montana for the Annual Snow Rodeo held at the Izaak Walton Inn, a very colorful and historic place along the Empire Builder train line. We'll be sure to post the best photos so you can see the fun for yourself!