Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the glass or bottle, plenty of Montana microbrews, and a dessert menu that will make you
wish you'd hiked longer. This restaurant is both a bargain and a find.
Two Medicine Grill
(314 U.S. 2 E., 406/226-9227,
www.whistlingswanmotel.com
,
6:30am-9pm daily summer, 6:30am-8pm daily winter, breakfast $4-9, lunch $4-10, dinner
$7-18) is a great spot for budget travelers. The menu has pretty standard fare for the re-
gion—bison burgers, homemade chili, chicken-fried steak—but the quality is excellent, and
the staff is friendly and generous with advice and insights on the area. Their huckleberry
shakes are the stuff of legend.
Two miles west of East Glacier is the
Bison Creek Ranch
(20722 U.S. Hwy. 2, 406/
226-4482,
www.bisoncreekranch.com
,
5pm-9pm daily, $12-29), an excellent family dining
spot serving up hearty steak and fish dinners, along with sandwiches for the less-famished.
The same restaurant offers a much needed service for lunch in the form of
Boxie's,
which
serves to-go lunches ($7-9) that include a delicious sandwich of choice made from their
own roasted meats, plus homemade chips, pickle, and a slice of cake. Those who need a bag
instead of a box can do so and exchange the cake for a cookie. Boxies should be ordered in
advance by phone or on Facebook for pick-up or limited delivery.
This place feels like it's at the edge of two worlds: mountains to the west, vast plains to the
east. St. Mary is a small village nestled between St. Mary Lake and Lower St. Mary Lake
that marks another entrance to the park and the start of the Going-to-the-Sun Road. With all
the splendor of the jagged peaks and the wide-open vistas created by sparse stands of aspen
and sweeping prairie, the recreational opportunities are abundant and the scenery spectacu-
lar.
Farther north, Many Glacier is the ideal base camp for avid and active outdoor lovers.
There are extensive opportunities for hiking, canoeing, and horseback riding. The popular
boat and Red Bus Tours are also accessible from Many Glacier. Grinnell Glacier is a dwind-
ling but still phenomenal work of nature, and daily ranger-led hikes take visitors up to its
toe. The Many Glacier Hotel is a historic 1915 Great Northern Railway Swiss chalet-style
lodge that welcomes guests with a rambling veranda and cozy guest rooms.
