Bowman Lake
We started by driving up the long, potholey dirt road along the North Fork of the Flathead River, which was a stunningly gem-like blue green. It’s imperative that you stop in Polebridge, if you go this route. The Mercantile there serves up fresh-baked items as well as a host of traveler’s necessities.
We camped at Bowman Lake, and can’t recommend the area enough. The lake’s seven miles long surrounded by mountains, and the trail along its north side leads you deep into Glacier’s backcountry. It can get cold there in the morning, even in late August. And the butterflies will investigate if you set your pack down near the head of the lake.
We set off early one morning past the fog rising from Bowman Lake to hike the Quartz Lake loop, which takes you up over a ridge to the southeast to two additional (significantly smaller) mountain lakes. On this ~13 mile hike, we saw a total of two humans. Plenty of deer, and we shared Upper Quartz Lake with a loon for a few hours, but if you’re looking for solitude, you’ll find it here.
The rest of the park
After a few days at Bowman Lake, we drove back over the long dirt road to enter the more heavily trafficked part of the park via the Camas Road. We scored a site at the first-come, first-served Apgar Campground – which was beautifully set out in large loops among trees and actually offered some privacy despite being a giant national park campground – and explored the rest of the park from there.
Stop in at Lake McDonald Lodge only if you’re fond of antlers and taxidermied carcasses. And watch out for black bears along the lake shore.
