Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park in One Day

The carful of kids wake up after a great night's sleep at Swiftcurrent Motor Inn in Glacier National Park, we will continue our trek north when we cross the Canadian Border on our way to the Prince of Wales Hotel later in the day. We have been on the road for a week after leaving our home in Central Texas to drive to Jasper National Park with my three kids and one best friend of thirty years.

Since the weather can be chilly overnight in Glacier National Park (lows in the 40s, highs in the 70s during the summer season) we open our room window to get some fresh air. After the kids get dressed, we walk to the Swiftcurrent Restaurant located next to the lobby and general store--they serve up traditional breakfast items from 6:30 a.m. to 10 a.m and have a kids menu.

With the SUV loaded, we drive a couple of miles down the road to tour the Many Glacier Hotel on the shore of Swiftcurrent Lake. Construction began in 1914, it's the largest hotel in Glacier National Park with 215 rooms on five floors.

Interior Hall of the Many Glacier Hotel.

Like Lake McDonald Lodge, the Many Glacier Hotel is an example of the Swiss Chalet style and constructed by the Great Northern Railway. The majority of the building materials were sourced in the park.

At the Boat Dock along the Swiftcurrent Lake

Many Glacier Hotel offers all the excursions you get at the hotels along Going-to-the-Sun Road, like horse-back riding, the vintage red bus tours, guided hikes and the wooden boat tours just in a quieter, more secluded location. If you prefer a less crowded option for national park vacations during the summer season, stay in the Many Glacier area.

Overlooking Many Glacier Hotel, even in the height of summer--it's a little chilly.

I wish we could explore Glacier National Park for a few more days but the carful of kids have a reservation and need to cross the US/Canadian border. Luckily there's a border crossing just for Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park.

There's the border in-between the US and Canada. 

After exiting Glacier NP and driving back to the town of Babb, we turn north and continue onto Highway 17 or Chief Mountain International Highway. Chief Mountain Border Crossing is a limited border crossing that operates in the summer only from May 15 until September 30 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

There are several things you need to consider when taking an international camping and road trip. There are several items that are prohibited: bear spray, poultry products due to recent Avian Flu outbreaks in the US and firearms. You can bring most food for personal use during your camping trip. I suggest checking the Canadian Customs website.

I pulled together a folder full of documentation for crossing the border, remember that the border agents have the authority to deny entry into Canada if they want to. I am traveling into Canada with my children that are under 18 with only one parent present so I want to have all my documentation accessible to make the process as easy as possible.

The carful of kids have passport cards, there are inexpensive ($40) and good for five years.  Passport cards are good for land and sea travel into Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda. 

Items I carry in my travel folder:

• Passports and Passport cards and a copy of Melissa's passport (just in case)
• Notarized letter of consent--see below
• Copies of the kids' birth certificates--I left the originals at home 
• A copy of our itinerary which includes the addresses of hotels and campgrounds plus their reservation numbers.
• A copy of our car insurance. If your state issues a paper car registration add that as well 

The notarized letter of consent:

• A statement from my husband stating he is a legal guardian of our kids with their full names, dates of birth, and passport numbers
• The full names and addresses of the people the kids are traveling with (Melissa and myself) along our passport numbers and dates of birth 
• The dates we are traveling and when we will return
• His contact information
• His signature
• Notary stamp and signature

At home I have left a similar folder with copies of all the information for Dad as well, just in case. I took pictures of everyone's passport and texted those to my husband and my best friend and traveling companion. As we learned on last summer's road trip, sometimes things go off schedule. 

We say good-bye to the US and approach the Canadian Border Officer-- we roll down the windows, pass them our passports and offer them the folder. The agent takes it and looks over the letter of consent and asks the kids a question. They thank me for pulling together the appropriate information and let us through after making sure we don't have bear spray and chicken.

After crossing the border into Canada, the carful of kids are ready to continue the journey. We drive to our next destination, the town of Waterton Park, where the Prince of Wales hotel is located. It is located inside of the Wateron-Glacier International Peace Park, 

Another Canadian province for the Carful of Kids.

The drive to Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park is an easy, picturesque 30-minute drive from the border. Rotary International was instrumental in joining Waterton Lakes National Park and Glacier National Park into an internatioanal park in 1932; it's also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

The daily admission is $ 19.60 CAN for a family or $ 136.40 CAN for the Discovery Annual Pass. We stop in the town of Waterton Park for a few groceries. The town is quite congested during the day and parking can be hard to find so we grab what we need and move on.

The Parks Canada national park system has towns with businesses inside the boundaries of their national parks, which is different from the United States park system. You can find all the services that a traveler might need, like groceries, gas, hotels, outfitters and souvenirs.

Perched on top of a small hill overlooking the Middle and Upper Waterton Lakes, The Prince of Wales Hotel is magnificent. 

Prince of Wales Hotel is an iconic hotel that I have wanted to visit for years and it's our next stop. It's the final hotel of the Northern Railway's Swiss Chalet inspired hotels that they built in Waterton Lakes and Glacier National Parks; it opened in 1927 and is perched on top of a hill overlooking the town below. 

Afternoon Tea at the Prince of Wales Hotel with my kids

The carful of kids walk through the hotel's double stained-glass doors where I have arranged a special Mom treat--we have reservations for Afternoon Tea at the Prince of Wales Hotel. Tea is served from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., with the last seating at 4 p.m. ( $ 29.95 CAN for adults and $ 15.95 CAN for kids 11 and under), I have been looking forward to this since we left Texas a week ago. 

"See Mom, I'm using my manners."

This is a great way to practice our best table manners and since it's in a national park, the atmosphere is a tad more casual. The girls order traditional pots of tea while the boys decide to drink lemonade instead; that's OK because they are trying so HARD for Mom.

All the trimming for Afternoon Tea.

Since we are in Canada, the tea offerings lean toward the traditional English--cucumber tea sandwiches, sweet and savory scones, shortbread, chocolate cream puffs and raspberry tarts all served with clotted cream. I am in heaven.

Dressed in the Royal Stewart plaid, our waitress describes each plate.

The view from our table is amazing as the carful of kids look out the floor to ceiling windows at the Upper Waterton Lake. We spend an hour sipping on our tea and nibbling at our treats with our hiking boots peaking out from underneath the tablecloth.

The Valet, wearing his Royal Stewart Kilt, takes us to the top floor.

The Prince of Wales Hotel is a small hotel with 86 rooms but stands seven stories tall. The hotel still uses their original elevator that you ring a bell for the valet to come and take you upstairs.

The Front Entrance to the Prince of Wales Hotel

When we reach the top floor we notice the building is swaying, a little eery but the valets assures us the building was engineered to withstand the winds. The chinooks can get a little intense at the Prince of Wales Hotel, reaching 75 mph at times.

The Chinooks at the Prince of Wales Hotel

As the carful of kids walk outside to the lawn behind the hotel, I grab the hand of my seven-year-old so he doesn't blow off the cliff. The winds are that crazy wild and the kids love running round. I could have happily spent the night at the Prince of Wales Hotel but the kids know I made a reservation for something special.

The kids love it but I really don't know how much sleeping will get done.

In the Crandell Mountain Campground of the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park they have authentic Blackfoot tipis that you can reserve. Last Mother's Day, I spend the morning calling Canada so that my carful of kids could spend the night in a tipi during our trip.

Bear boxes make excellent hiding spots, if I see a bear I know where I'm going!

The carful of kids are beyond excited as they roll out their sleeping bags. We are camping in bear country so there is a bear box and you have to practice bare camping. Parks Canada requires everything to be put away except your tent and camping chairs.

Parks Canada has an interpretive activity for the kids, like the NPS--the Parks X'plorers Program requires kids to fill out a booklet, take a hike or attend a ranger program. I find that the Parks Canada program is easier and takes less time compared to the NPS Junior Ranger program.

My youngest is a bumble bee.

Our camp ground has a great family program scheduled for after dinner so the carful of kids walk down to the amphitheater. It's a great program for kids and my boys volunteer to help out as a bumble bee and a night hawk.

It's been a long day and the carful of kids are ready to call it a day and settle into our tipi for the night.

Know before you go: Parks Canada starts taking reservations for their campgrounds in January for trips over the summer, check out their website for specific dates for each campground. Crandell Mountain Campground has flush toilets with sinks but no showers--you can take shower at the Parks Canada Townsite Campground in Waterton Park.

The sites at Crandell Mountain are well equipped with a picnic table, a bear box and fire ring. There are evening ranger activities during the summer that's great for kids. There isn't a dishwashing station, you have to wash your cooking gear in cold water at a spigot.

The Crandell Mountain Campground is more secluded than the campground in town and still close to all the conveniences of town.

Up Next: Banff National Park