Brittany Originally, we had planned for our road trip to have one final stop across the Canadian border in Waterton Lakes National Park. This stop required a little extra planning beforehand. We had to reserve a time for afternoon tea at the Prince of Wales Hotel and also download and submit information (such as passport) on the ArriveCAN app. In addition, we had to plan an alternate route to Canada, because the main road used was currently closed. Basically, we had a lot of odds against us, but I REALLY wanted to experience that tea. So we did all of the aforementioned planning, and off we went.
It was a very foggy morning on the day of our drive to Waterton, but that just made the views a little extra special.
When we finally made it to our destination, the guy at the entrance thought it would be funny to give the obviously English speaking tourists a map to the park in another language. We took it in stride and just used other resources to assist us throughout our day.
Waterton Lakes and Glacier National Park are actually connected and are an International Peace Park. There is tons of information around the park regarding this. We parked in an area where we could see the hotel on the hill as we were in a valley with a small lake, named Linnet Lake. We found a path and walked around the water. The view of the hotel was truly stunning.
We still had plenty of time to fill before our tea time but not enough to do a long, strenuous hike. Upon looking up the best hikes in Waterton Lakes, I found Crypt Lake Trail was rated as the top “must do” hike. It seemed to be the Highline Trail on the Canadian side. From what I read, you go through a boulder field, tunnel, and hike the side of a steep cliff face (with only a steel cable as support) that ends at the beautiful Crypt Lake. It is only a 5.3 mile hike, however it is rated as difficult. As with the other amazing hikes from Glacier, the trail was not fully open, so we were unable to complete that one. We decided to check out the hotel, then stick close by and complete the Bears Hump trail. It was easy but gained elevation quickly and took our breath away quickly. Again, offering amazing views from the top.
There was a good bit of wildlife along the trail. We saw deer, bighorn sheep, and even little chipmunks.
Okay, let’s skip to the good part. The tea! First off, the hotel itself it immaculate. The staff all wear kilts and everyone was very welcoming and friendly. We were seated and given a selection of teas to choose. I chose the Vanilla Bean, and it was so delicious I bought three packages of that brand from Amazon when I returned home. We were also offered some champagne.
We were offered an assortment of pastries and finger sandwiches. It was very hard to decide which was my favorite because they were all so delicious and unique.
That is how we ended our 2022 Road Trip starting in Salt Lake City and ending in Waterton Lakes, Canada. If you get the opportunity to have the tea, take it. It was definitely one of my favorite things from our trip. That’s all from this adventure, but coming up next, we Goforth and explore Orange Beach, Alabama with our dog Ruby!
