Spoon Lake Front Retreat Just Outside Glacier National Park

Our VRBO apartment is approximately 952 sf in the daylight basement of a 3-story cabin featuring beautiful, handcrafted log details throughout. The apt is a fully contained, separate lock-off part of the cabin & opens to a splendid view of Spoon Lake. YOUR ACCESS is down the left side of the house to the door facing the lake. You have NO ACCESS at the front door next to the green bench.

CONFIGURATION

ACCESS TO RENTAL UNIT- When you park on the driveway at garage level, it looks like a 2-story house, but around the left side of the house there is a 3rd lower level & private access to the VRBO rental apartment below. The entry door to the rental unit is facing the lake. Please DO NOT drive down the side or park below. You DON'T need to park in the public access on the garage side of the property but please park in driveway just off the asphalt so as not to block the garage or owner parking in front of the cabin.

LOWER FLOOR: THIS IS THE FLOOR YOU WILL BE RENTING. The stairway to the main house above is completely locked-off for your privacy. The apartment unit includes a cozy sitting area around gas rock fireplace (Queen sleeper sofa), full kitchen, full laundry, steam shower bathroom, 1 bedroom w/ Queen bed. The kitchen has a breakfast bar. There is a folding 'Moose' table if you wish to use a table for dining or games inside & there is a patio table w/ 4 chairs + a BBQ w/ propane provided. Feel free to use the red Adirondack chairs. Relax in a 2-person heart-shaped Nordic Hot Tub outside your bedroom window while enjoying the birds & lake view. You will have exclusive use of the hot tub during your rental period. You will have complete privacy, so enjoy 'Suits Optional' as desired. Bathrobes are provided for your use in the bedroom closet.

MIDDLE FLOOR: (OWNERS ONLY!) This is at garage level. Your access code will not work at this front door. GO down & around on the left side of the cabin. We may or may not be present during your stay. Just so you know the configuration, the main kitchen, living room, powder bathroom is located above the Lower Floor rental. We spend most of our time on the top floor except for dining. Parking immediately outside the front door is for owners only please.

TOP FLOOR: (OWNERS ONLY!) We may or may not be present during your stay.
Just so you know the configuration the entire top floor is the master bedroom, TV lounge & master bathroom & this is where we spend most of our time when guests are present except for cooking & dining.

RESERVATION OPTIONS

At this time, we are only offering the Lower Floor as a VRBO.

WELCOME TO SPOON LAKE

Walk out the door to 2 kayaks or a canoe & listen to the loons sing their greetings on this quiet, serene mountain-surrounded lake. Most summers, we love watching rare mating pairs of loons that nest on the far side of the lake. If they are nesting the Fish, Wildlife & Parks set out white buoys along the far shore that asks you not to go within the space. There are only about 80 mating pairs in the entire state of Montana, so it is a treat to hear them. We occasionally see groups of 5-8 at a time. Bird lovers may also hear both Pileated Woodpeckers, Stellar Jays, Northern Flickers, Robins, Mallard Ducks, Canada Geese, & we have seen Trumpeter Swans on occasion in the spring or fall. Enjoy hummingbirds & keep an eye out for those Bald Eagles & Osprey that often battle each other in the skies over the lake. Seeing them dive or swoop down into the water for a fish is an exhilarating thrill. We have seen muskrats, a few beaver sightings & once a moose cow & her calf strolled the shore to the right & swam from point to point and then the far side brushy area to the left.

We are adjacent to Glacier National Park & surrounded by the Flathead National Forest. Always be vigilant for other wild animals like bear, mountain lions, coyotes, wolves, moose & deer at all times. We recommend you hike w/ Bear Spray. We DO NOT guarantee any of the leftover cannisters you may find in the bathroom top shelf, if any. It can be rented in Apgar inside the park or at the airport and other outlets. They are not allowed on airplanes.

If timing is right, huckleberries may be found on the property or nearby woods. If you're lucky, Jo may provide you w/ some fresh huckleberry muffins or the like. Enjoy the BBQ & outdoor eating options overlooking the lake. If you prefer, please enjoy eating at the picnic table & play badminton if the net is up in the 'meadow'. Enjoy a refreshing swim off the private floating dock. PLEASE NO DIVING because it's too shallow!!! The barge w/ the trolling motor is for the OWNERS ONLY. Spoon Lake features glacier-fed, underground springs gurgling up in the far, left end of the lake, easily explored w/ the kayaks or canoe,

When you are ready to explore the vast million-acre Glacier National Park you are only 20 minutes from the West Glacier gate. Take the shortcut across Blankenship Bridge where the legendary North Fork & Middle Fork of the Flathead River meet. Explore some of Montana's finest fishing holes & whitewater rivers, or hike Glacier Park's magnificent peaks, waterfalls & glacial valleys in God's Country. Historic Polebridge is 29 miles up the North Fork Road (Hwy 486) past Lake Drive which is also the gateway to the North Fork GNP entry. You can also access GNP at the Camas Road entry halfway up to Polebridge which is a backdoor entrance to Apgar Village. The full spring opening & fall closing of the Going to the Sun Road (GTTSR) varies every year depending on the park service maintenance crews snow clearing efforts.

Some kind of park pass is required to enter any part of GNP, but as of the summer of 2025, the GNP vehicle reservation system is also in effect at park entrances at West Glacier on the west side of Going to the Sun Road, at Polebridge & Many Glacier. This year only a park pass without the additional entry RSVP is needed to enter Going to the Sun Road at St Mary's on the east side and at Two Medicine. VERY IMPORTANT you visit the GNP website for reservation details to access the park & view road conditions. You MUST HAVE BOTH a park pass PLUS a vehicle reservation to enter the park where noted. As you will read, there are other ways to secure access if you reserve a campground, reserve a boat trip or horseback ride, rent a boat or kayak, etc. PLEASE REVIEW CAREFULLY.

We also HIGHLY recommend that you reserve a vehicle rental in advance. If you can't find a rental at the airport various auto dealers may be leasing cars & the Turo.com website offering privately rented vehicles to fill the void.

Many other exciting opportunities await you throughout the Flathead Valley & beyond. Explore trendy Whitefish boutiques & restaurants, the Whitefish Lake Lodge Resort Marina, providing watercraft rentals of all kinds PLUS the lakefront Tiki Bar & Grill, & the Whitefish Resort at Big Mountain for summer gondola rides & mountain biking w/ spectacular 360-degree views as your reward. Bigfork art galleries, summer playhouse or Flathead Lake activities are only 30 minutes south. Some of our guests have hired fishing guides on Flathead Lake & it's a beautiful drive around Flathead Lake especially during cherry picking season in July. We also love the Far West boat tour of Flathead Lake and the Alpine Coaster both in Lakeside.

We are 8.5 miles north of casual, laid-back Columbia Falls featuring the Three Forks Grille, the Gunsight Bar & Grill that includes outdoor picnic style seating w/ frequent live music, Up Town Hearth, Vaqueros, the Nite Owl & their Back Room Diner for dinner. Other eateries are scattered in Columbia Falls & from West Glacier to Whitefish. The Isaak Walton Inn & the Belton Chalet are historic sites with some fine dining & drinking establishments worth considering. There are numerous Food Trucks providing a wide variety of eats, especially throughout the summer at the Community Market every Thursday, next to St Richards Catholic Church. Everyone loves Uptown Hearth, Montana Coffee Traders or any number of coffee huts. We especially like the baristas at Friske Bean next to the Columbia Nursery on Hwy 2. You can find Smith's Grocery store on Nucleus in the original downtown of Columbia Falls, closest to us & Super 1 out on the hwy. The Perfect Cuts butcher shop also has a great selection of meats to bbq.

When your day is done exploring this magnificent part of Montana, our guests always say chilling at Spoon Lake is the perfect way to relax & reflect on your adventures, especially if you enjoy a steam shower or an *outdoor hot tub au natural. (*subject to unexpected equipment repairs)

We hope you will make wonderful memories at Spoon Lake just as we have. There have been a number of folks who are repeat visitors, especially honeymooners. One of our guest couples has been back for the 6th year in a row the summer of 2025.