A Plant Lover’s Road Trip from Seattle to Glacier (with Kids Who Kinda Wanted to Come)

Get in the damn truck, kids.

We were leaving 3 hours later than planned and had a super long drive in front of us.

Five days, three kids (ages 17, 14, and 9), 1,176 miles, countless PB&Js, and one very happy Dirty (that’s me).

We drove from Seattle to the west side of Glacier National Park in Montana and back. We’d been once before, but you could visit a hundred times and still want to come back. 

We eat about a 75% plant-based diet, but I didn’t want our vacation to revolve around food stress like spending the days before we left cooking or hunting for plant-based meals in a state famous for beef jerky. At the same time, I didn’t want to toss our planty habits out the window or survive on gas station grabs.

So we aimed for a happy middle ground, and I’m sharing exactly how we did it. I also talk about one of my favorite parts of traveling: supporting local plant-powered businesses with three kids who “kinda” wanted to come.

Tuesday – Drive from Seattle to Hot Springs, Montana

On our departing day, we knew we’d be eating out of the truck for each meal, so we came prepared with sourdough einkorn mini loaves with blueberries and some with chocolate chips, but all the chocolate chip ones were eaten before we left 🤔. We scarfed the remaining ones down in the truck along with bananas.

Pro tip: Skip trying brand-new recipes right before a trip—or, if you do, make sure everyone tastes them before you leave. My daughter wasn’t a fan of the new breakfast cookies I made, while the rest of us loved them. Thankfully, I found that out before we hit the road, so I was able to pack extra snacks just for her.

First stop: Thorp produce stand and historic Thorp Mill 
One of my favorite road trip traditions is stopping at the Thorp Fruit & Antique Mall in central Washington right after driving through the gorgeous Snoqualmie Pass. We picked up a few ripe plums, and the kids each chose a locally-made road snack. Meanwhile, I was admiring the dried morel mushrooms—I had no idea they grew in Washington!

Our first official tourist stop was the historic Thorp Mill. My sourdough baking obsession was the main reason I wanted to stop, because once you start incorporating freshly milled grains, it’s hard not to become fascinated by the history of flour.

My kids were thrilled to discover the mill wasn’t open for tours that day 😑, but we (I) enjoyed walking the grounds and checking out the self-guided exhibits.

Pro tip: These kinds of “boring” stops (according to some) help them appreciate modern conveniences. We can buy flour whenever we need it—or even mill our own right on the kitchen counter. I’d love to come back someday when the mill is open for a full tour.

Halfway there: Cliff jumping at Tubbs Hill in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. 
This is the perfect stop to peel your eyes away from the road (or phone) and enjoy the sun. The kids and I jumped off a few cliffs into the refreshing water. Then we had PB&Js and the plums from the market and hit the road again.

Stop at Camas Organic Market in western Montana
Sadly, Camas Organic Market was closed by the time we made it to town, but I’ve stopped there before and highly recommend it to stock up on Dirty-approved yums.

Pro tip: Download your maps and trails beforehand. I easily forget how much of our country doesn’t have consistent mobile coverage.

Dip at the Wild Horse Hot Springs
We made it to the hot spring just after 9 pm and took a dip in the “fart water,” as some children would say. Wild Horse Hot Springs wasn’t nearly as sulphury as Symes Hot Springs in the same area, which we had visited in the past. With that, I lean towards off-the-wall places and am not really a resort / first-class kinda gal.

I felt great after a long soak watching the Montana sunset and horses grazing in the distance. We had to leave promptly at 10 pm, as that’s when adult hour started. The color drained from my youngest child’s face when I told him that naked people were going to start showing up. It’s definitely the fastest way to get a kid out of a hot pool! 

We ended the night with what Teen Dirty would call “25% of a charcuterie board” for dinner. I set out all our fresh veggies, a container of dip, and whatever I could pull out of the cooler.

Wednesday – Drive from Hot Springs, Montana, to Glacier National Park

This day, we needed to do a few hours of driving and a few fun stops. We had breakfast cookies (yes, they’re a thing!) with loads of nuts, seeds, hemp hearts, etc., and a side of blueberries before we hit the road.

Stop at Wheat Montana Bakery & Deli
It felt like Christmas morning when I woke up because I knew we were headed to Wheat Montana. I buy their white whole wheat often. We had originally planned to drive closer to Missoula to visit that location, but then I discovered there was one in Kalispell, which is much closer to Glacier National Park. 

So we hit the road, and I was so giddy about grains.

The bakery is not plant-based, but there were great local products and some grain mixes I haven’t found in Washington before. The pricing was great, so I stocked up.

In addition to flours, I got some wheat berries, which are fabulous to grind to make your own cream of wheat if you have a flour mill. Or, you can cook the grains whole in the Instant Pot and use them in grain bowls and porridge like this (wheat berries will add gluten). Lastly, one of my favorite ways to use them is to sprout them and put on salads or baking in sprouted grain bread. Yum! I held my bag of organic spelt berries like a newborn as I walked out of there. I set my haul down and demanded to be photographed in front of the sign (above).

We grabbed some locally-made jelly so we could have it for lunch, and the kids ordered a few things. We wrapped up lunch with veggies from the cooler and hit the road again.

Made it to Glacier National Park
We rented a parked camper so we had the freedom to cook within reason without the hefty price tag of renting a full house. We unloaded our stuff and headed straight to the lake to see the rainbow rocks and watch the sunset.

For dinner, we had pasta salad, carrot dogs, and an omni option with the condiments we packed. When traveling, I don’t worry about having multiple sides, just bigger portions of the mains.

Pro tip: I try to find places to rent with a bed for everyone, but with some properties, we’ll just bring a tent since our oldest is more than happy to sleep in his own space and that gives us more flexibility when trying to find lodging for our large family. We also choose places to stay with a kitchenette so we had the flexibility of being able to store and cook food.

Thursday – Enjoy Glacier National Park day 1 

This day was all about being in the sun and playing it by ear. One of us had a toe injury and another an aching shoulder from a recent surgery, so a long hike was out of the picture for this trip. Things were so gorgeous, I knew we’d make the most of this day. To keep it easy, we grabbed breakfast from Smith’s grocery store.

One of my favorite places in the world: Redrocks
We spent most of our day at the river. We usually veer away from crowds, but we saw a massive bear just a ways down the river, and I was paranoid because bears aren’t plant-based! LOL. We stayed on a busier part of the beach and jumped into super freezing but very gorgeous water. When you’re surrounded by such beauty, you don’t even get hungry. I’m still awe-struck at the clarity and color of the water. 

Dinner on the road
We pulled out at various spots and soaked up the views as we took the Going-to-the-Sun Road. We drove up to Logan’s Pass, which is the highest drivable point in Glacier at an impressive 6,646 feet. For dinner, I set out a variety of sandwich items, and we made our own with my homemade sliced sourdough and enjoyed our view.

Pro tip: Bringing a variety of toppings for build-your-own sandwiches, bowls, and other meals makes life so much easier with kids, especially as they get older. I ask each of them to choose at least two or three vegetables, then let them decide the rest. They get a sense of control over what they’re eating, there’s plenty of variety, and they can make their own damn sandwich while I photograph my bread.

Friday – Enjoy Glacier National Park day 2

This was our last full day in Glacier. We had bananas, yogurt, and leftovers from the day before for breakfast and hit the road quickly.

Hidden Lake
We did a short walk to Hidden Lake. We were so enmeshed in beauty. The pictures really don’t do this place justice.

Go for goats
We stopped for lunch and saw our goat besties. I would love to just be able to bend over and graze on grass as they do. Think of how simple life would be without all those options or having to cook! 

Kayaking on Lake McDonald
We finished the day with a smoky Lake McDonald. Only my sons were feeling like getting their kayak on, so we splashed around and made the most of it. 

We enjoyed dinner out this day.

Pro tip: We’d typically eat out only twice on a week-long trip and don’t put too much pressure on finding the perfect place.

Saturday – Drive home on my birthday

Picked honeyberries at Big Sky Honeyberries
Did my kids want to get out of the truck? No. Did I know what a honeyberry was? No. Did I want to soak in that Montana sun on the gorgeous farm before the 8-hour drive home? Yes.

The kids grudgingly got out of the truck. One in a hoodie in almost 90 degrees. Typical teenager.

The workers at Big Sky Honeyberries were so kind. We sampled the honeyberries, which are a cross of a blueberry and honeysuckle plant, but it tasted like a mix between a blueberry and a grape to me.

They were oddly shaped and imperfect, a berry after a Dirty’s heart.

The worker grabbed us cold water bottles, told us to hop in the back of the little farm vehicle, and drove us to a row of bushes that had some berries left. We picked through the end of the harvest.

We radioed the farm workers once we were done, and with stained fingers, we rode back to the farm stand. I took a selfie with the kids and realized I was probably the only person wearing an Ice Cube shirt to the farm. And my son didn’t think I knew who was on his shirt. 🤔

If you want to visit, check with the farm before heading out to verify their picking dates. They were only open till 2 pm when I visited, and the last day of picking was August 1st at the time of writing this. They did sell frozen honeyberries, but we were too far from home to travel with them. 

Stopped at Pilgrim’s Market in Coeur d’Alene
Good thing my teens voluntarily went to the thrift store next door, because I was a full-on plant-based paparazzi inside Pilgrim’s Market. 

The second I walked in, I made a beeline for the bulk bins.

I’m spoiled by the bulk selection at my natural food stores and Winco in western Washington, but Pilgrim’s Market had more. I loved seeing red rice in bulk, and I was thrilled to see untoasted buckwheat too, as my local store has been out. They had every kind of flour and grain you could imagine, plus granolas, spices, herbs, and all the baking essentials. You know you’re in the right place when the tapioca flour is fully stocked for plant-based cheesy sauces.

I stocked up on one of my favorites: Redmond Real Salt, which is mined in Utah.

Then I spotted the cutest little sponge holders. I didn’t buy one, but you know it’s a Dirty Girl kind of store when you appreciate the little kitchen knick-knacks.

The salad bar looked amazing, but my heart was at the kombucha on tap. Let’s just say I’ve come a long way from doing keg stands. 😂 I picked up the cutest growler. My youngest son and I sampled all the flavors, and we landed on the Orange Tahitian Vanilla kombucha. Cheers to another sober birthday in the books!

Their snack selection was fantastic too. I grabbed some date pieces, which make the perfect road snack.

We grabbed a fresh juice and some sea moss gel because we’re trendy now. We learned they make 20% of the products they sell in their market garden right across the street, which is impressive!

I was expecting a bigger tofu selection, so that was a little disappointing, but I did find a pumpkin seed tofu (Pumfu) scramble that looked really good. The fermented/cultured section was another highlight with loads of fermented veggies, fermented mustard, cashew creams, spreads, and more. If you’re into fermenting, check out our Sourdough Course and Miso Workshop!

Pilgrim’s Market was an incredible stop and just what I wanted for my birthday. I’ll be back every time I drive by this part of Idaho. 

Pro tip: We usually want a big stir fry when we get home, full of veggies, so we make sure to have rice ready to cook and use any fresh produce that we can find on the way home

Wrap up

Thanks for joining me on this recap of our trip to Glacier. It was loads of fun. It was a great way to get outdoors, support local businesses, and eat plants along the way. 

Plant-based family travel tips

Here are some of the essentials we often pack for road trips 

Cooler must-haves for plant-based road trips

• Frozen water bottles (we’d refreeze each night, so we didn’t have to buy ice and not worry about ice melting into water and then into our food)
• Fresh berries
• Lettuce (picked from our garden before leaving, packed in a hard tupperware with layers of paper towels)
• Pickles (once opened)
• Chopped onion 
• Cucumber (don’t preslice or it will get too soggy)
• Carrot dogs ready for throwing on the grill 
• Chia Pudding packed in disposable cups for the first morning on the road. 

Dry goods for eating plant-based on the road

• Breakfast cookies that I baked
• Einkorn muffins that I baked
• I often bring these cookie bars and these no-bake cookies for easy snacks
• Oatmeal mix (I love mixing the dry ingredients for these Cardamom Vanilla Oats. I use vanilla powder in the dry mix and add plant milk when we get to our location)
• Granola
• Nuts
• Trader Joe’s snacks (instead of gas station junk food)
• Rice cakes (my kids love these!)
• Granola cards
• Peanut butter
• Jelly
• Bread
• Miso squeeze packets 
• Pre-cooked rice and quinoa packets for bowls
• Condiments like mustard and ketchup
• Bananas 
• Small baggies of salt and spices
• Small bottles of Bachans sauce and Tabasco

Gear

• Bread knife
• Paper towels
• Ziploc bags and reusable silicone bags
• A camping kitchen kit with a cutting board—so handy. I got the one pictured about at Costco a few years ago, it’s a GSI.
• Large paper bowls and plates for mixing and serving or eating family-style
• Collapsible insulated bag and two foldable square bags, makes it so easy to pack things in and out
• Large refillable water jug to keep in the back of the truck. We’d fill it with ice in the morning and some water, and the water would be nice and cold by the afternoon we needed to refill our water bottles.

More plant-based travel resources

• If you want to see how our Co-Founder Molly Patrick eats plant-based on her road trips, read this article. It’s full of planty goodness, and I’m totally going to save up for a Canyon Cooler; those look amazing!
• Here are more traveling around the world while plant-based articles from Molly. 
• My plant-based family on a budget.

Happy trails, Dirties. Talk to me in the comments below about any of your fun family adventures or planty road stops. 

Brittany