USA 2023, Day 5 – July 3
“Updated in May 2026 with new information about the trip preparation.”
8:00 am and the two hardest dollars of the trip
The day before, a couple we’d met gave us an important heads-up: to enter Glacier National Park by motorcycle, the annual pass alone wasn’t enough. You needed a specific reservation.
JP, who among other things had taken care of everything related to the national parks on the trip, went online and figured it all out quickly. Every day, 800 slots were released at 8:00 am, three days before the visit date. The price was ridiculous — two dollars — but actually getting a slot was another story. We needed two.
So that day we had breakfast at 7:45.
Coffee in hand, accounts created, details ready. Watching the clock. Counting the minutes.
At 8:04, we had them.
Two passes. Three days valid. The last of those days: Glacier National Park.
What a relief. What a weight off our shoulders.
Yellowstone at 30 mph: the pace the park demands
With the passes safely in our pockets, the day ahead looked relaxed. The route was straightforward: ride down through Yellowstone heading south, exit the park, cross Grand Teton National Park — no reservation needed there — and reach Irwin, Idaho, where we had a cabin booked at Sleepy J. Cabins. In total, 319 kilometers and about six and a half hours.
In Yellowstone you can’t go faster than about 30 mph, and that makes sense. The park forces you to stop, to look, to let the scenery sink in slowly. We stopped to watch animals, geysers, to buy water and Coke Zero, to eat. We didn’t waste a single minute, but the pace was completely different.
At one of the geysers the smell of sulfur was intense. And right there, amid the steam and the smell, a giant bison calmly licked the rocks, as if it had all the time in the world. There it was, watching time go by.
Like almost always in Yellowstone, a couple of clouds appeared out of nowhere and it started raining. We had a rule: at the first drops, on with the rain gear. A smart call.
Here are some photos and videos from our day.
Sleepy J. Cabins: JP and the barbecue
We arrived at Sleepy J. Cabins in Irwin, Idaho, right on schedule, like almost every day. The property had about eight or ten cabins. Ours was perfect: two separate bedrooms, and a shared bathroom, living room and kitchen.
A lady greeted us very kindly and answered all our questions. Especially one I’d already asked over the phone the day before when confirming the booking: could we use the gas grill?
Because there’s something you should know about JP: he’s an expert at barbecuing. Not an enthusiast. An expert.
We checked it was working fine, and without wasting time headed to the town’s General Store. Please check out the link for this store — the beers they sell are a spectacle in their own right. We bought a good steak, corn on the cob, green asparagus and beers.
And then we saw something that, even after having been to Germany several times and to a few Oktoberfests, we’d never seen before. All I can say is you need to watch the video to understand it. It left us stunned.
The eve of the Fourth of July
Since the next day was the Fourth of July — America’s national holiday — we planned ahead. We also bought supplies for the following night’s dinner, convinced everything would be closed. Our bike bags were packed to the brim that day.
Back at the cabin, barely 400 meters from the store, JP fired up the grill.
We had a fantastic dinner. Nobody bothered us. We slept great.
Sometimes the best adventure of the day is good meat, some corn, and a beer in a cabin in Idaho.
📍 Resources and recommendations
🏔️ Grand Teton National Park — No reservation needed for motorcycles. Stunning scenery right south of Yellowstone.
🏕️ Sleepy J. Cabins, Irwin (ID) — Perfect cabins for two. Comfortable, well equipped, with a barbecue. Highly recommended.
🛒 Irwin General Store — Check out their website before you go. The beers they carry are worth the visit on their own.🎫 Going-to-the-Sun Road reservations, Glacier NP — Must be booked three days in advance. 800 slots released at 8:00 am. Don’t be late.
Route from Seattle to Yellowstone and Glacier Park
- 2022 USA, a dream trip … failed!
- USA, a dream trip 2, we did it!
- Seattle (WA) to Walla Walla (WA)
- Walla Walla (WA) to Lochsa Lodge (ID)
- Lochsa Lodge (ID) to Gardiner (MT)
- Yellowstone & Bear Tooth Pass (WY)
- Yellowstone (WY) to Idaho – Irwin (ID)
- Idaho via Salmon on the way to Missoula – Stevensville (ID)
- Idaho to Montana, to Glacier Park – Kalispell (MT)
- Going to the Sun – Glacier National Park (MT)
- Glacier Park (MT) to Colville (MT), riding along the Canadian border
- Highway 20 Along the Canadian Border, heading to Concrete (WA)