Visitors To Whitefish - Local Information
Located at the north end of the Flathead Valley in northwestern Montana, Whitefish is accessible by several forms of public transportation.
Access
The Amtrak train depot is right downtown, four blocks from Glacier Cyclery. The train from the east arrives daily in the PM, the train from the west arrives daily in the AM. The bus station is also located at the train station and is served daily by Rimrock Trailways which interlines with Greyhound in Missoula, MT.
Glacier Park International Airport, just 10 miles from Whitefish, is known by travel agents and airline personnel as Kalispell, and luggage destined to Kalispell is tagged with the initials FCA for Flathead County Airport. Despite this identity crisis, it is a nice airport and one that you can easily ride your bike out of or into upon your arrival or departure. There are shuttles into Whitefish and some motels have courtesy vans. In August 2009, Glacier Park International will be experiencing some runway closures. Find out more here : www.iflyglacier.com/runway-rehabilitation-aug-2009
If you plan to drive, the scenery on the way to Whitefish from every direction is fabulous. Why drive? Sometimes the flights into the Flathead Valley are filled. Should this happen to you and threaten your vacation dates, you can fly into other "near-by" cities, rent a car and drive to Whitefish. By car Whitefish is about 6 hours from Spokane, WA, 6 hours from Calgary, Alberta, 3 hours from Missoula, MT and 10 hours from Seattle, WA or Portland, OR.
Cyclists Amenities
Whitefish is ideally suited to a bicycle traveler's needs. Everything is accessible and it is easy to get around by bike or on foot. Within the six downtown blocks are a drugstore, the post office, grocery store, library, a wonderful coffee house, a brewery, too many banks, health food store, the train depot, bike shop (Glacier Cyclery!), a great selection of restaurants and lodging, interesting shops and six city parks, one of which is on Whitefish River. Within one mile of downtown to the south is an RV Park and Campground; within 2 miles from downtown to the west is a state park campground on Whitefish Lake. Both offer great tent camping.
You can ride into Whitefish, drop your bicycle off at Glacier Cyclery for repairs, walk to the store for food, and relax in the park with a newspaper or postcards to write while we make that derailleur of yours shift like a dream again. On a rainy day, lay over, spend time at the new library or sink into the leather couch at Montana Coffee Traders with a truly good cup of coffee, tour the brewery, eat at the numerous good cafes and restaurants or hang out at Glacier Cyclery reading entries in the Bicycle Guest Register. If your schedule allows, or your body demands an extra day off, there is even more to entertain and relax you like swimming in Whitefish Lake or riding the chair-lift to the summit of the Big Mountain at the Whitefish Mountain Resort. From the summit of the ski area are beautiful views south over the Flathead Valley, east into Glacier National Park and north into the Canadian Rockies.
On a recent cross country tandem tour, my husband and I longed to ride through a community that beckoned us to get off the saddles, and stay awhile. Whitefish is such a place, so plan your trip to start in Whitefish or schedule a rest day on your way through, I promise it will be a memorable highlight of your tour.