A week ago we finally green-lighted a family vacation to Montana. My wife has been longing for a visit to Target and the closest one to Calgary is a nearly 6 hour drive away in Kalispell.
That’s all I knew about the area, there’s a Target in Kalispell. So I asked on Twitter what we should do, where we should stay.
@MisterYYC, John Smiley, recommended a place he stayed at with his family as a kid, Ptargmigan Village. It looked a little “70s-ish” but the price was right so I booked it.
I liked that the property had self-cater condos alongside a pool, playground and pond on the property.
When I arrived I discovered even more. There was a stocked fishing pond, private beach access to Whitefish Lake and each building totally surrounded by a woods, the rush of creeks cascading down the mountain filling the silence.
We stayed in 36-Windriver and the accommodations are perfect for a family of 4. My wife says “this is my kind of camping.” An allusion to the forested surroundings that make you feel like you are a Mountain Man in the wilderness, while still having indoor plumbing, a stove, freezer and fridge. Our unit was lofted with a queen bed upstairs, a hide-a-bed downstairs and a workable kitchen with everything we needed.
The kicker? Only $125 a night. I booked for a long weekend only two days before we needed the unit. What a steal.
We chatted with some of the owners in the pool area and found the property is popular with Calgarians getting partial ownership and visiting a few times a year in ski season and the summer.
We loved our 4 nights at Ptarmigan Village and will be back. Soon.
Dad. Broadcaster. Writer.
Three time Guinness World Record Holder.
I run the world for Team Diabetes.
Outstanding, my man! Glad you and the fam enjoyed it so much! Frankly, it was probably close to the 70s the last time we were there (early 80s maybe), so wouldn’t have surprised me if they were a capsule in time.
Our parents took us there quite a few times, as I recall, with varying numbers of kids (many were teens and abhorred the idea of being stuck in a cabin with the family, regardless the fun they always eventually had). I think we all have fab recollections of the time, most definitely the “camping” your wife alluded to.
I can also recommend a bitchin’ restaurant in Barcelona, should the need arise.
I can add that Ptarmigan Village is not the village it was in the 70’s and 80’s. We have a new Million Dollar indoor pool, sauna, and hot tub complex as well as the outdoor pool in the summer. The tennis courts were resurfaced this spring, the fish pond has been stocked, and we have 100 feet of beach on Whitefish lake. Most rental units have been updated, the roads are all paved with attractive street lighting and the new road to Big Mountain makes the short trip up to ski in winter, or to see the sights from the summit in summer makes life time memories.
And the upgrades are noticed. The pool facilities are gorgeous. Cant wait to come back and we’re even talking about buying a piece of a unit.