As I mentioned in another thread, I recently got back from a 2480 mile road trip to Glacier National Park over the course of 6 days and wanted to share my experience. This was my first time doing a road trip in the XKR ('11 convertible), and it was one of my longest road trips ever. Between the two of us, we packed two duffel bags, a backpack, hiking boots, three water bottles, two lunch boxes, and an extra pair of shoes for restaurants and walking around town. I also made sure to pack extra oil and coolant just in case. There's an air compressor I keep in the trunk as well. We couldn't fit everything in the trunk, so we put the duffel bags and backpack in the back seat.

The car was very comfortable over the multi-day drive (15 hours one way). Occasionally, my lower back would tense up from sitting too long, but I have some existing lower back problems and adjusting the lumbar every so often would help. Over the 2480 miles, I ended up spending $381 on gas, which isn't too bad considering there were stretches where I did more spirited driving. If I had to guess, I would say I averaged around 22 mpg over the entire trip. Overall, the driving experience was very positive. I experienced no driver fatigued and didn't mind the 10+ hour drives I had to do on some days. The only negative aspect of the drive was that the car became filthy from dust, mud, and all the bugs I killed driving down the freeway (see pictures).

We did manage to squeeze a third person in the back when we drove from the hotel to the park and back. On some days, it was three hours of driving with three people in the car. It wasn't the best arrangement, but it wasn't bad either, especially when the top was down. Speaking of, we made sure to drive with the top down as much as possible. If any of you visit Glacier or that region in the summer, I highly recommend taking a convertible. It makes the park that much more fun, and some of the back roads in Montana are amazing for driving with the top down.

On the way home, there was a heatwave in the Montana/Wyoming area, and we drove for several hours in 100+ F temperatures, with a high of 108 F one of the days. I was a little worried about how the cooling system would hold up driving 90+ mph in such hot temperatures, but I ran into no issues. In fact, there was no loss of coolant or oil at all.

I've attached a few pictures from the trip. Unfortunately, I couldn't get any good shots of the car in front of the mountains because parking was very competitive in some parts of the park. The last two pictures of the average speed and gas mileage were taken on the way home and represent around 200 miles of driving, most of which were on the freeway. There were 20-25 miles of city driving and driving through construction areas with lower speed limits in there as well. Overall, it was a great trip.

 

Great post, ASB. I have been to Glacier many times and driving in and through is a highpoint. If you get the inclination, ride up Going to the Sun road on a bicycle sometime. Exhilarating.

Your car looks no worse for wear. I know you headed south but if you ever get to drive that way again, Highway 2 across northern Montana is very nice.

Thanks for sharing your trip details.

 

The pictures are beautiful. Are there any bugs still alive in Montana? Or did you get all of them?

 

I just stole your field with mountains picture for my wallpaper. You cool with that?

 

Great to read a 'TRIP' write up with photos. Spectacular scenery.



Interesting to compare the bug coverage on yours with this example of my 2007 after a fast 2000 mile trip across Europe.





Front bumper covered just the same but if that doesn't get them the aerodynamics just take them up and over the roof.

Graham

 

Great trip coverage and photos, asb! I'm headed up there in Aug from Las Vegas, NV in my 2010 XK; appreciate you removing all the bugs in advance of my trip! Quick tip: Carry a spray can of Lemon Pledge and some old clean rags in the car when touring; softens the dried-on bugs and makes them easier to remove, (especially when there are no car washes in the vicinity).

 

I actually did take Highway 2 for a bit getting to the eastern side of the park. It really is a lovely road. If I go back to Glacier, I want to do the rest of Going to the Sun road. When I was there, they were still plowing the snow, so much of the road was inaccessible. About 15 miles of the road were open from the west side and 13 miles from the St Mary side.

Haha. There were a ton of bugs in the park itself, certainly more than I'm used to. We don't get a lot of bugs in Colorado. I guess it's too dry. But I did also kill a few bees on the drive, and I'm sad to say I might have to also hit a bird. In my defense, the bird was in the middle of the road and had plenty of time to move. I still feel bad though.

Sure, go ahead.

Thanks for the tip! That's certainly good to know.

 

We did a similar long-distance driving trip to Glacier NP in late June of 2018, except in Mrs. LHR's Land Rover. Her cousin is a Montana State Patrol officer based in Helena, and we told her we were headed that way and were planning on driving the convertible Jag on the trip. She just started laughing and said, "No. We just had snow 200' above our elevation this week and it's going to be hit and miss if the "Going to the Sun" road will even be open up there when you get here this year due to the heavy snow we had this winter (it was). For the record, the Land Rover (Discovery Sport HSE) performed like a champ on the trip, but it's less comfortable on long road trips that our Jaguar XK is. Seriously.





4,823 miles round trip (Omaha area to Glacier, NP, down to Scottsdale, AZ, then back home). We did a BUNCH of sight seeing in between those destinations, including Zion & Bryce National Parks.


28.3 MPG for an SUV (not bad). Average trip speed for the entire trip was 59 miles per hour.

 

sounds and looks like a great trip. We have used the 2010XKR for some long distance trips, east coast of Canada and Newfoundland and annual trips Toronto to Florida and you really understand why it is a true GT after a day behind the wheel. What has made a big difference to the experience is a set of custom fitted luggage from Hillsalive in the UK. There are three "cases" that stack one above the other and follow the line of the trunk and two panniers that fit in the wheel wells to either side of the cases. You can simply pack a couple of days needs in the top case and take out that and a pannier of toiletries for the night (we do not travel light!). It is worth the price of admission just to see the smirk on the face of bell boys disappear as the cases drop in one after the other. First photo shows luggage packed, second loaded and ready for the Cabot Trail on Cape Breton..

 

You were in Ottawa and didn’t wave hello??

 

going too fast ! Next time for sure.