Glacier National Park, Montana
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Grinnell Glacier Trail Glacier National Park, Montana |
August 9, 2012 — Day #10
This is the day — my primary motivation for this long hiking tour.
It begins with the Hikers' Special, a boat ride across Swiftcurrent Lake on the
Chief Two Guns that departs the Many Glacier Hotel at 8:30 a.m., for the
exorbitant fee of twenty three dollars (reservations advised).
My bear spray canister is long enough that the orange safety tab sticks out of my pants pocket. When I sit down on a bench, the woman beside me asks, "Is that an umbrella in your pocket?" Of course I must respond, "No, I'm just happy to see you".
The ranger will guide a walk up the trail
This is an unusual two-part excursion. The channel above this lake
is unnavigable, so we must get off the boat and walk a quarter-mile
over to Lake Josephine and catch another one. At the edge of the forest
is a reminder that some of the wildlife are not always friendly.
I am ready
Boarding the Morning Eagle
Once this vessel is moving, I await my turn to access the bow for some photos. That mountain over there stands more than a mile above the lake surface.
Lake Josephine and Angel Wing in front of Mount Gould, 9954'
As we approach the far shore, our destination comes into view.
We will be climbing to the top of the little orange-colored hill
in the center of this scene:
A glacier known simply as The Salamander hugs the Garden Wall
Grinnell Falls
Opting not to join the ranger-led group, David and I take off up the hill along with a dozen or so others.
Getting started
That photographer means business; he even has a ranger escort
The boat dock is right over there
As is the case on virtually every hike in this park, wildflowers line
the trail by the millions. Of course, I cannot begin to name them all.
Wild Bergamot
Beargrass
As we continue to gain altitude, the views become ever better.
First look at Grinnell Lake
The ubiquitous cascade adds so much to the enjoyment of this trek
A lot of bear grass begins to appear. I don't know whether the bears themselves actually care about it, but I sure do.
Bear Grass
Two cascades become one
Nice colors
Just ahead is an interesting challenge. Over on Going to the Sun Road yesterday, the famous Weeping Wall had virtually dried up. Now I understand why; all the water is over here instead. The challenge is to surmount this obstacle without becoming drenched, and without slipping off the trail on the wet rocks.
David and the other hikers seem not to be having any trouble in here, so I wrap up my new camera inside my poncho and plunge ahead. Opting for caution, I stay toward the right to reduce the chance of falling down the hill. I get wetter as a result, but with less risk. Oddly enough, there was no hint of slipping at any time; the critical stone steps are almost perfectly flat.
This could be the reason that the trail remained closed until last week
Once past the falls, I anxiously unwrap my camera. Unlike its late brothers, this one survives the ordeal.
Making sure that everyone gets through
David spots something moving in Grinnell Lake far below. It looks about the size of a kayak, yet there do not appear to be any occupants.
What is that activity on the lake?
Although a couple of other hikers suggest that I'll never get a decent photo, David loyally questions their skepticism; and my telephoto lens does indeed solve the mystery:
Still not sure
Aha! Just out for a morning dip
How's that for a hand-held shot at 18× zoom? Such a result hardly would be possible without the modern miracle of image stabilization.
This is really exciting
A nifty trail segment
Still some work to do
Just below the final pitch is a caution from the Park Service. I guess that in the past a few unprepared lunatics unsuccessfully tried their luck on the surface of the ice. All were males, I'll wager.
Actually, the glacier has shrunk some 40% in the last fifty years
The Garden Wall
A last push up the terminal moraine
Monte Marmot awaits handouts at the top
And there it is. Oh, my!
Upper Grinnell Lake and Salamander Glacier
Over to the left is the namesake glacier itself. Old photographs show this entire area formerly connected as one big icefield.
Grinnell Glacier, and the petite Gem Glacier above it
Pouring out of The Salamander
Visitors doing their thing
World-class hikers need a break, too!
While David is napping, I head over toward the big glacier, going as far as possible on solid rock in order to grab some photographs.
This is why I go hiking
Nice pool
Nice rock
There is some confusion over the naming of this place. Because it is no higher than any of the nearby attractions, it hardly qualifies as an overlook. But if one were to glance over toward the right and about eleven hundred feet up up to a low point in the Garden Wall:
Six hikers at the true Grinnell Glacier Overlook
The best single view in the park might be had from that lofty place.
Getting there entails a seven-mile trek on the Highline Trail from
Logan Pass, plus a grueling final ascent of a thousand feet; then you have to get
back. Alternatively, a one-mile side trip to the overlook could be
included in an overnight stay at the Granite Park Chalet.
Maggie Marmot is just as greedy as her old man
The views don't end here. As soon as David and I start down, we are treated to a vista that was behind our backs earlier. Swiftcurrent Lake and Many Glacier Hotel are out of sight behind the mountain on the left.
Grinnell Lake, Lake Josephine, and Lake Sherburne
Starting back
Cascade Beardtongue
A feeding frenzy on the Ranger Buttons
Back at the weeping wall, I stay more to the outside this time, a bit
farther from the deluge. The amazing blue-green rocks under the
falls prove no more slippery than before.
Wonderful colors at the dreaded falls
Approaching the bottom of the hill, we can see the 2:45 boat arriving at
the dock; but there is not enough time to catch it. Although we are
guaranteed a ride on the 4:15 taxi, we would prefer not to wait that
long. It's only two more miles, right?
We'll never make it
Watching for bears on a lesser-used route
As we skirt the Lake Josephine shoreline, yelling and clanging lest we
disturb a bruin in the tall brush, I am tracking the progress of the Morning
Eagle. It seems that we might actually be able to catch up with returning
passengers as they are dumped off to make the trek over to the other boat.
David, however, is unconvinced, and in fact we dilly-dally just long
enough to miss the final shuttle by about thirty seconds.
Passing us on Lake Josephine
Chief Two Guns leaves without us
Although there are two ways to return from here, I know that the
right-hand route is shorter. Along that path, I walk right
over the top of a little snake without knowing it. David spots the
critter in time for me to grab a photo as it slithers away.
"I'm outa here."
Finally, the appearance of the hotel is most welcome, because our feet have had enough for one day.
Many Glacier Hotel
§: Summarizing today's outing is easy. For my money,
this could be:
The best day-hike an American can drive to.
But don't wait too long to go there. The area's permanent snow pack is
projected to disappear within as few as ten to twenty years. When the
glacially fed streams dry up, this place might lose its exalted status as
America's most beautiful park.
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