I'm back from Glacier National Park (with pics)!

I just got back yesterday from a wonderful trip: 2 days in Boulder and environs and 6 days in Glacier National Park. I wanted to thank all of you who gave me suggestions on what to do--they were quite helpful and we managed to do many of the hikes you ladies suggested. The mountains, lakes, rocks, glaciers--everything was stunning and it was so wonderful to being in fresh-smelling, beautiful nature. It was cold/rainy on some of the days but fortunately I had packed for it so hiking in those conditions wasn't too bad.

I am however glad to be back--my right knee is quite sore after 5 days of hiking 10 miles on average, over rocky and sometimes steep terrain--even our "rest day" was 7.7 miles of hiking. And I think I am getting too old to stay in hostels with tiny, shared bathrooms and no heat We stayed two days in a VRBO (like Airbnb) near West Glacier and did the next three nights in a hostel in East Glacier. Last night was in a motel near the airport. Not camping made things easier as we were flying in, plus it was quite cold some of the days we were there.

A list of the hikes we did:

Monday (day we flew in): walked to Lake McDonald; Oxbow Trail
Tuesday: Apgar Lookout (morning), Avalanche Creek (afternoon)
Wednesday: drove to Logan Pass, took the shuttle to the Loop, did the Loop trail and then the Highline Trail
Thursday: hike to St. Mary Falls and then to Virginia Falls
Friday: hike to Grinnell Glacier
Saturday: hike to Iceberg Lake, drove west on the Going to the Sun Road

And photos below!

Photo 1: deer seen on the Oxbow trail
Photos 2-3: views from the Apgar Lookout
Photo 4: Avalanche Gorge
Photo 5: Avalanche Lake
Photo 6: One of a pair of bighorn sheep who crossed our path on the Highline trail
Photo 7-8: The astonishing interplay of light and clouds on the highline trail. Heaven's Peak drifting in and out of the clouds.
Photo 9: the view from Logan Pass at twilight
Photo 10: One of 8 (!) rainbows we saw in one day!
Photo 11: The hazard of driving in Montana: cows on the road. Pretty scary at night, especially with black cows on a black road with no street lights.
Photos 12-13. Views from the Many Glacier area
Photo 14: a moose bathing in Lake Josephine
Photo 15:
Photo 16-17: Lake Grinnell, with the characteristic turquoise color of glacial runoff
Photo 18: Grinnell Glacier. Pretty small now
Photo 19-20: a bear we saw from the safety of our car!
Photo 21: another view from Many Glacier
Photo 22: Iceberg Lake

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7 years ago

rabbit

Veteran

So beautiful! Thanks for sharing. What is mr bear chewing on? Or maybe he's scent marking?

crazyone

Rabbit, I'm not sure--whatever it was, he seemed to be eating it ravenously though

Eliza

Gorgeous pics! Glad that you were able to enjoy the trip; that turquoise water is amazing and so is the wildlife. You must need a rest from your vacation.

Sisi

Beautiful pictures! Thank you.What wonderful places.

Astrid

Beautiful pictures! Thanks for sharing them with us.

kerry

Stunning!

Windchime

So beautiful. You saw a lot of wildlife!

RobinF

Gorgeous! We just did an Alaskan cruise and it made me want to see more!

Janet

(website)

Beautiful! Your pictures make me want to go back. I only had 3 full days there, by myself, so I didn't do lengthy hikes (I am in better shape now than back then and could hike more now), but there is so much to see even on short hikes there. It looks like you got some great experiences. And you're guaranteed at least a day or two of rain whenever you go there, so it looks like you were fortunate to get some clear weather while you were there.

Coincidentally, I looked back at my photo archives yesterday and decided to see where I was six years ago on that date, when I did a big cross-country tour. I was in Glacier! I found three photos I had previously not paid much attention to -- details in the stream beds with the water and colorful rock.

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JAileen

Wonderful pictures! I'm glad you had a good time. I spent three summers there, working at Lake McDonald Lodge, so it feels like home to me.

Diana

Wow, so gorgeous! Ever since you posted about it the first time, I've been wanting to go!

catgirl

Can't get enough of outdoor photos! Gorgeous pics. That bear looks like a grizzly yearling - so cuddly looking, but glad you saw him/her from your car!

OMG, Una, it was a grizzly bear yearling?! I assumed based on the color and lack of hump that it was a black bear cub. How do you tell the difference with the yearlings?

AviaMariah

Breathtaking! I was at Glacier about 12 years ago and have wanted to go back ever since.

rachylou

Oh wow! Amazing wildlife snaps!

Joyce B

What a beautiful and busy trip! Thanks for sharing the pictures.

SarahTheWhite

Gorgeous photos! I'm so glad you had a wonderful time. You definitely got in all of the highlights. I'm especially glad you went to Avelanche. Thanks for checking back in and showing us!

Joy

You and your gorgeous photos have me wanting to go to Glacier ASAP. The news last night here in Colorado warned us to harvest apples and other fruit from out trees, that it attracts bears. Maybe your bear had found some tasty berries. I am wondering about a neighbor's tree that has been dropping large crab apples into our yard. Our dog likes to eat them.

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