Above: Sinopah Mountain (8271 feet or 2521 meters) reflects in Pray Lake at sunrise, in Montana, in the Two Medicine area of Glacier National Park. (Panorama stitched from 4 images.)
Below are highlights from my images from Glacier National Park, Montana.For more images, see Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park on Photoseek.com: 1. Glacier NP, Montana (2007 trip image gallery) ; 2. Waterton Lakes NP, CANADA ; 3. abstract nature patterns of Waterton-Glacier ; 4. animals & insects of Waterton-Glacier
Left: Baring Creek tumbles over red and yellow rocks, in Montana, in Glacier National Park
Below right: This “Jammer”, a Glacier National Park Historic Red Bus, was built by the White Motor Company in the 1930’s, then rebuilt in 2001 to run on propane. A fleet of these vintage motor coaches provide tours and shuttle services in the park.
Glacier National Park offers some of the best mountain scenery in the world, ripe for nature walks, day hikes, and backpacking trips. I am delighted by the fantastic and colorful rock patterns at every scale, from inches to miles, throughout the park. Your chances are very good for seeing wild animals such as mountain goats, deer, marmots, ptarmigan.
Right: Water cuts through the mossy red rocks of Avalanche Gorge, Glacier National Park, Montana.
Above: Upper Grinnell Lake Overlook, Grinnell Glacier, and Mt. Gould. Glacier National Park, Montana.
Left: Mountain goat, Bearhat Mountain, Hidden Lake. Glacier National Park, Montana.
Below right: Snow naturally frosts the trees at Hidden Lake, in Montana, in Glacier National Park.
Hiking Tips for Glacier and Waterton National Parks
Recommended hiking guidebook: “Glacier-Waterton International Peace Park”, from The Mountaineers Books (2003 edition).
Below right: Sunrise at Lake Saint Mary, and Wild Goose Island, in Montana, in Glacier National Park.
Weather
If Logan Pass is closed, driving around the south end of Glacier NP on Highway 2 takes only an extra 30 minutes, by way of East Glacier, to West Glacier.
Below right: Baring Creek flows over sediment ripples that are fossilized into the red rock.
Campground tips
- Hot Showers are available at: Rising Sun Campground Store; Apgar West Entrance KOA; St. Mary Lake KOA; adjacent to Many Glacier Campground at Swiftcurrent Motor Inn; Rising Sun Inn (6 miles west of St. Mary Visitor’s Center, & 5 miles west of St Mary Campground); Waterton Park townsite campground; and others outside the park.
- Per site limits are 2 vehicles, 8 people, & 2 tents (where space is available) in Glacier NP.
- After Labor Day, all Glacier NP campgrounds are “first come first served” (non-reservable) campgrounds — arriving between 10am-1:30pm very likely gets a site. Check out time is 12:00 noon (re-register by 11:30 am).
- Camping along Going-to-the-Sun Road:
- Rising Sun Campground (on Lake McDonald) is open thru Sept 17, 2007. Adjacent to the campground is a camp store, a casual restaurant, and token operated showers (1 shower stall for men, 1 for women). Flush toilets; dump station. $20. In August 2007, it usually filled up after 6:00pm.
- Saint Mary campground, $23. Flush toilets; dump station, open 5/25 – 9/23/07; first come first served after Sept 3 (sites are reservable June 1 through September 3).
- Campgrounds near Lake McDonald / West Glacier:
- Apgar Campground (rarely fills up)
- Fish Creek campground is closed after Sept 4, 2007. Reservable in summer, but usually doesn’t fill up.
- Sprague Creek Campground) is open thru Sept 17. $20. Flush toilets.
- Avalanche Campground is closed after Sept 4.
- Many Glacier Campground open thru Sept 23, then primitive (waterless) thru Sept 29. $20. Flush toilets; dump station. Filled up most days from 2 to 7:00pm in August 2007. Public showers & laundry are located behind Swiftcurrent Motor Inn’s Registration building. 3 shower stalls for men, 4 for women.
- Two Medicine Lake Campground: generally shaded by trees, some privacy. Open thru Sept 23. $20. No showers.
- Glacier NP campgrounds, current filling status & details: home.nps.gov/applications/glac/cgstatus/cgstatus.cfm
- Plus numerous RV parks outside the National Park, with full facilities, such as the towns of West Glacier, East Glacier, & St Mary:
- Polson / Flathead Lake KOA (800) 562-2130
- West Glacier KOA (800) 562-3313
- St. Mary / East Glacier KOA (800) 562-1504
Right: Rockwell Falls on Cobalt Creek, on the hike to Cobalt Lake, in the Two Medicine Lake area of Glacier National Park.
Day Hikes
Check trail status at: www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/trailstatusreports.htm
Tom’s PRIORITY KEY for hikes below: ***best. **excellent. *good if you have extra time. In addition to hikes below, many short hikes are available, with waterfalls, views, geology and so forth. Rainy day activities include waterfall hikes, games, or a good book.
West Glacier area
- ** Bowman Lake, Numa Ridge Lookout (11.4 mi round trip, 2935 ft). “Magnificent grandeur of Bowman Valley & jade colored Bowman Lake…” Drive 21 miles from Apgar to Polebridge, via Camas Road, to the “Outside North Fork Road” of which 11 miles are bumpy gravel. (Don’t take the “Inside Road”, which is very slow & bumpy, almost 4wd). From Polebridge, drive 6 miles gravel road to the trailhead at Bowman Lake Campground.
- ** Upper Two Medicine Lake (9.4 miles round trip, 370 feet gain)
- * Cobalt Lake (11.4 miles round trip, 1400 feet gain) good viewpoints, attractive Rockwell Falls, colorful rocks, beautiful lake, beaver ponds, meadows. With extra energy, hike Two Medicine Pass (4.4 miles round trip, 830 feet, from Cobalt Lake) for “commanding view” of neighboring Paradise Park and Park Creek drainage.
- Short hikes:
- Running Eagle Falls (0.6 miles round trip)
- Paradise Point (1.2 miles round trip) scenic peninsula that juts into Two Medicine Lake
- Aster Falls (2.4 miles round trip)
Going-to-the-Sun Road area
- *** Siyeh Pass (10.3 miles traverse one way with shuttle, 2390 up, 3300 down) (or 9.4 mi round trip without shuttle, 2390 feet gain). High alpine scenery. Open 8/9/07. Or even better to hike the following:
- *** Piegan Pass (13 miles traverse one way with shuttle, 1720 feet up) via Grinnell Lake & Josephine Lake to Swiftcurrent Lake trailhead. Same trailhead as Siyeh Pass, at Siyeh Bend.
- * Otokomi Lake (10 mi round trip, 1900 ft) Deep red rocks, green forest, colorful scenery. Start at Rising Sun Campground. Open 8/9/07.
- ** Gunsight Lake (12.6 miles round trip; 1700 feet gain): popular day hike. Start at Jackson Glacier turnout, 4.9 miles east of Logan Pass. “Views of glaciers and mountains fill the horizon.”
- *** Hidden Lake (6 mi round trip, or shorter if you don’t descend to lake, 1200 ft). We hiked this in 2002 — one of our favorite hikes in the world — well worth hiking again, this time in blue sky weather. “The parking lot at Logan Pass usually fills between the hours of 10:00am to 2:00pm, though this can vary during peak weekends.” Logan Pass (6,646 feet) is 32 miles from the west entrance and 18 miles from the east entrance.
- *** Swiftcurrent Pass (15.2 miles one way, backpacked in two days, 1400 feet gain, car shuttle) via Garden Wall (which can also be hiked 11.8 mi, 800 ft, one way with shuttle; plus 1200-ft, 2-mile side trip to spectacular Grinnel Lake overlook) “If you just have one day in the park, hike this”. Swiftcurrent Pass can also be day hiked 1 to 15 miles round trip, from zero or 3500 feet gain. Hiking up 2300 feet gains you a sufficiently good view.
Right: A goat shows his teeth above Hidden Lake (see more: Waterton-Glacier animals).
- *** Iceberg Lake (9.4 miles RT, 1220 ft) (see also Ptarmigan Tunnel) Ice bergs in milky blue lake below 3000-foot cliffs. TRAIL OPEN – 8/8/07. 4.8 miles roun trip to junction above Ptarmigan Falls, plus 4.6 miles RT to Iceberg Lake.
- ** Ptarmigan Tunnel (11.2 miles RT, 2315 ft) (see also Iceberg Lake) Fun tunnel, spectacular scenery. 4.8 miles round trip to junction above Ptarmigan Falls, plus 5.2 miles round trip to Tunnel.
- *** Cracker Lake (11.2 mi RT, 1140 ft) Most eye-catching turquoise lake in park; 3000-foot cliffs; nice waterfalls. TRAIL OPEN from Cracker Flats to Cracker Lake 8/2/07.
- *** Grinnel Glacier (7.6 miles with boat rt, 11 miles without, 1700 ft) Gets close to the glacier, plus outstanding scenery. Open 7/13/07. Or hike Grinnel Lake, best via Piegan Pass traverse (above).
- ** Carthew Traverse (12 miles one way, 2300 ft, car shuttle) We loved this so much in 2002, we may hike it again. High alpine lakes, meadows, waterfalls. (Stays within Canada; no boat required.)
- * Bertha Lake (8.6 mi rt, 1542 ft) “Beautiful subalpine lake”. Falls.
- * Goat Lake (8 mi, 984 ft rt) “Pretty area”. This trail starts at the exceptionally colorful Red Rock Canyon (which has a nice short nature trail, seen in 2002).
- Goat Haunt (2-12 miles round trip, 1000 ft gain). Requires boat ride on Waterton Lakefrom Canada into USA (& back). Bring USA passports. In 2002, this boat ride was not very scenic in the opinion of Carol and I — * you probably need to hike or backpack into the mountains for better views. (Must get backcountry permit in Glacier NP, not Waterton.) The commercial boat (403) 859-2362 down Waterton Lake (Canada) to Goat Haunt, USA, may be cancelled, but other boats may run. Must leave Waterton dock by 4pm sailing to enable check in to US customs at Goat Haunt between 9am-5:30pm. Click here for latest Goat Haunt trail info from Glacier NP. At Goat Haunt you can do any or all of the following:
- Day hikes from Goat Haunt: several “excellent hikes” 2-12 miles, and/or
- camp overnight at open-sided shelters at the Goat Haunt boat dock, without having to carry a pack, or
- backpack from Goat Haunt: Lake Francis 12.4 miles round trip, 1000 ft, plus optional 8 mile rt day extension to Brown Pass where “views are tremendous”
Backpacking
Check weather and reserve backcountry campsites at 8:00am, one day in advance, at the following offices: St. Mary Visitor Center, Two Medicine Ranger Station, Many Glacier RS, Polebridge RS, or Apgar Visiter Center. Popular campsites may be hard to get. Backpacking permit fees = $5 per person per night in 2007. Advance reservation fee ($30) is waived if reserved less than 24 hours in advance.
Left: Glaciers at the headwaters of Boulder Creek Canyon, seen from above Siyeh Pass, Glacier National Park, Montana
Above right: Sexton Glacier clings to the north face of Going-to-the-Sun Mountain, and melts into Baring Creek, flowing into Saint Mary Lake, in Glacier National Park, Montana.
Above: Morning light strikes the peaks above Lake Saint Mary in Glacier National Park. (Panorama stitched from 3 images.)
Left: Mount Wilbur 9,321 feet (2,841 meters), on the trail to Iceberg Lake and Ptarmigan Lake, in Montana, in Glacier National Park
Below right: Mount Wilbur 9,321 feet (2,841 meters), on the trail to Iceberg Lake and Ptarmigan Lake, in Montana, in Glacier National Park
Left: Part way down from Swiftcurrent Pass, we see Bullhead Lake in Swiftcurrent Creek Valley, Glacier National Park.
Above right: The Gem Glacier hangs on the shoulder of Mt. Gould, in Glacier National Park, Montana.
Index to Glacier National Park on Photoseek.com: Hiking Tips , Hidden Lake , Two Medicine Lake , Siyeh Pass , Baring Creek Falls , Piegan Pass , Lake Saint Mary , Ptarmigan Tunnel , Garden Wall , Upper Grinnell Lake , Swiftcurrent Valley. Image gallery of 120 Glacier National Park images from 2007.
Index to Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park: 1. Glacier NP, Montana ; 2. Waterton Lakes NP, CANADA ; 3. abstract nature patterns of Waterton-Glacier ; 4. animals & insects of Waterton-Glacier
