My wife Cheryl has been going on multi-day bike tours for years and has tried to get me to go with her for years. In the winter of 2003 she said the trip she wanted to do was the Cycle Montana tour. I said if we could spend a few days in Glacier National Park first I would come too. And so we went.
This is early July in Glacier National Park. It is an excellent time to visit the park. The melting snows feed the streams and waterfalls.
Starting at Logan Pass, top left in the above photo, we are walking the Highline trail to the Granite Park Chalet.
Here, in the right hand photo is Mt. Oberlin.
The formation in the bottom right hand photo is a part of the continuous ridge known as the Garden Wall.
This portion of the Skyline trail is quite moderate with little elevation gain or loss. Even with stopping to take photos and a break for lunch, it did not take long at all to walk the 7.6 miles to the Granite Park Chalet.
This is privately operated overnight accommodation and we stayed two nights here.
.This chalet was built in 1914 by the Great Northern Railroad and has since been designated a National Historic landmark. There are no meals served here but there is a very good kitchen with filtered water, a refrigerator and a propane stove. The staff is very friendly and helpful.
It was our plan to hike north to Ahern pass and then to climb the trail-less Ahern peak. All was going according to plan until we reached this snowfield. Without crampons or ice axes we were not able to cross it safely and we had to change our plans.
.OK what do you want to do now?
Here I sit after retreating from the snowfield thinking about what to do next.
.
We take our time and take some pictures of the beautiful wild flowers.
We decide to make a very hot, steep climb to the Grinnel Glacier overlook and this spectacular view.
This is a fabulous place and it is not to be missed. The hike to here is difficult, especially on the very hot day we did it. It is a drop virtually straight down to the glacier below from the overlook.
The next day is our last and Cheryl and I start it off with a climb of Swiftcurrent Mountain.
This photo of the two of us on the summit was taken by the fire ranger who stays in the observatory there.
We descend back to the chalet to get our heavy packs because stashing packs along the trail is forbidden, and then cross over the ridge at Swiftcurrent Pass.
This takes us into the Swiftcurrent valley and out to the road head.
The trail descends steeply from Swiftcurrent pass into the canyon and valley below. It ends at the far side of the lakes in the photo above.
The hot sun is melting these hanging snow fields which pour down the canyon's face to feed the streams and lakes.
The trail ends at the, you guessed it, Swiftcurrent Motor Inn. There is a hikers shuttle here, which took us back to our car, parked at Logan Pass. The shuttle is reliable and reasonably priced.
Getting back to the car, there was a herd of bighorn sheep grazing in the meadow below the parking lot.
While this is obviously a spectacular place to hike we did not have a wilderness experience here. We shared the Highline trail with many hikers. Other trails we hiked were less crowded.
I do understand that there are less frequented places in the park and if it is solitude you seek, I suggest you look into that.
Another thing to keep in mind is that this is grizzly bear territory and it is a good idea to read the parks guidelines and follow them.
My email address is alsayers@aol.com. Feel free to contact me with if you wish.
