Tuesday 8.2
Today we’re hiking Cracker Lake...12.2 miles total. The elevation gain was our most yet--1,120’....not much by Colorado standards & being that we’re starting at a pretty low elevation--4,800’, these hikes are definitely easier than what I’m used to in Colorado....but with that said....we were still a little sore from yesterday...& any 12+ mile hike makes something kind of hurt!
The trail was in & out of forest....sometimes obscuring the views & then opening up to the surrounding mountain peaks
It follows a beautiful & powerful stream...sometimes switchbacking up, but rarely are you out of earshot of the roar of the water
Pretty flowers along the trail
Barbed wire attached to the tree...from what I’ve read, this makes a good “scratching-post” for the Grizzly Bears...researchers & Bear Management from the Park can then determine if the bear are “using” the paths (therefore, not a good place for all the tourists) & by checking the bear DNA that can determine which bears are using this territory...thankfully....there was no “bear-fur” on this tree
When the trail crested & we saw the lake...it was spectacular....look at the color!!!! Just such a brilliant color of blue…PERFECT!
And just as if paid to pose by the Park marketing department, was this mountain goat....just sitting there enjoying the view
Cooling off & getting rid of my “hat-hair”...freezing cold, but felt great
A view from the beginning/end of the trailhead
When we got off the trail we went to a section of one of the creeks...thinking we’d wash off all the dirt we’d accumulated on the trail. We knew of a pretty easy access point we saw when we hiked the Grinnell Glacier trail the other day...& as we approached the trailhead...this “WARNING” signed was posted....they’d closed the trail 2 miles up due to bear activity. I’m sure glad we hiked it when we did
The above are pics of the Many Glacier Hotel...the National Park Lodge...originally built in 1914, but has been remodeled (I think a couple of times). There are several NPS Lodges that are really amazing....& while this was is really neat...I don’t think it’s quite as fabulous as the one in Yellowstone, Yosemite or Crater Lake. The views from the hotel lounge & restaurant are of the lake & surrounding mountains & are pretty cool....I ALWAYS love to see the inside of the lodges...I’ve never actually stayed at one...think it’s for the rich “campers”, but I do love to go inside & imagine what it was like when so many people visited the National Parks in the early 1900
Wednesday 8.3 Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta Canada
We wanted to visit Canada’s closest National Park to Glacier, so we headed north...we weren’t sure if we were going to be there 1 or 2 days
We toured the campgrounds (yucky) & made our way to the Visitors Center, & stopped & walked to a couple of pretty waterfalls. Our hike for the day was going to be about a 10 mile hike to an alpine lake....Bertha Lake. We’d met a couple of Canadian hikers in Glacier who suggested this hike...they also warned us the trail had a section with 21 switchbacks....& they were right
The views along the way were gorgeous!
There were a lot of pretty waterfalls along the trail...& as with Glacier...there were a lot of people too
When we finally climbed our way to the top...up all the switchbacks & around all the people...there were about 50 kids (I think from some camp) at the top....all of a sudden I felt claustrophobic! But, we decided to hike past them (they were right at the end of the trail at the first spot where you can see the lake) & continue a couple of more miles to hike to the other end of the lake...where there were no people! It was beautiful!
More waterfalls around the lake.
By the time we’d hiked around the lake, there wasn’t anyone left on top & we only passed a couple of people hiking up to the lake....all was nice & quiet. The only excitement we’d had on our “round the lake hike” was seeing fresh bear scat on the trail....this makes one a little more “aware” while hiking...you’re heart seems to beat just a little bit faster!
It was our hottest day of hiking so far, & going up all those switchbacks made us sweaty & hot...so we cooled off in the lake taking advantage of the nice beaches along the shore
This is the National Park Lodge ...very pretty.... & some shots of the little townsite of Waterton. We ate dinner in town (super-yummy salmon burger) & then decided we’d head back to Glacier. The park was a lot smaller than we thought it would be & there weren’t too many hikes...& the camp grounds weren’t all that great....so we ended up making Waterton-Lakes a day trip
Here’s the thing about camping in National Parks....U.S. ones anyway....it’s a big pain! In Glacier, the NPS campgrounds are all first come first serve...& this time of year they all fill up pretty early in the morning. So, if you want a campsite, you have to hunt one down early in the mornings....meaning you can’t get on trails very early or before the masses....& if you have a campsite....you get stalked in the mornings, & if don’t get one at all...you have to get really creative. Because I’ve done a lot of solo camping, I’ve become expert at sleeping in my car & scoping out nightly parking spots that, most of the time, don’t get me hassled by law enforcement, but with Danny & I together, it’s more difficult & with two of us, we’d rather sleep in the tent....our biggest challenges on this trip have been the campsites
anyway....we headed towards the US Border. Our Border guard was really nice, kind of funny, & all he had to inspect was a red pepper we had in our cooler....it was a really fun way to cross back into the U.S.
So, this time, we were entering Glacier through St. Mary & would start on the Going-To-The-Sun road tomorrow...that is after spending the night in another random trailhead parking lot....but the day had been wonderful, we were so tired & tomorrow begins another adventurous day!