This was our last day in the stunning Glacier National Park. I decided that I could manage the longer 11 mile route, which would head along the North West bank of Lake Josephine and up to the two Grinnel Lakes. We'd walked parallel to the South East bank a few days earlier.
By this time, it was clear that it was pretty much the same group of people doing the harder walk each day, so we were spending a lot of time together. Thankfully, this group did not include Sheila, so we did not usually need ear defenders. But it did include Glenys - another Australian, probably in her mid-seventies and both a strong walker and an interesting and engaging character.
After a short drive to a car park on the edge of the Swiftcurrent Lake we'd past the previous day, we climbed steadily in a mixture of wooded and open landscape, with views up to the glacier and back to the lakes. At one point, the path went along a cliff face that had a small waterfall coming down it. Staying dry was not an option.
At around a dozen, our group was quite large for a narrow track, but we were pretty good at letting faster hikers past. However, there was a very much larger group led by a park ranger. This group had a mixture of fast and slow walkers, and they stopped frequently for a little talk from the ranger. This meant that there appeared to be more people around than most hikers would like.
We reached Grinnel Glacier in time for lunch. What a stark but stunning location. None of our party dived in today. Some people nearby seemed to be about to do so, but eventually just had a paddle.
On our drive from Kaslispell to the park, we'd passed the Flathead Valley, and I'd noticed lots of places advertising Flathead Cherries. Today's lunch supplied by Andy and Clay was excellent as usual, with the special treat of some of these delicious plump cherries.
After exploring the edge of the glacier, we retraced our steps down - this time with the string of lakes laid out ahead of us. We were treated to a display by a large Big Horned Sheep.
As we got onto the trail that goes around Swiftcurrent Lake, we passed a group who had apparently just seen a Grizzly Bear. I think I was jealous.
It was good that Clay and the people from the shorter walk were at the car park when we got back. It gave Mike the chance to say a nice 'thank you' to Andy and Clay, who had been excellent - informative and really nice guys.
We had some consolation for missing the grizzly on the trail.... When we got back to the hotel, a man with a spotting scope (a telescope on a tripod) had gathered a crowd. He was pleased to allow any of us that wanted to to watch a grizzly track across the mountainside. Maybe that's the best way to see one.
And then to packing.....
View Grinnel Glacier in a larger map
By this time, it was clear that it was pretty much the same group of people doing the harder walk each day, so we were spending a lot of time together. Thankfully, this group did not include Sheila, so we did not usually need ear defenders. But it did include Glenys - another Australian, probably in her mid-seventies and both a strong walker and an interesting and engaging character.
After a short drive to a car park on the edge of the Swiftcurrent Lake we'd past the previous day, we climbed steadily in a mixture of wooded and open landscape, with views up to the glacier and back to the lakes. At one point, the path went along a cliff face that had a small waterfall coming down it. Staying dry was not an option.At around a dozen, our group was quite large for a narrow track, but we were pretty good at letting faster hikers past. However, there was a very much larger group led by a park ranger. This group had a mixture of fast and slow walkers, and they stopped frequently for a little talk from the ranger. This meant that there appeared to be more people around than most hikers would like.
We reached Grinnel Glacier in time for lunch. What a stark but stunning location. None of our party dived in today. Some people nearby seemed to be about to do so, but eventually just had a paddle.
On our drive from Kaslispell to the park, we'd passed the Flathead Valley, and I'd noticed lots of places advertising Flathead Cherries. Today's lunch supplied by Andy and Clay was excellent as usual, with the special treat of some of these delicious plump cherries.
After exploring the edge of the glacier, we retraced our steps down - this time with the string of lakes laid out ahead of us. We were treated to a display by a large Big Horned Sheep.
As we got onto the trail that goes around Swiftcurrent Lake, we passed a group who had apparently just seen a Grizzly Bear. I think I was jealous.
It was good that Clay and the people from the shorter walk were at the car park when we got back. It gave Mike the chance to say a nice 'thank you' to Andy and Clay, who had been excellent - informative and really nice guys.
We had some consolation for missing the grizzly on the trail.... When we got back to the hotel, a man with a spotting scope (a telescope on a tripod) had gathered a crowd. He was pleased to allow any of us that wanted to to watch a grizzly track across the mountainside. Maybe that's the best way to see one.
And then to packing.....
View Grinnel Glacier in a larger map
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