WHAT A GREAT DAY!! MANY GLACIER

June 14

After visiting Two Medicine Valley and the great hike to the Aster Peak Overlook, and then off to Mule Days and hiking up the Blodgett Canyon Overlook, I was really tired. I had wanted to go to Many Glacier on Saturday, as it was suppose to be a better day "weather-wise". But I just couldn't do it. So Saturday was a day of walking along the Swan River nature Trail, going to the post office (picked up checks), reading a book while on the homes deck that overlooks the Flathead Lake (great way to spend an afternoon), and of course, taking a nap.

And before I start, let me apologize that this blog is going to be long. I saw so much and learned so much, that I want to get it all down so I don't forget in the future.

On Sunday, June 14, I was rested and ready to take on Many Glacier. This is an area made up of Swiftcurrent Valley and Grinnel Valley. It's in the north east corner of Glacier, only about 30 miles from Canada. If you remember our previous history lesson -- George Grinnel helped make Glacier a national par, and much of this area is named after him. There is Grinnell Valley, Grinnell Point, Grinnel Glacier, Grinnell Lake, and so on.

Virtually every feature in this area of Glacier had been glacier-carved. Like rivers with teeth, the glaciers flowed through the valleys and surrounded these peaks gnawing away at all sides. The guides said it is estimated that the glaciers were over 2,000 ft. thick, and in their prime (thousands of years ago), you would have seen only the very tops of these huge mountains as they were being carved. And the glaciers also left 4 lakes -- Shelbourne, Swiftcurrent (show in the picture), Josephine, and Grinnell.

The glaciers carve from all sides. There are features called aretes, where the glaciers sheared away the rocks from boths sides, and what is left is a thin, jagged outcropping of rock. One is called the Garden Wall, which you can see from Many Glacier. And you see the other side from Logan Pass on the "Road to the Sun". One of the aretes here (called the Iceberg-Ptarmigan Wall) actually has a 10 x 10 hole in the rock which was formed by the two glaciers carving so much they carved away all the rock. It is said that sunsets backlight this "window", and lets the light shine through. Must be beautiful.

So....how did the day go? It took about 2 1/2 hours to drive to Many Glacier, going through winding mountain roads where the Indians "open range" cattle and horses (this is on the Indian reservation). I saw a herd of cows on the way up, and on the way back, I went through a little herd of horses with 3 foals. Guess that means they don't castrate the colts, as there would be stallions roaming around.

I have seen some of the most beautiful scenery since I have been coming west over the last 11 years. Particularly last year when I hiked and explored so many areas of Big Sky, Yellowstone, and the Bozeman area. And on this trip, the beauty of the hike and the waterfalls on Avalanche lake, the Aster Overlook at Two Medicine, and Glodgett Canyon were just amazing. I also have been searching out the "10 Perfect Views" (as they were listed in the travel magazine). I just didn't think it could get any better. But the scenery, views, lakes, mountains and hotel of Many Glacier has surpassed everything I've seen over the years. Included in the "perfect views" was the view of Grinnell Lake, but I think there were more perfect views in this area.

I was just in awe at Many Glacier. The hotel is fabulous, sitting in the middle of these beautiful, tall peaks, and the spectacular Swiftcurrent Lake (which is only about 15 feet deep -- they said of the boat sank, we could just stand on top). Lake McDonald Lodge and East Glacier Lodge probably have a better "lodge" feel, but they don't have this setting.

I came here to hike, and to take the boat tour and hike to Grinnell Lake. So I found the boat dock, purchased my ticket for the 2PM tour, and decided to take a 2.6 mile hike on the Swiftcurrent Lake Nature Trail. It is flat and goes around the lake, so I thought I should be able to walk that in 2 hours. I started out, but I was still concerned about making it back. After about a quarter mile (and several great shots of the hotel) later, I decided I might turn around. It was just trees and the lake and no elevation in the path.

And then....THUNDER!! The weather forecast was for scattered thunderstorms, but it was sunny on the way to Many Glacier. But not now -- the storm was on the way. Thunder seems to sound much louder in the mountains, and I hi-tailed it back to the lodge. Just in time, for as I walked through the doors, the sky opened. It was thundering and pouring down rain -- and I'm hoping this is going to stop in 2 hours because I came to do the boat trip and hike, and that's what I want to do.

It did take most of the 2 hours for the rain to slow down. But the 2 hour break was also great. I always travel with a book, and I was able to sit in the lobby area of the hotel, which is open to the top of the lodge -- about 5 stories. And there is a huge, round fireplace in the middle with a roaring fire. So it was a pleasure to sit around the fire and read.

The lodge itself is pretty old. The building was started in 1914 and completed in 1915 (of course, more rooms and annexes have been added since then). It officially opened July 4, 1915 -- 5 years after Glacier was made a National Park. And several of the employees said it was not unusual to have leaks, but it was pouring in everywhere. Streams of rain came down, and there were buckets and waste paper baskets everywhere to catch the water.

So the boat tour leaves at 2PM, and it was still slightly raining, but not bad. Of course, the sun is gone and the clouds have closed over most of the valley. I am ever so glad I keep an extra jacket in the truck, which I put over my sweatshirt -- kept me dry and warm. So we boarded the boat and headed across Swiftcurrent Lake. We then walked .2 miles through the woods to Lake Josephine where we boarded another boat. Then this boat goes to a dock on the far end of Josephine where we get off to take a mile hike to Grinnell Lake.

One of the things I like about going with a guide is that you learn so much about the area that isn't readily available for any other sources -- as well as a lot of handed down stories. Our guide was Brin (of course, tall, blonde, pretty, and looked like she grew up in these woods -- although she grew up in Kalispell). As we are cruising across Swiftcurrent, Brin pointed out that there were actually 2 valleys here. Grinnell Point (pictured here -- absolutely beautiful) was actually a ridge, and on the right side (as you face the point) is Swiftcurrent Valley, which is the DRYEST valley on the eastern side of Glacier. And in 1936 there was a forest fire which burnt most of the valley. The trees that crew back were lodgepole pines, which can survive a drier climate.

And then on the other side of the point (left side of the point) is Grinnell Valley, and this is the WETTEST valley on the eastern side of Glacier. Imagine that. Grinnell Point and Ridge is so high that was the moisture moves across Glacier, the rain/snow drops into Grinnell Valley, and very little falls into Swiftcurrent. The other strange fact is that the trees are totally different in each valley. Grinnell Valley did not burn in 1936 and has an "old-growth" forest that is about 400 years old, made up of fir and spruce.

We also learned about the glaciers. As I've mentioned before, in 1950 there were 150 glaciers, and today there are about 25. This valley has many of the glaciers, hence the name. We could see Gem Glacier, and the larger Salamander Glacier (here is a picture of Salamander -- looks like his nose sticking out on the left with a long tail and little feet -- behind that is the arete the Garden Wall). Salamander used to be part of Grinnell Galcier, but as the environment warmed, ice melted, and they separated into 2 glaciers. And....here is the nature lesson of the day. What does it take to be classified as a glacier? Okay....I'm sure you don't know, so I'll tell you.

First....the glacier must be at least 100 feet thick. Salamander is about 300 feet thick.
Second....the glacier must cover a minimum of 25 acres.
and Third....the glacier must be moving. How they measure that, I really don't know.

It was amazing to walk among the old-growth forest with huge firs and spruce. These valleys and these hikes are considered "back country", and Brin talked a lot about what to do if we saw a bear. It is documented that there are about 370 grizzly bears in East Glacier, and about twice as many black bears. They say there has never been a documented case of a bear attack on groups of 3 or more people. And our guide did bring her bear spray. Of course, she said if a bear attached, we should surround here!! Ha, Ha. And to make sure the bears heard us, we used the word KIO, which is bear in Blackfoot. Brin would say "Kee", and then the women would yell out "I", and the men would follow with "O". We would do this every so often so the bears would hear us.

Brin did tell a good story about how bears really do try to avoid humans. There were several guides taking out the boat, and they could see hikers on the trail, along the side of the mountain. They could also see a grizzly bear coming from the opposite direction on the same trail. The hikers were having a good time, talking and laughing. Apparently a bear's eyesight isn't all that good, and they sense most things through smell. The bear could probably smell and hear the hikers approaching, and the folks on the boat saw the bear leave the trail and hide in the brush. The hikers went by, unaware that there was a grizzly bear in the area, and then the bear came back on the trail and continued on.

Bears really don't want to expend the energy and calories to run and kill live game. They are 80% herbivores, and only 20% carnivores. This far north, they are only out of hibernation for 5 months at the most, and they spend that time eating so they can hibernate over the winter. I also learned that the females become pregnant in the spring and summer, and actually give birth while they are still asleep (good idea!! Why don't humans do it that way). The cubs nurse, and can grow some before mom wakes up and they leave the den. Okay, okay....enough about bears.

There are also moose, cougars, and many mountain goats and big horn sheep. The goats and sheet are way up on the steep mountain cliffs, and we did see some -- they look like little white specs on the mountain side, and you really can't see or find them without a good set of binoculars. On the hike back down the 1 mile trail, there were very fresh moose tracks that went along the trail in the mud. And I say they were fresh, as they were not on the trail when we talked to the lake -- we were looking. Brin also pointed out bear scat in several places that had not been there on the way to the lake. All these animals, and they literally seem to vanish into the trees and growth.

The picture above is Grinnell Lake (one of the 10 Perfect Views), and you can see on the top ridge what looks like 2 ribbons of white -- those are waterfalls which are there all year long. To give perspective, those falls are 500 ft. tall. Below are some pictures of the hike -- we walked across a suspended bridge over the river, and there was quite a bit of snow close to the lake.

It was a great time, but a very slow walk. It was fun meeting the other people. This is why I tell my mother I never really feel alone when I do these trips -- you meet so many friendly people along the way. I'm not sure why, but these early weeks in the park seem to have a high number of Europeans and Asians in the park (Yellowstone is the same way). People start to talk, and you recognize accents from Germany, France, Holland, Japan, etc. It is a very international community early in the spring.

On the boat trip back, we did have the good fortune to see a female moose lying down next to the lake. The guides figured there might be a calf under the cover of the trees -- the female seemed to look that way a lot. I tried to get pictures, but the moose was just too far away. In talking to the other passengers, they all had seen animals. One of the couples from Germany showed me pictures of a grizzly bear and 2 cubs they saw that morning, another had seen 2 grizzlies as they drove into Glacier, and another had seen a moose and 2 calves along the road. I'M SO MAD -- WHY DON'T I SEE THESE ANIMALS!! The difference probably is that they are all staying in the park, and I drive in for these day trips.

So the boat ride/hike is over, and it is now 5:30. And I have 2 2/1 hours to drive home. Even though there was the thunder storm, the day was fabulous. The rain kept me from walking a nature trail, but gave me the chance to enjoy the lodge, enjoy the fire, and read a book. That plus the fabulous mountains, lakes, and forest made for a near perfect day.