Glacier National Park - Logans Pass

 

The main stopping point along the Going to the Sun Road has some pretty cool hikes. It's a continental divide

We opted for Hidden lake and highline hikes as they offered very different scenery

Hidden Lake starts along a civilised boardwalk which we thought would make a nice change from hiking up mountains

Unfortunately it doesn't stay as level boardwalk for too long. Great views – stripes of rocks in the mountains

Surrounded by flowering meadows with the mountains looming nearby

 

 

Just a little wildlife to keep us company along the way

 

And finally we get to the hidden lake

 

  

Was it worthwhile..... oh yes

 

Highline Trail

We then crossed the road and started on Highline hike. We knew we wouldn't get too far as it was late but wanted to walk on the narrow ledge cut into the mountains

Pretty good views

Path is getting a little narrow and the drops pretty significant

 

Had to put this one in as its about the only point P wasn't holding on during the hike

Oops, don't look down

Just to give a little perspective on the height

How could you resist the views though?

 

 

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Glacier National Park – Views and Stuff

 

Unfortunately there are only 25 glaciers left and not many accessible ones. They predict as early as 20 years there will be no glaciers left in this park. Fortunately the scenery remains stunning – all carved by glaciers.

Very different from the last couple of places we have been and not just because we saw sunshine

 

 

 

 

More canyons formed by rivers cutting through rock over many years

This point previously had 3 glaciers meeting here, hence the shape of the mountain

A little wildlife – I don’t think these two are really that ‘wild’.

Lake McDonald. This is one of the key stopping places where people kayak, hike and just chill out

Wild Geese Island in Mary Lake. Supposed to be the most photographed place in glacier

 

Rainbows and waterfalls combined

The park has over 740 miles of hiking trails which is great if the weather stays good. If not you end up with a very wet front and dry back – nicely demonstrated here by P

We were lucky enough to see a black bear one evening when driving out of the park. Just driving along and he walks out in front of us, crossed the road and disappears into the forest at the other side. Would love to share a great photo but in the excitement we only managed to get his backside (or as we like to say – his bear bottom)!

 

 

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Glacier National Park - Avalanche Lake

 

We joined a ranger hike up to Avalanche lake. Great way to see it as she shared loads about how the national park was formed and continues to change as well as showing us the best views

Hidden Lakes is only a couple of miles over those mountains but a good 4 hours driving to get there

And finally we got up to the lake

 

You can see the source of the lake and the reason for the colour

 

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Glacier National Park - Going to the sun road

 

The heart of Glacier is the Going to the Sun Road. It is 52 miles long and can take most of the day to drive because a) the views are so stunning and b) the road is very narrow and windy so you drive slow to stay safe.

Lots of people opt for the restored 1930’s buses to avoid the drive. The drivers are dressed in period costumes and we only saw one or two broken down per day! 

In the 1930s the National Park Service developed a program with the White Motor Company of Cleveland, OH, for the production of canvas-topped touring coaches to provide transportation for visitors within national parks. More than 500 vehicles were manufactured in the mid-1930s and were purchased for use in various western national parks including Bryce Canyon, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Rocky Mountain, Mt. Rainier, Yellowstone (where the busses are yellow – obviously), Yosemite, and Zion National Parks. The fleet of (red) buses are maintained at Glacier National Park.

 

More of those rocky mountains looming out of the clouds.

 

Mountains on just about every side

Some cool bridges and tunnels to keep it interesting

 

Not man made steps but make for an interesting waterfall

Some of the views were just stunning

 

 

 

 

and some of the road a little tight to look at the views too much!

And if you keep your eyes closed on the narrow bits then everything’s just fine…

 

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