A Very Friendly Moose

I have been hiking everyday and loving it.  However, the best hike I have done so far has to be Cracker Lake in the Many Glacier region of Glacier National Park.  Just to be fair I will mention the other hikes I have done - Cobalt Lake (Two Medicine area), Swiftcurrent Nature Hike (Many Glacier area) and Virginia/Mary/ Baring Falls in the Mary Lake area.  They all had highlights and were all pretty.

Cracker Lake starts out a bit poorly as it is on a horse trail and you are walking on a churned up trail with horse manure.  However, after 1.7 miles there are no more horses.  It climbs steadily and then turns a bit roly/ poly with up and down bits.  You see some pretty waterfalls and lots of wildflowers but the jewel is Cracker Lake itself which is a brilliant turquoise color.  As I approached the end of the trail I saw several fluffy marmots.  I was busy chasing them to get there photo when I noticed a moose down by the lake.  

From Cracker Lake

I watched it as it got ever closer to me.  Then it kind of trotted in my direction in what I would describe as a curious manner.  However, after going to a number of ranger talks it has been drilled into my head that moose are dangerous and can charge you and harm you which their hooves so I looked for a bit of cover.  There was  not much - a tangle of small trees and some rocks.  I jumped into the trees.  After awhile I came out and as soon as the moose saw me it headed my way again.  This time I hid behind a rock.  The moose kind of moved into the trees and looked around.  I watched the marmots on the rocks and the goat on the hillside.  After awhile I came out and didn't see the moose anywhere.  I took some pictures of the lake and the area around it and then went over to the big rocks to look down on the trail that I walked in on.  I saw the moose swimming across the lake.  Figuring I was safe I headed down the trail.  Interestingly the moose headed down on the other side of the creek flowing from the river.  I watched it for a long time.  After I finished walking down the trail, I went to the ranger office and explained what happened.  The ranger said that the moose likely was attracted to either the salt on my skin or maybe my sunscreen.  He also said that you know when a moose is charging you as it acts very aggressive.  Anyway it was a very interesting encounter.   Just after that I had lunch with a deer that wasn't at all scared by me.  

Cracker Lake Photos

Cobalt Lake and Lake Mary Area Photos

Scenic Point and Upper Medicine Lake Hikes

Scenic Point
6.2 miles - 2350 ft elevation gain

This was a steady uphill hike on the way out.  It went by a small waterfall and wound through the trees for a short time.  However, most of the hike was exposed and I hoped I would see bears, goats or sheep on the hillside.  Unfortunately I did not but it was a beautiful hike with incredible views of Lower Medicine Lake.  As I neared the top the wind increased and it was "blowing a gale".  I was nearly knocked over in certain spots along the ridge.  I had to walk over an area of snow that dropped steeply off to the left.  I hugged the rock wall and hoped for the best.  Scenic Point itself had views to the east and the plains.  The wind was so strong that I couldn't quite make it up to the ridge facing west.

Photos here or slide show below.

Upper Medicine Lake

11.5 miles -- 400 ft elevation gain

I set out to walk around the lake and meet the ranger led walk on the other side.  I figure that walking with a group is safer in terms of the bears.  I beat them to the boat landing and enjoyed listening to the ranger speak about her experiences as a bear control ranger.  However, there were around 20 people in the group and I soon broke off and walked on my own.  I saw a huge bear print (shown below) and walked very carefully calling out often.

From Upper Medicine Lake

The views from the lake were impressive and the wildflowers along the way were incredible.  I also visited the Twin Falls which were quite nice little waterfalls.  On the way back I lost my bear bell as I climbed over an avalanche that covered a section of trail.

Full size photos here or slide show below.

Old Man Lake Hike

From Old Man Lake HIke

Today I hiked with Ranger Amy again up to Old Man Lake. There were only three of us in the group. It was a beautiful hike with lots of wildflowers. Today there wasn't fresh bear scat on the trail but we were vigilant anyway. However, the only wildlife we saw were hares, birds, squirrels and chipmunks. I saw a brilliantly colored (orange under the wings) bird that I later learned was called a flicker. We also saw nests or colonies of small caterpillar. They were pretty interesting. We crossed numerous streams - some with bridges and others without. There were a number of waterfalls along the way. The last mile or so was in the snow which was not easy walking. There was some post holing (when your foot sinks deeply into the snow) and slipping and sliding. I wore my YakTrax but they weren't much help in the deeper snow. On a side note I loaned them to a guy yesterday. He broke them. That is a bummer. I think they will still kind of work but they are definitely damaged. Since they were worn only two times I am thinking of returning them to REI. The lake was still partially frozen and the area was very beautiful so I didn't dwell much on my broken YakTrax.

See the full size photos here or view the slide show below

Glacier National Park

It was a long drive to Glacier and rainy most of the way. I stayed in a hotel in Butte on the way up. I picked up a new pair of hiking boots in the Missoula REI. Both of my Keens have developed deterioration in the heel causing pain and bleeding. You gotta love REI who take back all merchandise. I was able to get a more expensive pair of boots for the two pairs but I am not happy about hiking in boots that aren't broken in.

I got a call from my sister as I was about to enter the park. A school had called about a position. This is very annoying because I contacted HR and they put a note in my file to contact me by cell phone. There is only spotty cell service in the National Park but I did call the school three times. They didn't bother to call back. No worries.

From Glacier National Park I

I tried to break in my boots on a short walk around the lake. The next morning I hiked up to Apgar Lookout. I had a great view and met another solo hiker (Mark) who wanted to hike later in the day so we agreed to meet at Avalanche Lake at 2:00. However, by 2:00 is was quite rainy. I didn't wait and left without him. Not very nice I suppose. It was a good hike but would be much better on a clear sunny day. I drove up the rest of the Going to the Sun Road after the hike (mostly to use the car heater to dry myself off). When I got back into cell reception I realised Mark had called a couple of times.

The next morning I decided to take my wet tent to East Glacier and try out Brownies youth hostel there. For one it would be dry. For another it costs only $13 vs $20 for a campsite. Also it has showers, internet, cell service and laundry which the campgrounds don't. I texted Mark and told him I would be hiking at Two Medicine at noon and apologized for not waiting for him yesterday. The weather was great. I stopped by Running Eagle falls on the way in. When I got to the hike meeting place Mark was there and he was understanding about the day before. We hiked with a Park naturalist and a group of others. There were some awesome waterfalls (Rockwell and Aster). Mark and I hiked up to Aster view point as well. It had great views. A really good day!

Check out full size photos here or see the slideshow below

Yellowstone Trip

After a very fun visit with the fine Fine family that included pizza, wii, hammie and playing outside, we headed up to Yellowstone. We set up camp and then headed over to the Junior Ranger program. It was about identifying animal sounds. That was Brody's first step to becoming a Junior Ranger. Next we headed to Old Faithful. We had a bit of time before the next eruption so we checked out the other attractions. We lucked


It was a long trip but we managed to set up camp, and see Old Faithful anyway. Brody was definitely more interested in the bison along the trail. We also saw both Plume and Beehive geysers go off. At 9:30 we went to the evening program about the animals of Madison. I asked the ranger if we could toast marshmallows in the fire and he said yes. However, he had a hard time making the fire so I ended up making it for him. Then I roasted the marshmallows. At which point Brody decided he he liked them better raw. After the presentation we walked back and poor Brody was both frozen and scared. He was worried about bears and wolves after learning more about them.

From Yellowstone

The next morning we had a talk about animals and why we don't need to fear them as long as we follow the animal rules. We did the Northern Loop and went out the road to the Lamar valley. We saw heaps of animals - bison, elk, bighorn sheep, pronghorn, goats. It was fantastic. Brody must have been a little sleepy still. He feel asleep in the car. It as too bad as we went by a bear and he didn't get to see it. I was disappointed with the Mammoth Hot Springs area. There was much less water in the terraces and they were not as interesting as when I went many years ago. However, there were lots of elk hanging around and Brody loved that. We stopped at Norris Geyser Basin on the way back to camp. Brody settled in for some PSP in the tent and I went for a walk. I encountered a few bison on the same trail and got out of their way. When I got back to camp there were several bison hanging around the campground. I went to get Brody but he had already heard and had gone to see them. I built him a campfire and cooked up some delicious canned spagetti and meatballs for his dinner. As Brody sat by the fire about 15 buffalo walked through our section of the campground. One right through our camp. A mother, father and calf hung out at the next campsite. We kept still and watched them trying not to disturb them. It was certainly better than watching TV while eating dinner. Eventually they moved on without incident.

From Yellowstone

The next morning we did the lower circle of the Park. Brody really enjoyed the waterfalls. He said they were the first ones he had seen. We also visited the mud volcano area. Many of the geothermal features had dragon names and he like that but I think maybe he expected them to look like a dragon. We also visited the West Thumb Geyser area which is right on Lake Yellowstone. It was pretty interesting. Brody finished up his Junior Ranger booklet and was awarded a Junior Ranger patch. We bought him a Junior Ranger vest with lots of pockets for him to wear as well. We visted Old Faithful again. When it went off it went much higher than last time and Brody was very impressed. We took a shower at the Old Faithful Inn (our first in Yellowstone). Then we bought our last souviners and ate dinner at a diner in the Old Faithful area.

The next morning it started pouring rain at 4am. Luckily Brody slept through it but I couldn't sleep worrying about packing up in the rain. When it let up, I packed up the wet gear and Brody and hit the road. Brody slept for about three more hours as I drove. I caught a few buffalo and elk on the way out. With the exception of a small but non-stinging wasp encounter in car, the trip went well.

We arrived in Park City in the early afternoon. As we walked up to the Fine's door, we heard young Josh yelling Brody, Brody, Brody. It was a great welcome. Brody played with the Fine kids for a few hours and ate some mac and cheese and then we headed down to the airport. All went well there until I was pulled up by security for bringing my swiss army knife. I had forgotten about it because I wasn't flying. Luckily we had enough time to return to the car and leave it there. After a bit for frozen yogurt I took Brody to the gate and he got on the plane.

It was a great trip and I hope Brody will have good memories of it for a long, long time.

More photos of the trip can be seen here or in the slideshow below.

Bryce Canyon with Brody

Brody slept like a log and finally I had to wake him to leave for Bryce. It wasn't a long drive but there is a time change and we wanted to do quite a bit there. We arrived at 11:00 and checked in. Then went in the Park. We visited the Visitor Center. Highlights there include a stuffed porcupine and a historic rifle. Following that we drove up to Natural Bridge which is a large stone formation shaped like a bridge.

Afterwards we drove back to Sunrise Point where I whipped up a bit of mac and cheese on the camp stove. It started to rain during this but only drops so we persevered on with lunch. After that we hiked the Queens Garden/ Navajo Loop trail. It is supposed to be one of the top 3 mile hikes in the world or so someone said on the trail. There were lots of amazing hoodoos. Brody enjoyed climbing around on the rocks. We climbed out in a narrow canyon. It was kind of steep and, although he complained of hurting legs, Brody did pretty well. I treated him to a Moon pie at the top. From there we returned to Rubys and moved into our tipi.

From Bryce Canyon with Brody

Next it was off for a swim. After debating whether to swim in the indoor or outdoor pool, Brody decided on the indoor one. Good thing, I think, as it was 50 degrees. He had a great swim. He was disappointed that I didn't go in but seemed to like it when I through him a penny and he could dive for it.

After that he showered and shopped. He found a cowboys and Indians plastic figurine set to buy. He is a born shopper that one.

Tonight we are off to see a presentation on night creatures in the Park if he makes it to 8:30.

Grand Canyon with Brody

The drive from Mesa to Jacobs Lake went well. I was amazed that there is still snow on Mt Humphreys. The section of the drive on 89A was just great. It was so beautiful at the Colorado River. Brody liked it but liked the gift shop more. I would love to come and explore this area more.

We got to Jacobs Lake around 5:00 and set up the tent. It was pretty chilly especially for Brody. He retired to tent to use his electronics very soon. He warmed up when I put a second sleeping bag over him and enjoyed his PSP until bedtime.

We were both up early the next morning but Brody didn't want to move into the cold. Eventually hot chocolate got him moving. We were on our way very early and spotted a herd of buffalo outside the North Rim Park Entrance.

Inside the park we came across a mule deer. It was not shy at all and I got a few photos. The next stop was the visitor center where we learned that the mule deer has a deadly kick. I am glad we didn't get to close to the deer. We walked along the Transept Trail and then out to Bright Angel Point.

After that we drove out to some other view points. We saw a herd of mule deer right by the road. I think we both liked Angels Window he best. Brody spotted several lizards. Unfortunately, Brody was stung by a bee on the way back. It was painful but there was no allergic reaction. We were in luck as we sat at a picnic table his mom called. We somehow had come into a very slight cell signal and I didn't even know. I think that made him feel better than anything.

From Grand Canyon with Brody

We stopped by and checked out a spring in a cliff and we also saw an ancient Indian granary on the way. Brody knew what a granary was from his spelling words which was pretty impressive. We also checked out an Indian Ruin.

On the way back we saw the buffalo again. Once at the campground we walked to the Jacob's Lake Inn for cookies and I discovered wireless internet. Yeah!!!