Scenic Point, Ptarmigan Tunnel and Iceberg Lake

Returning to Glacier National Park is like coming home.  Not only is my very good friend, Jane, here but also many friends at Brownies and in the Park.  It seems to have been a very strange snow year here.  There is no snow is some places where there has been snow in other years and other places are closed due to too much snow.

I drove in to dark, dark clouds so I amended my Plan B (Plan A was to hike down to Hidden Lake which was closed).  Plan B was to hike up to Triple Divide.  It is a long walk in before you start climbing.  I didn't want to risk a long walk out in the rain.  I detoured to Scenic Point - an old standby.  Since you can get cell service from the top, I called Jane and let her know that I was in town.  She jumped in her car and met me on my hike down.  We stopped by the campground and saw another hiking friend.  Then I headed off to Running Eagle Falls.

Today I hiked up to Ptarmigan Tunnel.  It wasn't open but I still had some great views.  I tacked on several extra miles by also taking the trail to Iceberg Lake.  The lake was mostly frozen but was still pretty.  The color was magic.

There were tons of wild flowers out including lots of bear grass blooms.  It was a great day.

Yellowstone National Park

I basically only drove through Yellowstone.  I did stop at Old Faithful and hiked from there to Biscuit Basin.  I lucked out and saw Old Faithful erupt and the Daisy Geyser erupt.  I also saw this massive bison was it lumbered along next to my car.  Those creatures seem prehistoric to me.  They are just so odd looking.  I really wanted to pull my car over and take some video but I didn't want to cause a bison jam.  When I got to Mammoth Hot Springs there were elk just walking everywhere causing this poor ranger stress.  I took some photos and video.

I have never hiked backcountry in Yellowstone.  I really want to do it.  I hope I get to do it someday.

Marion Lake

Marion Lake is a really nice hike although it is rather long. It starts at the Granite Canyon Trailhead which has no outhouse or other toilet facility.   The hike began very early due to the heat and its length. I bumped into several elk hiding out in the trees. I then traveled along a pretty creek. The canyon was very open with lots of wildflowers.  

Marion Lake leaves from Granite Canyon TH. It is almost 19 miles long  the grade is generally moderate. 

I met a guy who camped out the previous evening at Marion Lake. He met some aggressive wildlife. No not bears or wolves. First a deer tries to steal his hat. Then the marmots chewed up his shoes stored in his tent fly. This is most likely due to the fact that they want salt and he sweated out a lot of salt the day before hauling up his backpack. 

Holly Lake (Paintbrush Canyon)

I had hoped to go up Paintbrush Canyon over Paintbrush Divide and down by Lake Solitude into Cascade Canyon.  However, my hopes were dashed by many a park ranger saying that this was too dangerous unless you carry an ice ax and are familiar with self arrest techniques.  ( I had met a couple who had done it and they said it was okay but I decided to err on the side of safety.  I know that if my friend, Scott Crow, read this he will think that a mistake but my friend, Leah Carter, will think that this decision was the right one).

Instead I hiked up to Holly Lake.  Holly Lake was really pretty.  I did hike a bit past it to see the Divide.- a hike left for another day. 

Holly Lake leaves from the Leigh Lake Trailhead.  It is 13 miles long and requires 2600ft of climbing.  

Surprise and Amphitheater Lakes

On the way to the trailhead I saw several antelope as they ran down the road towards me.  Turns out another vehicle startled them and they were trying to get away.  Then I scared them.  Poor things.   They don't need that along with bears, wolves and hunters.

I wasn't sure if I had done these hikes before but as I hiked along the trails I remembered them well.  The first thing I remembered was the busy trailhead even early in the day (5am) as climbers use the trailhead to access Garnet Canyon and climb the Tetons.  I left a little later than normal (6am) but is was still a busy trail for so early in the morning.  I met a few climbers on my way up as the leap frogged me a couple of times going up the hill.  We got to talking and I asked them about the climbers that I had seen carrying the large mats up the sides of mountains.  They said that these guys are actually bouldering.  The mats are for if they fall.  The guys I met were kind of old school and seemed to look down on this activity a bit.  They were drinking from a stream on the side of the mountain without filtering or treating the water.  I asked the about that as well.  The one guy had grown up in the park as he dad is a ranger.  He said that he had been drinking for that stream for many years.  I didn't say to him but it only takes one animal to die in the water or one hiker to poop in the wrong place to break that streak of healthy from that stream.

The trail leaves from Lupine Meadows trailhead and is 10 miles long and gains about 3000 ft in elevation  It is a very, very pretty trail with views of low lakes (Bradley and Taggert)  on the way up and then Surprise and Amphitheater Lake at the end of the trail.  Surprise and Amphitheater Lakes have lovely reflections of the towering cliffs covered in snow that surround them.

Grand Teton National Park Days 1 and 3

I rolled into GTNP around 7 am. I took a few photos of the amazing photos and then headed for the camp store to buy some bear spray. Bear spray is carried in case you encounter an ornery bear. It is strong pepper spray and acts as a deterrent. It is not worn like insect repellent.

I then hit the visitor center to check conditions. They were not overly informative except to tell me that where I planned to hike is an area where bears are often seen which I didn't know. 

I headed out and did a long (15ish) mile hike with little elevation gain. I saw lots of flowers and few people and no bears. It was a good hike. 

I accessed wifi at the Jackson Lodge and showered at Coulter Bay. I lucked out because I got there at 5:27 and the last payment for showers was at 5:30.  

Today I planned something a bit longer. It was a 19mile hike with moderate elevation gain up to Solitude Lake. I didn't take the water shuttle.   I left before 6am and only saw a few people on the trail coming back. I saw a number of wildlife - deer, pika, moose, marmots, etc.  I had solitude at Solitude Lake which was great. The lake was semi frozen and it was so pretty. 

As I left one other couple arrived and I saw many more in their way up as I descended. Glacier lilies covered the hillside and it was beautiful. I saw a marmot chomping on them filling his stomach after the long winter. 

Farther on I saw a group of people who had seen a bear but it was gone before I got there. I saw a bull moose one the way out in Cascade Canyon. Unfortunately Hidden Falls was closed but I could see it gushing in the distance. 

I took the horse trail home which is a bit higher than the normal trail. That was nice but it entailed a bit more climbing. 

I treated myself to dinner at Dornans  and somehow got in just before the line started 

Tomorrow I plan to go up to ampitheater lake. I might go check out the beavers tonight but I also might just rest 

Another great day

There were so many highlights of today that I don't know where to start. I hiked out from Bear Lake intending to do a big loop. That didn't happen because I got to an area with so much snow that I didn't know where to go. I still had some amazing views and put in some early morning miles especially the back and forth miles trying to pick up the trail. When I got back to the trailhead there was a truck with two lamas. It turns out that the park service in RMNP uses them to carry stuff for trail repair. How cool is that?  

Since I had some extra time I headed up to the Uts trail which was originally used by the Ute Indians. It is above the tree line and had many miniature flowers that grow in the tundra. The flowers had strong fragrance even though they were small. I am sure that is because they have a short growing season and need to pollinate quickly.   There were also several cute as can be marmots along the trail. 

From there I drove along Trail Ridge which is a road. I saw many elk including males with the velvet antlers and females with calves. 

I headed into Grand Lake and lucked into a hostel that is on a big cliff overlooking the lake. Tomorrow it is off to Verna Lake and maybe Spirit Lake. I hope I see a moose.