Hiking Glacier-Hanging Garden and Hidden Lake

The Hidden lake trailhead is at the Logan Pass visitor center. It is a short mile and a half trek that starts with a long board walk stepping up with the slight incline through the meadow before reaching the Hanging Garden. This ia great spot for close encounters with goats and sheep as they are numerous and show no concern for the many people around them. While this is the most crowded hike I have done in Glcaier it is still a fun little hike with great views in all directions. From this area you have clear views of the Garden Wall and Hidden Lake. While this is anything but off the beaten path it offers enough to the first time adventurer to realize there is so much unseen from the road. When you crest the rise and see the lake and deep vallies you are left wanting to hike every trail to every hidden spot or secluded lake. It is a seed planting spot and for that it is well liked by me. It is what got me started with venturing to deeper areas within the park. It is just one of those spots you simply have to go to each year.

Hiking Glacier-Grinnel Glacier

Mitchell and I had hike into Grinnell lake in 2008 but I was left wanting to see more in this complex. I returned with Kurt in 2009 to hike the upper trail into Grinnell Glacier. This hike would come on the heels of our Iceberg Lake trek the previous day and we felt it. We grudgingly set stiff legs in motion and plodded the six miles of trail up along the mountain side. The views of Grinnell lake were stunning to say the least. This trail, while less eye pleasing, just slightly, than Iceberg lake trail, had some neat features to let the hiker "into" the landscape. We stepped through small streams and snaked narrowly around cliff faces and even walked through a cooling water fall at one point. The most difficult portion of the trail is by far the last mile and a half with a steady climb up rocky terrain but when you crest that last knoll and stare down at the glacier it is truely awe inspiring. It has been reduced dramatically in the past decades but we really appreciated what remains and took special stock in the fact that perhaps as soon as Kurts future kids this my be an empty rock dish and he will only be able to tell them of past hikes as a kid when it was a glorious ice pack. This is a very draining hike in the mid summer heat on tired legs but it is such a humbling and rewarding trek that we will certainly tell stories of it for years to come.

Hiking Glacier-Iceberg Lake

Kurt and I spent 4 days (30 Jul-2 Aug 09) camping and hiking in Glacier National Park. I had planned a few day hikes for this summer into areas I had not yet reached. At the top of my list Iceberg Lake. I would not be disappointed. The trail is one of the most beautiful I have ever hiked, with Ptarmigan Wall towering above on the right and spectacular wild flower meadows and vallies to the left. The trail itself is worth the hike and with Iceberg lake at it conclusion it is simply a must for anyone wanting to hike into the park. Iceberg lake was not very big but it sits in a rocky bowl and chunks of ice dot the mirror surface of the lake. It is prime for reflection photos and creates a very relaxing place to let yourself drift into thought.