Glacier National Park 4-6 August (day 102-104)

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After Grand Teton National park we headed north to Montana and visited Glacier National Park. The park is on the border with Canada where it becomes Waterton Lakes National Park. The park is big and everything there is remote; bears are everywhere.

From the park newspaper: “In 1850, there were an estimated 150 glaciers in the park. By 1968, the number was reduced to around 50. Today only 26 glaciers remain in the park, many of which are mere remnants of what they once were. Scientists predict all glaciers in Glacier National Park will be gone by the year 2030”.

The park is easy to explore. Being so far north Spring arrives here quite late, so we saw many wild flowers we had not seen yet in the other parks.
The trails are well maintained and well signed. Distances are big though and there is just one road crossing the park, the road is called Going-to-the-Sun Road; all other roads are dead ends. The Going-to-the-Sun Road is a fantastic ride around lakes and mountains.
The first day we spent driving up and down the Going-to-the-Sun Road and doing small hikes all of which offered great views. Some of the the trails surround the mountains and are just above high cliffs. The views are incredible and some of the Glaciers can be seen from the road. The second day we joined a ranger led hike to a lake called Iceberg Lake. The ice breaks and forms icebergs that float in it. It is just a free activity and specially if you are feeling lazy enough to search for something to do among the endless possibilities that is a good option. We did some more bear watching when we were back in the camp and got ready to get the road to Seattle the next day.

More about Glacier National Park:
http://www.nps.gov/glac/ind

More about Iceberg Lake:
http://www.naturalbornhikers.com/IcebergLake/IcebergLake.htm

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Photos

Going-to-the-Sun Road
Glacier National Park

Going-to-the-Sun Road
Glacier National Park

Enjoying the view
Glacier National Park

Lake
Glacier National Park

Jackson Glacier
Glacier National Park

On the trail
To Iceberg Lake

Iceberg Lake
Glacier National Park

Iceberg Lake
Glacier National Park