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Published: August 6th 2008
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A 6.30am start as we had a 5 hour drive ahead and Sarah wanted us to get to Glacier National Park in time for an evening hike. No time to rest in Montana. Too much to see!
The drive up was awesome. Crossing the state we could see how unpopulated Montana is. The farmers were in the middle of hay making mode which created a very picturesque setting of rows of round hay stacks dotted around the paddocks, and always with a backdrop of mountains in the distance.
You can never escape wildlife in Montana and even surrounded by farms there were plenty of wild deer to be spotted.
We were to stay in the middle of Glacier National Park at an area called Many Glacier. So we got to our park run motel where we dumped our bags in our room and changed into our hiking gear. There is no question that you are in the Rockies here as you walk through forests you look up to see towering granite peaks in every direction. In case we needed a reminder there were plenty of signs warning us of the danger of bears. So with a can of bear
mace each and a short teaching session on how to use, we headed off on an amazing evening hike to Grinnell Glacier.
The hike starts out passing several almost connecting lakes. This part is also accessible by boat and getting later in the day we decided to be slightly lazy and cut out a mile by getting a boat across one of the lakes. A good way to meet people and one rather loud elderly American lady with bright red lipstick, entertained our boat by screeching "look, I can see a bear!" while pointing half way up the mountain. It was rather funny to start with as the boat stopped and everyone piled to one side to look at a rock half way up the surrounding mountain. There was no way this was a bear! If there was a bear anywhere near here we are sure this crazy old lady would be the last to see it. Having already dug her hole she continued to insist the rock was moving down the mountain and by the time everyone including her friends started taking the mickey, the captain decided it was time to keep moving. We were the only ones
to disembark the boat a few minutes later and continue hiking around the rest of the lake and up to the Glacier.
After the crazy ladies bear sightings we were a little hesitant to jump the gun but within 2 minutes Leanne piped up "there’s something in the lake." We all stopped in our tracks peering through the trees where sure enough a mother moose and her baby were playing in the shallows by the lake edge. A truly special sight and the first time we have seen the gigantic creatures. They didn't seem bothered by us and splashed around in the water but as everyone knows from growing up, an angry mother is not something to be messed with. So we quietly pushed on.
It wasn't long before our jaws dropped again in amazement as a small wild deer with fresh velvet growing from its head, stood staring at us in the middle of the path. We stood there quietly as we didn't want to scare him but this soon turned out to be a joke as we all realized this deer was going no where and it wanted to get closer. Joe tried his best to
move the deer which proved to be not an easy feat.
This hike continued to impress, as your attention was distracted between stunning scenery including the track winding under a waterfall, mountain streams, wild flowers and snow tipped granite peeks, and even more wildlife including small ptarmigans (ground birds) wondering the tracks and mountain sheep with their beautiful curled horns scaling rock faces. We finally reached our destination Grinnell Glacier. Standing at the base of the glacier your eyes could follow it high up into the peak. It’s sad to think of the 150 original glaciers, this glacier is only 1 of 25 remaining in the park and most of these are expected to disappear within 20 years due to rising temperatures.
Getting late we decided to head down and with the sun getting low in the sky we were rewarded one final time with the distant site of a moose with a beautiful set of antlers grazing in the valley pastures.
After the walk we sat at the trail head and had a light dinner (a treat for Joe as cold quiche is one of his favourites). Before we headed off to bed, we decided to
have a small night cap around at the grand old Lake Side Lodge where you could sit and look out at the truly impressive, Many Glacier.
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Were the pictures of the flowers taken to make Ben MacDonald jealous?