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(Click on the thumbnail pictures to see a larger view) |
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| We woke to a very overcast sky and so took
our time getting out into the world in hopes that the clouds would burn
off. After a leisurely breakfast buffet at the Many Glacier Hotel,
the sun seemed to be winning out, so we decided to go separate ways.
Carol went to find the horses for the trail ride to Cracker Flats.
It turns out to be perfect weather and the ride was through gorgeous country.
There was a group of 17 teenagers, the second half of a group of high school
students from Tennessee, who wanted also to do the ride. The wranglers
had mercy on Carol and another adult couple, and sent the kids off in a
separate group ahead of us. Our guide had just returned from taking
the first half of the teenagers, and was thrilled to take just the three
of us! He was very chatty and interesting, and exited about working
his first summer in the park. He said they usually see bears along
this trail, but we had no such luck. Our only sighting was a couple
of bald eagles.
John hiked around Swiftcurrent lake and got a few shots of the Many Glacier Hotel. Later, back at the Swiftcreek Motor Inn parking lot, he sighted some bighorn rams up on the opposite mountainside. No chance for a photo, since the 20x scope was needed just to determine gender. When Carol returned from her ride with stories about the bear whose activities had closed the trails around Grinnell Lake and Glacier, we started down the Iceberg/Ptarmigan Trail with heightened awareness. After a steep climb, we got some great views of the valley below and seas of wildflowers. We heard stories from hikers we met along the way, one being the ranger from yesterday's hike, about some grizzly bear sightings, fresh scat and diggings, further up the path. When we get to the freshly overturned earth in the middle of the trail, we declare our legs stretched and return (or should we say 'retreat'?) to the Inn. After cleaning up, we went about 12 miles to the town--uh, crossroads---uh, couple of buildings? just east of the park called "Babb" and the Cattle Baron's for dinner. From the outside, it looked quite unassuming, but inside, it's wonderfully decorated in Native American style. After reading about the Blackfeet culture and the owners' ancestry (the wife's grandfather played football and ran track with Jim Thorpe! Way cool!), we were treated to the biggest steaks we ever saw! And they tasted great! We did our best to finish! Our return drive again yielded little wildlife. We had seen a black bear w-a-a-a-a-a-a-y in the distance, high on the mountain on the way out to dinner. He turned out to be our only bear sighting this trip! We thought Glacier NP, particularly the Many Glacier area, would be wall to wall Griz! Not so! Though we weren't keen on meeting one on the trail, it would have been nice to catch him in our scope. Dave and Debbi Parker had warned us not to expect as much visible wildlife in Glacier as in Yellowstone, and they were right. It's probably partly because the mountains tower over the roads and the distances to where the wildlife live are so great. We didn't find roads with open valleys good for scoping like the Lamar and Hayden in Yellowstone. We gave up on the scope and went to the Many Glacier Hotel gift shop to look for souvenirs, and then returned to our room at Swiftcreek to pack up for the next days' journey over the mountains to Lake McDonald on the west side of the park. |
| More Pictures from the Many Glacier Area - (Click on the thumbnail pictures to see a larger view) |
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