Backpacking Glacier National Park 2015 - We Did It!
Sunday evening (August 2, 2015) I returned from five days of backpacking in Glacier National Park in far northwestern Montana with our son John and his three girls, Kara, Christine and Erin. What an amazing experience. Thanks for your prayer.
A couple weeks before we left I was trying to explain to Mother what I was doing and where. At 99 she often doesn’t follow a lot of what you talk about but I guess she did follow this as her response was, “Why on earth would you do that?” Not sure I had a good answer! Not even sure I have a good one now but here is a (intended but turned out to be a not-so) brief report.
A couple weeks before we left I was trying to explain to Mother what I was doing and where. At 99 she often doesn’t follow a lot of what you talk about but I guess she did follow this as her response was, “Why on earth would you do that?” Not sure I had a good answer! Not even sure I have a good one now but here is a (intended but turned out to be a not-so) brief report.
Day 1 - Chief Mtn to Cosley Lk
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We started our trip at the Chief Mountain Port of Entry a few hundred feet south of the Montana-Canadian border at about 10:30am on Monday, July 27. We hiked 8 miles kind of South/Southwest about 8 miles, descending from approximately 5500 feet to the Belly River Valley at about 4500 feet and then up to about 4800 feet to a campsite on beautiful Cosley Lake. It was in the 50s during the day with light rain late afternoon and evening, dropping to about 45 overnight. All other days of the hike were beautiful, sunny and neither too hot nor too cold.
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Day 1 9/27/15 Chief Mountain to Cosley Lake 14:09
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Day 2 - Cosley Lk to Elizabeth Lk Foot
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July 28 we left camp about 10:00am on a five mile hike mostly south on the Ptarmigan Trail to Lake Elizabeth. That day was more or less on the level with only a couple hundred feet or so elevation change. It was mostly in forest conditions with a few open areas, similar to the day before. The first highlight was fording a stream about a hundred feet wide with a hand cable to hold onto as you wade across. It was mostly about six inches deep with a short area near the far shore up to your knees. The second highlight was stopping at the Dawn Mist Falls which has to be one of the more beautiful waterfalls in the world. We spent a half hour or so playing in the water and eating lunch. The girls had fun skipping rocks across the stream below the falls. The place is covered with small smooth flat rocks just made for skipping. The day ended at Elizabeth Lake which just like Cosley lake the night before is both beautiful and in a striking setting surrounded by huge mountains and valleys. We arrived early and had a relaxing evening.
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Day 2 9/28/15 Cosley Lake to Elizabeth Lake Foot 11:00
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Day 3 - Elizabeth Lk F0ot to Many Glacier
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July 29 promised to be not only our longest hike but one of the hardest. We walked about 11 miles from Lake Elizabeth along the Ptarmigan trail to Many Glacier, mostly south. Five miles were a nearly constant climb from 4800 ft to 7200 ft. The other six and miles were almost exactly the reverse going steadily down from 7200 to 4800 ft. At the peak of the climb is the Ptarmigan tunnel, an apparently hand carved tunnel about a hundred feet long carved through the mountain. The views on the two sides of the tunnel were almost completely different with the north side looking down over a very green, lush valley with three beautiful lakes along the floor while the south side was much more open and “dusty” looking. Both were surrounded by high mountains. The first hour or so after we left camp was switchbacks in a fairly forested area but then we broke out into the open on a narrow trail skirting a very steep
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Day 3 9/29/15 Elizabeth Lake Foot to Many Glacier 9:50
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mountainside, mostly rocky with considerable loose gravel. Should one misstep there is little to stop you from tumbling hundreds of feet. I haven’t a clue, should you survive how you would ever get out of there. Obviously where you placed your feet became THE most important thing! And there are fewer things in life that give a sense of relief like arriving at that tunnel!
The rest of the trip on the southern side toward Many Glacier was much less dramatic, just long! And we began seeing a lot of day hikers who had come up to the tunnel from Many Glacier. I don't think we smelled as sweet as they after two three days on the trail!
We spent the night and early morning at Many Glacier enjoying a shower, laundry and FOOD, the real kind, not freeze dried pretend food! Many Glacier is one of the very few places where you can actually drive “into” the park.
The rest of the trip on the southern side toward Many Glacier was much less dramatic, just long! And we began seeing a lot of day hikers who had come up to the tunnel from Many Glacier. I don't think we smelled as sweet as they after two three days on the trail!
We spent the night and early morning at Many Glacier enjoying a shower, laundry and FOOD, the real kind, not freeze dried pretend food! Many Glacier is one of the very few places where you can actually drive “into” the park.
Day 4 - Many Glacier to Granite Park
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July 30 was for me, probably the most difficult day. We left camp around 10:30 after a nice breakfast in the restaurant. We had repacked our gear leaving behind several pounds of clothing and other things that we didn’t need any longer (or probably at all!). Every ounce is costly on those mountains. We were facing an eight and a half mile hike west-southwest along the Swift Current Trail from Many Glacier to Granite Park, over another 7200 ft peak, in this case the continental divide.
The first few miles were pretty level going from about 4800 to 5200 ft along a couple of very pretty lakes toward the end of a five mile long valley. At about four miles the climb started, first about a mile in kind of forested/brushy terrain. Then a mile or so further we began to break out onto the open mountainside with an increasingly steep climb and about a thousand foot gain in elevation on a narrow dusty/loose rocky path |
Day 4 9/30/15 Many Glacier to Granite Park 9:50
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varying from a couple feet to perhaps four feet in width. Further up the trail was literally carved into the nearly vertical, jagged-rock mountainside with almost no plant life at all. That was both very difficult climbing and very threatening! If one is inclined to cry out to God for help, that is a very good place to do so! And at least I DID!! But we made it to the top without mishap.
In the shrubby trees along the stream next to the trail there was a moose only a few dozen yards off the trail. Then just as we transitioned from the grassy area to the steeper rocky area we saw a Grizzly and two cubs across the valley. We also were delayed for about half an hour or so by a bunch of Big Horn Sheep who seemed to think the trail and lone shade tree in the area belonged to them. They made it clear that they intended to stay put until they jolly well pleased to move on!
We were rewarded at the summit with a rather understated monument marking the Swift Current Mountain continental divide. I had a real sense of accomplishment there – and thanksgiving!
From there we descended about 500 ft and a couple miles west to the Granite Park Chalet and campground a very interesting place in the middle of nowhere. That campground was the least hospitable of the three wilderness campgrounds we used, being in somewhat dusty, open terrain. Instead of a lake there was a small, slow moving, shallow, pooling stream for water. As in all campgrounds the sleeping areas are a hundred feet or so from the food preparation and storage area – and from the pit toilet in the opposite direction! This was the best pit toilet we "enjoyed" as it was simply a seat in an opening in the trees away from the campsite. Why was it the best? It didn’t “stink”! And who needs privacy in a place like this? Why not enjoy God’s surrounding artwork as you do your business! Maybe art museums should think about that….
In the shrubby trees along the stream next to the trail there was a moose only a few dozen yards off the trail. Then just as we transitioned from the grassy area to the steeper rocky area we saw a Grizzly and two cubs across the valley. We also were delayed for about half an hour or so by a bunch of Big Horn Sheep who seemed to think the trail and lone shade tree in the area belonged to them. They made it clear that they intended to stay put until they jolly well pleased to move on!
We were rewarded at the summit with a rather understated monument marking the Swift Current Mountain continental divide. I had a real sense of accomplishment there – and thanksgiving!
From there we descended about 500 ft and a couple miles west to the Granite Park Chalet and campground a very interesting place in the middle of nowhere. That campground was the least hospitable of the three wilderness campgrounds we used, being in somewhat dusty, open terrain. Instead of a lake there was a small, slow moving, shallow, pooling stream for water. As in all campgrounds the sleeping areas are a hundred feet or so from the food preparation and storage area – and from the pit toilet in the opposite direction! This was the best pit toilet we "enjoyed" as it was simply a seat in an opening in the trees away from the campsite. Why was it the best? It didn’t “stink”! And who needs privacy in a place like this? Why not enjoy God’s surrounding artwork as you do your business! Maybe art museums should think about that….
Day 5 - Granite Park to Many Glacier
July 31. You probably heard about the fire in Glacier. Due to that fire and resulting road and facility closures this was the day we had to alter our original plan to hike about seven miles south down the Highline Trail to Logan Pass. Instead we simply reversed the previous days hike and went east back down the Swift Current Trail back to Many Glacier. I had “worried” about that descent all night thinking, “How on earth are we (am I!) going to navigate that narrow, steep, loose-rock, hazardous trail DOWN!? AND we had a 1:00pm deadline back at Many Glacier to catch a shuttle up to Chief Mountain to get our car. I checked to be sure I was prepared to meet my maker… as we set out next morning at about 6:30, dreading but at the same time looking forward to the trip. It had taken us seven hours to come up, thanks to my slow progress and the big horn sheep. Could we go back down in the just six hours or so required? Long story short, we did it in five hours and it was amazing how soon we were back on “solid” ground, and it didn’t even seem particularly hazardous! We even had time to stop and play in a small water fall on one of the lakes. God is good. I did not make a video of the last day since it was the reverse of the day before and I didn't want to fuss with the GoPro while going down that steep incline.
Some Observations and Thoughts
The trip was beyond expectations in just about every way imaginable. The Thursday before I left home we had to change plans from going by train to going by car due to the fire in the park and the resulting logistics problems there. But in His own amazing way, God provided. That night while helping clean up after the meal at our church's VBS I was talking with a friend about the fire, changes, etc. Another friend overheard and asked, “Do you need a van or anything?” I said that we were trying to find one to rent and he said, “Don’t rent one. Call my office tomorrow and we’ll see what we can do.” By noon the next day, which was my scheduled departure time, a completely serviced, washed and VERY NICE, Chevy Suburban was sitting in my driveway! We drove the 3000 mile round trip in comfort. And it was perfect for the three teenaged girls, providing them with space during the 1600 mile each way trip. God is so good. Isn’t there a verse in the Bible about “before you ask…..”?
Another miracle and unexpected intervention by God came on the third day ascending toward the tunnel on the Ptarmigan trail, the first of two very hard days as we had 2400 foot climbs in just a few miles. I’m not a young man and really am not an active, outdoors person. So, even with my months of preparation, by about an hour into the ascent I was having to stop every 20 to 30 steps to breathe (we were going from 4800 to 7200 feet). We faced several miles of this! John began taking things out of my pack to reduce the weight and spreading it among himself and the girls which helped some. I found myself praying every step something similar to, “Jesus, I need your help for every breath and every step. I can’t do this on my own.” Kara the oldest granddaughter and Erin the youngest had “run” on ahead and were out of sight. About half way up John, Christine and I stopped in a “cleft in the rock” along the trail to remove our packs, drink water and eat a candy bar when Kara came trotting down the trail, walked over and picked up my pack and headed back up the hill! I still start crying when I think about that. She was Jesus’ direct answer to my prayer! She was an angel sent by God. I don’t think I would be typing this today had she not done that. It was still VERY HARD to get to the top but I got there and subsequently, carrying my pack again, survived and “almost enjoyed” the remaining five miles back down the other side to Many Glacier.
I won’t bore you with more but suffice it to say this was not only a marvelous experience with John, Kara, Christine and Erin but a marvelous experience with Jesus.
It is SO GOOD to be back home. Now if I can just keep those lost five pounds at bay…. And I need to somehow keep my new “huge calves” (the girl's description!) firm. Who knows what a year might bring? Several have asked me if I’ll do another trip. Well, I never have been much for planning ahead. I certainly don’t feel like saying NO. So we’ll have to wait and see. Maybe John won’t even ask me again. That would make it easy, but… a little disappointing too!
We did see some wild life, a grizzly bear with two cubs, two moose, some deer and a flock of about a dozen big horned sheep as well as eagles, hawks, many chipmunk like critters (one with one eye that the girls all felt sorry for) and a opossum like creature we could not identify.
I did NOT take an HF radio with me and I'm so glad! The weight would have been a killer and we simply did not need one other thing to think about on the trail or in camp. Just backpacking, eating and sleeping is enough!
I used Trimble Outdoors Navigator in both planning the routes for our hike and then to tracking the trip with their app on my Samsung Galaxy SIII phone. The results are available on the Trimble web site. The phone worked very well. I put it in airplane mode and turned off all features I could so battery consumption was minimal. I ended nearly every day with about 50% of capacity left. I did have both a spare battery and a recharging battery which I used to recharge both my phone and GOPRO. The GOPRO was a HERO3+ Silver. I had two off-brand extra batteries for it. It's remaining battery capacity at the end of each day was about 25%. I set it for 720-30 video recording and wore it on a chest mount. We played with the "selfie stick" a little but for us it interfered with the hiking so we really didn't use that mount. I knew battery was an issue so would turn it on whenever a new scene came into view or there was something I wanted to record, then turn it off again. Even when it is not recording it eats battery so if I had left it on constantly the battery would be dead in about an hour or so. They way I did it I never had to replace the batter on the trail and I got way more footage than I can possibly use! The video isn't great but the clips do provide a better overall experience of the trip than just stills. I edited the footage using Microsoft Movie Maker which seems to run OK in Windows 10.
Another miracle and unexpected intervention by God came on the third day ascending toward the tunnel on the Ptarmigan trail, the first of two very hard days as we had 2400 foot climbs in just a few miles. I’m not a young man and really am not an active, outdoors person. So, even with my months of preparation, by about an hour into the ascent I was having to stop every 20 to 30 steps to breathe (we were going from 4800 to 7200 feet). We faced several miles of this! John began taking things out of my pack to reduce the weight and spreading it among himself and the girls which helped some. I found myself praying every step something similar to, “Jesus, I need your help for every breath and every step. I can’t do this on my own.” Kara the oldest granddaughter and Erin the youngest had “run” on ahead and were out of sight. About half way up John, Christine and I stopped in a “cleft in the rock” along the trail to remove our packs, drink water and eat a candy bar when Kara came trotting down the trail, walked over and picked up my pack and headed back up the hill! I still start crying when I think about that. She was Jesus’ direct answer to my prayer! She was an angel sent by God. I don’t think I would be typing this today had she not done that. It was still VERY HARD to get to the top but I got there and subsequently, carrying my pack again, survived and “almost enjoyed” the remaining five miles back down the other side to Many Glacier.
I won’t bore you with more but suffice it to say this was not only a marvelous experience with John, Kara, Christine and Erin but a marvelous experience with Jesus.
It is SO GOOD to be back home. Now if I can just keep those lost five pounds at bay…. And I need to somehow keep my new “huge calves” (the girl's description!) firm. Who knows what a year might bring? Several have asked me if I’ll do another trip. Well, I never have been much for planning ahead. I certainly don’t feel like saying NO. So we’ll have to wait and see. Maybe John won’t even ask me again. That would make it easy, but… a little disappointing too!
We did see some wild life, a grizzly bear with two cubs, two moose, some deer and a flock of about a dozen big horned sheep as well as eagles, hawks, many chipmunk like critters (one with one eye that the girls all felt sorry for) and a opossum like creature we could not identify.
I did NOT take an HF radio with me and I'm so glad! The weight would have been a killer and we simply did not need one other thing to think about on the trail or in camp. Just backpacking, eating and sleeping is enough!
I used Trimble Outdoors Navigator in both planning the routes for our hike and then to tracking the trip with their app on my Samsung Galaxy SIII phone. The results are available on the Trimble web site. The phone worked very well. I put it in airplane mode and turned off all features I could so battery consumption was minimal. I ended nearly every day with about 50% of capacity left. I did have both a spare battery and a recharging battery which I used to recharge both my phone and GOPRO. The GOPRO was a HERO3+ Silver. I had two off-brand extra batteries for it. It's remaining battery capacity at the end of each day was about 25%. I set it for 720-30 video recording and wore it on a chest mount. We played with the "selfie stick" a little but for us it interfered with the hiking so we really didn't use that mount. I knew battery was an issue so would turn it on whenever a new scene came into view or there was something I wanted to record, then turn it off again. Even when it is not recording it eats battery so if I had left it on constantly the battery would be dead in about an hour or so. They way I did it I never had to replace the batter on the trail and I got way more footage than I can possibly use! The video isn't great but the clips do provide a better overall experience of the trip than just stills. I edited the footage using Microsoft Movie Maker which seems to run OK in Windows 10.
Glacier - Here We Come!
4/23/15 We received the letter yesterday indicating that we got the trip we wanted for our backpacking trip to Glacier National Park in July. The only deviation is that they reversed it one us! That creates two issues for us. 1) The trip will begin at Chief Mountian Trailhead which is a long way from where we were planning to spend the night prior to the start of the hike. 2) We'll be going from Many Galcier to Granite Park which means a very steep 2000 foot climb! It would have been a very steep 2000 foot descent in our requested plan so perhaps it isn't too bad. Click on the button below to see the hike plan on Google Earth.
While preparing for this trip I am also contemplating and experimenting with the idea of taking along a portable HF setup. If you are interested in that check out my HF Backpacking pages.
Now my training must get real serious!
4/26/15 My son and I have had lots of emails phone calls about the trip. Our plan is to take the Amtrak Empire Builder from Minneapolis to either the East Glacier or West Glacier station. We'll spend one night in a motel and then hit the trail the next day. There are some logistics issues to be worked on on that.
As mentioned above we'll hit the trail at Chief Mountain Trail-head which is just a short distance south of the Canadian boarder on Hwy 17. We'll take the Belly Lake Trail southwest to the Cosley Lake Cutoff Trail to where it ends at the junction of the Stoney Indian Pass and Ptarmigan Trail, continuing on Stoney Indian Pass Trail to the Cosley Lake Campsite, at total of just over eight miles. Day two will see us on the Ptarmigan Trail for four miles ending at Elizabeth Lake and the Elizabeth Lake Foot campsite.
Day three is when the work begins. We'll continue on south on the Ptarmigan Trail through the Ptarmigan Tunnel to the Many Glacier campsite, a ten mile hike including climbing up 2200 feet in the first five miles and then descending 2000 feet in the final five miles. Sights promise to be spectacular from pictures and videos I've seen.
Day four continues the hard work with a seven mile hike from Many Glacier to Granite Park. That includes a 2200 foot climb in just two miles. Fortunately the descent is only about 700 feet in the remaining mile of the trip.
Day five will be relatively easy with only a 700 foot rise and fall, however that ALL occurs in just about three miles! The balance of the 7.5 mile day will be relatively flat - though NOTHING appears to be flat in Glacier! But the reward is a night in a motel and then the train back home.
Like I said, my training MUST get serious!
While preparing for this trip I am also contemplating and experimenting with the idea of taking along a portable HF setup. If you are interested in that check out my HF Backpacking pages.
Now my training must get real serious!
4/26/15 My son and I have had lots of emails phone calls about the trip. Our plan is to take the Amtrak Empire Builder from Minneapolis to either the East Glacier or West Glacier station. We'll spend one night in a motel and then hit the trail the next day. There are some logistics issues to be worked on on that.
As mentioned above we'll hit the trail at Chief Mountain Trail-head which is just a short distance south of the Canadian boarder on Hwy 17. We'll take the Belly Lake Trail southwest to the Cosley Lake Cutoff Trail to where it ends at the junction of the Stoney Indian Pass and Ptarmigan Trail, continuing on Stoney Indian Pass Trail to the Cosley Lake Campsite, at total of just over eight miles. Day two will see us on the Ptarmigan Trail for four miles ending at Elizabeth Lake and the Elizabeth Lake Foot campsite.
Day three is when the work begins. We'll continue on south on the Ptarmigan Trail through the Ptarmigan Tunnel to the Many Glacier campsite, a ten mile hike including climbing up 2200 feet in the first five miles and then descending 2000 feet in the final five miles. Sights promise to be spectacular from pictures and videos I've seen.
Day four continues the hard work with a seven mile hike from Many Glacier to Granite Park. That includes a 2200 foot climb in just two miles. Fortunately the descent is only about 700 feet in the remaining mile of the trip.
Day five will be relatively easy with only a 700 foot rise and fall, however that ALL occurs in just about three miles! The balance of the 7.5 mile day will be relatively flat - though NOTHING appears to be flat in Glacier! But the reward is a night in a motel and then the train back home.
Like I said, my training MUST get serious!
2015-05-31 My wife and I spent the weekend with our son and his family. Always fun to be with them. In addition to the normal visiting, projects and the like John and I had opportunity to discuss the upcoming Glacier National Park trip face to face. We pretty much decide to stick with the original plan to take the train out. Driving was another option but after considering everything the benefit of driving is minimal in reducing the logistic issues on both the beginning and end of the trip plus it means we have to drive!
The other thing I have almost surely concluded is that an HF rig would end up being dead weight. There is just not time to fuss with that. I'm both disappointed and relieved! Disappointed as it would be neat to actually get on the air and have a few QSO's under such "primitive" conditions. But I'm relieved to NOT have to bother with one more thing on a trip that is already stretching my physical capacities! Even so it has been really fun to work on the possibility, particularly with antennas. Hopefully I won't forget the knowledge and experience gained.
The other thing I have almost surely concluded is that an HF rig would end up being dead weight. There is just not time to fuss with that. I'm both disappointed and relieved! Disappointed as it would be neat to actually get on the air and have a few QSO's under such "primitive" conditions. But I'm relieved to NOT have to bother with one more thing on a trip that is already stretching my physical capacities! Even so it has been really fun to work on the possibility, particularly with antennas. Hopefully I won't forget the knowledge and experience gained.
2015-07-11 After the really fun time we had at field day using only five watts and my 51 ft end fed antenna, I am once again contemplating taking a radio setup along. My Ten-Tec R4020 with internal batteries, antenna and Tuna Tunah II tuner and key weight just under 3 lbs. And we have one afternoon/evening when we arrive at camp pretty early in the afternoon so there could be time to operate. We'll see.