Glacier National Park

Introduction

Glacier National Park is one of America's crown jewels. It sits in Montana, just south of the northern border with Canada. In fact Glacier is half of a large park system - Glacier-Waterton International Peace Park. Canada's Waterton Lakes Park begins immediately where Glacier ends and continues north from the border. Glacier straddles the Rocky Mountains as they cross the border. It's flanked on the west side by the Flathead Indian reservation and on the east side by the Blackfeet Reservation. This park is unrivaled for scenic mountain views and is packed with wildlife. It's many trails take you into the backcountry where alpine lakes abound.

This park is built in the Rocky Mountains so you won't be finding any flat plains here. The terrain ranges from gentle mountains and valleys to near vertical cliffs. Glacier has two major areas that visitors can use as base camps when exploring this fantastic park. West Glacier and Apgar Village are found on the west end of the park. Visitor services include helicopter flight-seeing trips, rafting trips on the Flathead River, and various lodging, restaurant, and RV park services. In addition, the small Apgar Village abuts West Glacier and is located right on the shores of Lake MacDonald. On Glacier's east end is St. Mary, another area with lodging, dining, and RV services. Connecting the two is a single road through the park called "Going to the Sun".

Going to the Sun Road is an engineering marvel. Completed in 1933, it clings to the side of mountains, overlooking valleys below and climbs to eye level with glaciers. It was designed to be architecturally invisible so as not to be a blight on the landscape. Stone masons carefully cut and laid blocks of stone, quarried from nearby areas to create a scenic guardrail. This high altitude road generally opens in the very end of June after all of the snow is finally cleaned away and is limited to vehicles under 21' in length due to the sharp curves. The road itself is a must-see and one of the park's claims to fame.

Still, the name of the park is "Glacier" so what would this park be without glaciers. Being a high altitude area, there are plenty of glaciers clinging to the mountains in this park. Many of these can be seen from Going to the Sun but there are countless others that are accessed by numerous hiking trails. The Glacier's are receding as the global climate gradually warms every year but they are still numerous and an awesome site.

This photo journal only deals with a portion of Glacier. It's not complete but merely the results of one trip we've taken there. There is much more than shown here but hopefully these images may give you a feel for what it's like. If you want to see larger images, simply click on any image to view a larger 1024x768 XGA size image.

Enjoy the journey!

Mark Quasius - "Cruzer"

Index

East Glacier Park Lodge

Like many of the national parks in the west, initial development was led by railroads. Great Northern laid track to the area and created lodging, hopefully to entice tourists to travel by rail and stay at their lodges. On the southeast corner of Glacier, where it was possible to get rail to, East Glacier Park was founded. A rail depot brought the trains to this location where passengers disembarked and took other forms of transportation into the park. East Glacier Park Lodge was built by the Great Northern Railroad to provide the kind of lodging accommodations these passengers were accustomed to.

East Glacier Park Lodge Lobby

Many of the grand hotels and lodges constructed in the parks were designed to blend in with their surroundings. Local material were used extensively in their construction and they were created to be upscale. The lobby of East Glacier Park Lodge shows the large pine timbers used in it's construction. The balconies of the rooms in the main building all look out onto the lobby., which became a popular seating and entertainment area, especially in the evenings when the grand piano was playing. Gift shops, restaurants, lounges, and tour services make up the public rooms surrounding the first floor of the lobby.

East Glacier Park Lodge Gardens

Directly in front of the main lobby's entrance is a large grassy area, the highlight of which is the gardens. This garden is filled with the various mountain wildflowers found in the area.

The Red Bus

In the late 1920s and 1930s, tour busses were one popular form of transportation. Great Northern ran this tour service, which of course was based from their railhead and lodging accommodations. Over the years these vehicles declined as personal auto transportation gradually overtook rail transportation. A resurgence in nostalgia has prompted Glacier Park Services to re-establish these busses. Known as the "Red Bus" these present day reconstructions include upgraded safety systems, such as brakes and steering and now feature more environmentally friendly propane burning engines.

Geese

This family of geese was spotted in a pond late one evening.

Wet Moose

This young bull moose was dining on sedges in a pond on Glacier's west side, near Lake MacDonald. They dive down to grab them from the bottom of the pond and lift their heads out of the water, which drains off as they chew and catch another breath. This shot, taken in the end of June, clears shows the antlers covered in velvet. Moose shed their antlers over the winter and start to regrow them every spring. The typical full racks that you generally see don't appear until the fall rut when they are full sized and all of the velvet has either fallen off or removed by scraping on brush.

Laughing Moose

This same moose apparently found humor in the fact that I was taking his picture.

Avalanche Gorge

Avalanche Gorge is a gorge, eroded by water runoff from Avalanche Lake which lies in the high country. When the snowmelt is severe, as it was this year, the water rushes down the gorge in torrents, totally enveloping the nearby trees as it makes it's run to Lake MacDonald at a lower elevation.

Trail of the Cedars

Trail of the Cedars is a trail that's easily accessed from the lower portion of Going to the Sun Road, near Lake MacDonald on the park's west side. This easy walk through the woods is a view into a moist temperate forest, lined with ferns, moss, and large cedar trees.

Cascading Stream

This stream was found along the Trail of the Cedars nature hike.

Ferns and Fallen Trees

The soil in this area is rich, but shallow. The moisture content allows trees to topple during rain storms as it washes away.

Burl

This tree, found along Trail of the Cedars, exhibits a large burl on it's side.

Going to the Sun Road

Going to the Sun Road spans the park from east to west. It generally follows the mountain slopes as it leaves West Glacier and ascends to Logan Pass and then back down again to the St Mary on the other side of the park. The melting snow forms swift moving streams that cascade down the slopes with great force. In this area culverts were built to pass the road over the waterfall, preventing any washout of the road.

Waterfall

Close-up shot of the same waterfall, prior to passing under the road.

Glacial Valleys

The many valleys in Glacier National Park were formed when Glaciers passed through the area. Once the glaciers receded valleys were left between the peaks.

Tunnel

Clinging to the side of a mountain isn't the easiest place to build a road. In addition to ducting streams beneath the roadbed, a few tunnels are necessary to pass traffic through the cliff, rather than around it.

The Big Drift

The Big Drift is generally the last portion of Going to the Sun Road to be plowed. Once the Big Drift is cleared the road is opened up for traffic. The snowfall is deep at this altitude and in this climate and this particular slope is known for it's perpetual drifts. The drift is cleared by running dozers over the top of the slope to knock some of the snow down, where large snow blowers toss it over the low side of the slope. It's a time consuming process and the threat of avalanches is always present during this operation.

Weeping Wall

The Weeping Wall is an area along Going to the Sun where constant snowmelt runoff pours out the top of the wall and onto the road.

Car Wash

Many visitors like to sample the thrill of getting a free car wash at the Weeping Wall, preferably with their windows closed.

Logan Pass

At the highest point of Going to the Sun is Logan Pass. A visitor's center is located there as well a few hiking trails.

Trail to Hidden Lake

One popular trail leaving Logan Pass Visitor Center is the trail to Hidden Lake. This image, taken July 4th, shows the immense snowfields blanketing the trail. Later on in August the snow cover gives way to Alpine tundra. Hidden Lake is one of the gems of Glacier National Park. It's in a beautiful setting, surrounded by mountain peaks. These early season hikers, looking like ants plastered on the mountain slope, were equipped with crampons and hiking poles to help traverse the snowfields.

Ground Squirrel

The Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel is a popular resident of Glacier National Park. Feasting on seeds and grasses they populate the high country wherever food is available.

Mount Clements

Mount Clements is easily seen from Logan Pass. The pine trees show evidence of the harsh winters that seem to last forever at this altitude.

Traffic Jam

Traffic jams on Going to the Sun will happen any time wildlife decides to cross the road. They just don't seem to be in a hurry and the tourists generally don't mind.

Bighorn Family

This family of Bighorn Sheep was found resting on a cliff along Going to the Sun. Family groups typically consist of a single ram but may have more than one ewe with an equal amount of lambs.

Bighorn Sheep

This ram was on a steep ledge overlooking Logan Pass. A hike through snowfields brought him into range.

Mountain Goats

This mother and kid were in fairly close proximity to the Bighorn Sheep previously photographed.

Mountain Goat

Mountain goats spend their time high on the rocky cliffs, where predators cannot get at them. They come down to eat on vegetation and drink water then return to their sky high pedestals to rest and survey the surrounding area.

Melting Snowfields

The vast amounts of snow take their time melting at this altitude, providing a plethora of waterfalls for visitors to enjoy.

Blackfoot and Jackson Glaciers

Blackfoot Glacier, on the left, and Jackson Glacier, on the right, are gradually receding as the years go by and the planet gradually turns from ice age to it's present warming cycle. Even so, they are of substantial size.

Osprey Nest

Osprey are the ultimate fishers, swooping down with ease to nab a fish that humans can't even see. The park service has erected nesting platforms in key areas to help provide habitat for these birds. "Bird proofing" the power lines is another step taken to help ensure their survival.

St Mary River

St Mary River drains from St Mary Lake and runs parallel to Going to the Sun Road at it's lower elevations on the east side of the park. This rushing river is dotted with many cascades and small waterfalls.

St Mary Lake

St Mary Lake is found on the east edge of the park. Carved by glaciers, this valley was blocked off when the glacier receded and St Mary Lake was born as it filled with water.

Black Bear and Cub

This Black Bear was browsing in the Many Glacier area. She had three cubs but they were romping around and only one was close enough to get in the picture. Glacier is home to both Black Bear and Grizzly and back country hikers must be properly informed in how to handle the wilderness when bear are present.

Trail Rides

After a day of trail riding, the wranglers return the horses to their stables at Many Glacier.

Many Glacier Hotel

Many Glacier Hotel was another lodging facility built by the Great Northern Railroad back in 1928. It's the largest facility in the park and looks out over the lake and Mount Grinnell. A number of hiking trails in the area take you to some fantastic views.

Many Glacier Hotel

Many Glacier Hotel sits right at the edge of Swiftcurrent Lake at the mountains' edge. A boat dock allows tours that will take you to Josephine Lake.

Fishercap Lake

Fishercap Lake is in the general area of Many Glacier. A hike to it reveals that it's a relatively shallow lake where ducks and beaver abound. The lush sedges on the bottom of the lake are popular food with moose, who frequent the area. Like all lakes in Glacier, it is surrounded by mountains.

Moose Cow and Calf

This moose cow and her calf were strolling along the far shore of Fishercap Lake just prior to sunset.

Inquisitive Moose

The same mother and calf stopped to wonder at who was taking their picture at Fishercap Lake that evening.

Bear Grass Field

This forested section shows the ever present Bear Grass, which begins to bloom in early July.

Bear Grass

This close-up shows the Bear Grass plant as it's almost in full bloom. The tip is the last part to open up on these plants.

Wild Geranium

Mountain wildflowers are very small in size. The very short growing season means they won't have time to develop into full sized flowers before the snow flies. But, in July when they bloom, the fields arte covered with bright swaths of color. They may be small, but they are bright and vividly colorful.

Arnica

Arnica is a yellow flower. Like the other mountain wildflowers, it too is very small. Most wildflowers get along well together and you'll see multicolored fields of them during the peak season in late July.

Northern Grass Parnassus

This white wildflower is another popular resident of the high country.

Lupine

The Lupine is distinct in that it's vertical stalks are covered with bright blue petals. Unlike the Bear Grass, the Lupine opens from the top down.

Wildflower Fields

This image, taken late in the evening, is of a field outside of the park and shows the variety of wildflowers blooming in early July. Actually there were many more buds that have not yet opened so another 2 weeks would have made this a spectacular shot.