Glacier 2016

Oh my goodness. This was by far the best trip to Glacier we have had. And we have been there several times. What makes it so different this time around you might ask? This time the cousins came with us. Well, at least some cousins.

Once again we rented cabins in West Glacier Campground. Due to the size of our party, we were able to reserve 5 cabins that sit in a semi-circle and share a common campfire pit. This is the 1st time that the cousins have ever been camping and the excitement filled the air. The quote by Katrina Meyer sums it up perfectly, “There’s joy and wonder everywhere when you view the world through the eyes of a child”. The simplest tasks like gathering firewood became a game. They loved making biscuits over a campfire and using magnesium fire starters to get the fire started.

Since this was our 3rd time to Glacier, we picked our favorite hike to do with the cousins, kinda like a ‘welcome to Glacier’ hike, and then on other days, we went our separate ways and met up each afternoon for dinner. The hike to Hidden Lake never disappoints and like in years past, we were excited to see a ton of snow still up on the top. The drive up to Hidden Lake on Going to the Sun road never disappoints. Our cousins have heard us talk many times about the amazing waterfalls, scenic overlooks and the Weeping Wall. We stopped multiple times to view these beautiful natural creations.

Due to a late snow and an unseasonably cool May, we were surprised at the amount of snow that was still on the top of the mountain. One of the hikes we have always wanted to do is Highline Trail. The 1st year we visited Glacier, the kids were too small to hike this dangerous trail. The 2nd time, it was closed due to snow. Despite that, someone crossed the barricade and hiked the beginning part, only to fall to his death. We were stuck up at the Visitor Center for about an hour while Park Rangers took care of the unfortunate incident. This year, again, due to the snow, the trail was closed. But, like I have said in the past, Glacier never disappoints. We hadn’t even pulled into our parking spot and the kids are running out of the car. Off in the distance was a black bear with her cub and about a dozen skittish mountain goats. The 2 mile hike to the overlook of Hidden Lake was more fun than we could have imagined and took us longer than expected. Have you ever hiked on snow? You can hear the crunch under each step and as the sun rose in the sky, the snow turned slick. The hike was slow as we helped the younger cousins and Rebecca’s parents down the path. We passed a lovely little pond that reflected the mountainous scenery in its water. We stopped to throw snowballs at each other. And we took time to stop and look at all the beauty God had created just for us. Along the way, we passed, crossed paths with and dodged several packs of mountain goats. With their scraggily winter coats shedding, they quickly became a sensation and we thoroughly enjoyed watching them jump and skip on and around the snow covered rocks. Some got within a few feet of us. On the return hike, we noticed a path down the side of the mountain. Did it lead to the visitor center where we had parked? Absolutely not. Did we care? Absolutely not. We put our backpacks on our laps, sat down on our rears and away we went. The snow slide was quick, cold and bumpy and as each of us slid down, you could hear sounds of laughter and delight. And maybe an ouch from the older folks too J

By the end of the day we were exhausted and had to stop for huckleberry ice cream. Mmmm! Huckleberry ice cream. Our favorite treat up north. We eat as much as our stomachs can handle whenever we visit Montana.

The next day we drove to Many Glacier and hiked to Iceberg Lake. The kids were not happy with having to wake up early and drive 3 hours to the other side of the park. We stopped at this horrible little taco joint on the way and ate the nastiest breakfast we can remember. Viktoria still references it every time she sees nacho cheese J We didn’t know what to expect when we decided to hike to Iceberg Lake. We had read that it was amazing, but we didn’t expect anything like this. The hike to Iceberg Lake is an 10 mile round trip hike. Our kids are seasoned hikers, so this is not a big deal. On the way to the lake, we hiked through amazing valleys where you can actually see the path that the glaciers formed so many thousands of years ago. The avalanche slopes covered in beargrass and glacier lilies overlooking the majestic peaks of the mountains will be something that is captured in my mind forever. Though we started the hike around 9am, as the sun rose, the temperatures climbed and we were soon longing for the snow from yesterday’s hike to cool us off. Thankfully, ever so often, we would cross a small waterfall trickling out of the mountain, fresh, clean and cold. We would soak our hats in the refreshing water and splash our faces to rejuvenate us for the rest of the hike. The hike, though relatively easy, did not disappoint and soon we could see in the distance the bowl of Iceberg lake. The kids ran ahead and Clint and I took our time taking in the views. It wasn’t until we were at the lake that we could fully appreciate all the beauty. The water at Iceberg Lake was just above freezing. We all took our shoes off and waded in, only to find that we couldn’t last more than a few seconds before our feet began to turn red and pain ran up our legs. There were massive chunks of ice floating in the crystal blue water, surrounded by the snow-streaked, craggy peaks of the iceberg bowl. The chunks were large enough for all of us to climb up on to take pictures. As we sat to eat our lunch, we were amazed at how a small breeze could take these large ‘icebergs’ for a ride across the lake. At one point, we heard this thundering boom, followed by a deep thumping drumroll as a sheet of ice broke free from the top of the bowl and created a rock slide down the cliff face. The sound was something we’ll never forget as the bowl-shaped canyon walls created and eerie hollow echo out of the far off loud noises. This was truly nature at its best.