My Favorite Hike of all Time: Grinnell Glacier Part 1

The Grinnell Glacier Trail is my ultimate most favorite hike of all time! That is saying a lot considering I have hiked Alaska and many other forests and mountains all over the country.

Glacier National Park used to be one of the overlooked places that was just too far away from everywhere. In recent years with the increased popularity of camping it has become so crowded that in the summer an advanced ticket must be purchased for entry to the park. In 2020 we flew to Kalispell, Montana with the intentions of renting a car. No car was to be found and the wait for entry in the park was hours. We even tried to buy a car but realizing that people were desperate for transportation the sellers asked thousands above what the vehicles were worth. Still, we considered purchasing an over-priced vehicle to see Glacier National Park and in particular hike to Grinnell Glacier. (We learned that the locals pronounce it with the emphasis on the second syllable)

It was July and the snow had not yet melted enough in the rugged mountain pass of Eastern Glacier to open Going to the Sun Road past Logan Pass or the road to the Grinnell Glacier Trail head. Plus, the Blackfeet Tribe had closed their reservation to all non-residents because of Covid-19. So, access to Grinnell Glacier was doubly inaccessible.

Because we would not be able to hike to Grinnell Glacier, we did not buy a car. We Ubered Kalispell and returned home to experience Glacier another time.

This year we decided at the last minute to go in September. Everything was open and melted. We had planned to go to South Dakota to see Mount Rushmore and hike the mountains there on the way to Glacier. But while we were in Nebraska, we discovered that the road to Grinnell Glacier was closing for road construction on September 20^th. It was September 15^th and we could just make it. We did not want to get there the last day.

We checked the weather and a powerful storm was expected to hit the area in the afternoon of September 18^th and last through the 20^th. Unable to get through to the Rangers at Glacier to ask for advice we called the maintenance department.

A wonderful lady answered. She was kind and helped us make the best decision. She said that usually it did not rain all day in Glacier so we should be good. She said that we should start early on the 18^th rather than risk being up the mountain in the dark on the 17^th since we would arrived at Glacier midmorning of September 17^th.

So, we decided to hike Two Medicine Lake up to Aster Falls and Aster Park Overlook then visit Running Eagle Falls on the 17^th and camp at the Two Medicine Lake campground.

Since we got to the campground late in the day all the spots were taken. All of the campgrounds in Glacier are first come first serve.

We were going to head on up to the Many Glacier area about an hour north of Two Medicine Lake where the Grinnell Glacier Trail head is and hopefully find a campground on the way.

A fellow hiker had told us about one owned by the Blackfeet called Chewing Black Bones.

On the road out of the Two Medicine Lake area back to the highway we saw a flag sign that simply said “Campground”. We made a right turn into a two-track dirt road that lead straight down a steep hill. The sun had just sunk behind the tall mountains and the shadows were long and dark in the deep canyon we were descending into. This was our first dirt road since driving Trixie, our camper van. She handled it like a pro. Just as I was beginning to give up hope that there was going to be any sign of civilization, we came to a landing with a small kiosk style building. A tall teen-aged Native American boy immerged promptly from the kiosk as soon as we stopped. The boy was professional and efficient. It was all dry camping with no facilities but we were happy to have a safe place to camp for the night. It turned out to be a lovely spot. We only enjoyed it for a fleeting moment before the darkness completely engulfed us in the heavily wooded valley.

We left the next morning around 4:00 am. The Grinnell Glacier parking lot notoriously fills up and many hikers had to try on multiple days. We, however, did not have a day to spare to do this hike. We had to nail it on the first try.

When we pulled off onto the road leading to the Grinnell Glacier trail head, we saw why it was going to close for road construction. The road had never been constructed. It was a wide and well-traveled gravel/dirt road. It had many jarring bumps. Trixie, however, had braved the Indian Nation Turnpike in Oklahoma so she had no problem and no squeaks, just a few rattling pots and pans.

We traveled the suggested speed limit of 45 mph. One Range Rover decided he wanted to be the very first one up the mountain. He flew by us going at least 100 mph on a dirt road in the dark. We decided he must be a billionaire like Axe from Billions. In all his haste he started the trail just in front of us. He and his female companion flew up and we met them coming back on our way up. We stopped countless times to take photos. Apparently they did not.

We were the second to arrive in the parking lot. We still had an hour before it would be light enough to hike. So, we made a wonderful breakfast and enjoyed the view of all the other hikers arriving. Several starting fires at the picnic area to make coffee and eat granola bars. We just had to turn on our stove. We had bacon and eggs and grits.

We had taken driven off in the dark still in our pajamas so we closed the curtains to change clothes. As soon as we did a ranger showed up and told us we could not camp there. We told him were not camping there. He went on his way.

All the other hikers seemed to be in a bit of a frenzy to get this hike under their belt before the road closed and the weather moved in.

Rested, fed and dressed we were ready for the 6.5 mile hike up up and up. We planned to go a bit further past the end of the trail to the actual Glacier. Our total would be around 13 miles round trip with a 2,181 ft elevation climb on the side of a cliff most of the time.

This hike was epic. It is my very favorite hike that I have ever done to date. Completing this hike changed something inside me. I faced real danger in a new way. Physically the hike was extremely challenging. It was steep, rocky, and high up the entire hike. I had trained for the previous year to be able to do this hike. Although still a bit overweight from my menopause gain, I felt stronger than I ever had. Little did I know that the rest of my weight would drop off of me over the course of the next month and a half. At first the twenty somethings were blowing past me but then we caught up with them. By the end our 55-year-old steady endurance out-paced the quick step of youth.

The weather was slightly overcast and a little breezy as we made our first step down the trail. The sun was just a glow behind the mountains but just enough light fell on the trail to not need a flashlight. The beginning of the trail is heavily forested and then it comes out on the banks of a the large Swiftcurrent Lake that if filled with aqua glacier water. It was like the Alaskan ocean.

The lake was stunning with clear glimmering aqua blue water. I did not expect to see a lake so soon. All the pictures of the Glacier showed a lake just below it. As it turns out we would enjoy not one but four crystal aqua blue lakes along this trail. In the summertime a ferry is available at this boat dock to take hikers to the end of the lake which cuts off a nearly a mile of the hike. Another ferry at the next body of water called Lake Josephine can cut off another mile or more. But all the ferries were already closed down for the season so we enjoyed the long way.

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We hiked along the length of this lake for maybe a mile or so with a slight but steady incline. Nearly Seamlessly another even bigger lake began call Lake Josephine.

The sun began to rise above the high mountains and shine down through misty skys onto the lakes and valley below us.

We came to another picturesque aqua lake, Lake Josephine.

Although we were still following along Lake Josephine the trail began to steadily climb in elevation.

As we began to climb up and away from Lake Josephine we enjoyed a look back down the valley at they lake. Notice a river coming into the lake down from the Glaciers. We could see what appeared to be large bear tracks on the beach.

Bear Tracks on the beach of Lake Josephine

This section of the trail was adorned with perfect Christmas trees, beautiful and lush.

Along the trail we saw many odd-looking caterpillars. They were black with two wide yellow stripes. They had spikes sticking out on both ends. We assumed that the front end was leading the way but we could not tell for sure. We stepped over many a caterpillar but they were not all so lucky. We also saw many squashed ones on the trail. Later we were were told that they turn into moths that bears consider to be a delicacy. Who knew bears ate moths.

It turns out that these caterpillar are Yellow Spotted Tiger Moths. Bears can eat up to 40,000 moths per day. They are an excellent source of fat and protein that the bears need. Based on the number of caterpillars we saw the bears would not have a shortage of them.

One of the most amazing things about this trail that we later also saw in other parts of the park were the beautiful shale. Some of the cliffs and ground would be aqua colored shale like the water had turned to stone. Yet others were burgundy red.

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We came one of the many narrow cascading waterfalls that flowed over the trail that was completely red. At first, the water appeared red. But at closer inspection the shale under crystal clear water was maroon.

On the way up I had on short sleeves but nearing the Glacier the temperature dropped substantially. We had wondered why many of the hikers were hiking up a strenuous mountain with heavy coats on. They looked so hot. We were glad we did not have extra weight to carry up the mountain.

As we neared then the lake valley ended and we began to climb more steeply. The valley stayed below and we climbed along the edge of the cliff like mountain goats. The trail was very narrow in spots with a drop off hundreds of feet below on the left and a sheer cliff up hundreds of feet to the right.

I was in a place few people go. Only the truly adventuring souls desire it and attempt it. We all hope to gain a lovely view, an accomplishment, a photo. But the real adventure is the trip beyond one’s own expectations of self. Past fear of heights, past one’s own capabilities of physical endurance, trusting of other strange hikers that we pass on the trail, trusting in your own fate. One comes to the conclusion that if I am blown head long off this cliff this adventure was definitely worth my life. This trail up that mountain changed something inside of me forever. My soul is open to a kind of learning I did not know about before. I wish I had the words to describe the feeling of knowing that whatever I do and where ever I go God is in control and will see me through to His ends. This freedom that I found there, the freedom to let go of this life. The freedom to release control is the true power that God gives us. This is the freedom he promises. The freedom to love Him, to love each other. All those on that mountain were full of joy. Yes, they were in physical pain from going up such a strenuous climb but every single person we saw seemed to have the same thing I had found that none of us have a name for. I choose to call it adventure enlightenment.

We could see the Glacier high up on the mountain in the background. It was far far away but our thoughts were on each rock, plant and joyful person we encountered. The magic in this hike was definitely in the journey as well as the destination.

The lake was now far below the cliff we were on. One section of the trail is so narrow that you can barely put two feet on the trail. It was also covered in loose rocks. I took it slow and chose my steps carefully. Being so close to the cliff gave me fleeting since of vertigo from time to time. The distance down and across the valley were so vast that my eyes and mind could not make sense of it. The realization of where I was and the precarious dangerous place it was heightened all my senses and awareness. I could feel life. I could feel the awesome nature of God. I felt a new level of presence, a clarity, a joy, a true sense of awe. We had only just begun a mere two miles into a 13 mile adventure.