On the trail

In 1975, I had an opportunity to hike and backpack in Glacier National Park on my way to see the Canadian Rocky Mountains.

My parents who had been there a year before had made the astounding claim, “If you think the mountains in Colorado are magnificent, wait until you see the Canadian Rockies!” Surprised by this comparison, I embarked on a trip with the first stop being Glacier National Park. The mountains here were a delicious foretaste of Canada and I spent several days in Glacier including a 3-day backpack trip across Gunsight Pass and Lake, finding the scenery remarkable.

Fast forward three years and here I was again with my new bride, having convinced her this place and the Canadian Rockies was the place to take our honeymoon. She found herself as I, delighted and challenged.

46 more years had now passed. We had not been back in all that time even though the memories were fond. It was time to return, so in late September of 2024, we drove across Wyoming and Montana to see again what was so firmly etched in our minds. That led us to the Grinnell Glacier hike. The glacier had dwindled over the years but the trail was still a popular hike and offered stunning views. With dozens of hikers setting out, we made it not only to the view of the glacier, but to the very foot of it as it calves off great blocks of ice into the milky waters of Upper Grinnell Lake. Along the hike up, we paused many times for photos of the beautiful scene, but what came out best on this cloudy, threatening and blustery day, was a photo featured on many a post-card or park brochure. Below us lay the aquamarine waters of Grinnell Lake, framed by the sheer rocks walls of “Angel Wing” soaring 2,400 feet above with the plummeting white-ribbon falls of Grinnell Creek just around the bend. Though we had to hike back out in the rain, it was a great way to re-create our first days of married life.