Some things we've learned... Many Glacier Campground, Glacier NP

After moving further north into the park we camped at the Many Glacier campground, and it was well worth the change of location. The sights were truly spectacular and it was here that the weather cleared and became sunny and warm. It was also from Many Glacier that we experienced our best hikes. Of course we saw the Grinnell Glacier from a distance which was great considering it is predicted to be gone by 2020 (along with the remaining glaciers still existing in the park). We also saw some great animals on the trails. There were moose, big horn sheep, marmots, ground squirrels, and even a little mouse (a family favorite) at our campsite.



In addition to the animals, there were truly amazing trees. This will hopefully become a common feature on these posts, descriptions of hikes among marvelous and ancient trees. In some parts of park forests are dominated by Douglas Fir and Maple trees. In other parts you will see Aspen trees and Lodgepole pines. But in only one location in Glacier NP will you see some truly awe-inspiring trees, The Trail of the Cedars. This grove of old growth trees is dominated by giant Western Red Cedar, Black Cottonwood, and Western Hemlock. This exceptional triad is a mainstay in many Pacific NW forests because they thrive in cool and damp conditions and in only one place in the park can you find them. For this reason it's been considered a sacred place and from the photos it is easy to see why. It's dark and wet with the forest floor carpeted by ferns and moss growing inches thick on surrounding boulders. Rushing water flows down ice-sculpted gorges and the trees are over 300 years old and grow to over 200 feet high. This little micro-climate is just a hint at what is to come in Washington, Oregon, and California. The old giants of the forest give a sneak peak at the uniqueness of the western forests we will see in Redwoods NP and Yosemite NP.



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Click the links for our photos from Swiftcurrent valley (where we saw a family of moose) and Going to the Sun Road (where we hiked the Highline and the Trail of Cedars).