Day 3 - Tuesday 7/26/2016 - Drive to Many Glacier and Hike Iceberg Lake
Woke up about 6:00am, packed the car and was on the road a little after 6:30. We took HW 49 which skirted the eastern boundary of Glacier National Park from East Glacier up to St. Mary’s and then up to Many Glacier. Many Glacier is a secluded area on the east side of the part with really only two places to stay. We were fortunate enough to have two nights at the Many Glacier Hotel and basically planned the trip around this booking. As we drove up, the views were more than we expected!
The high light hike from Many Glacier is up to Grinnell Glacier, though our other hikes from here were no less also fantastic! In order to save milage, the hike to Grinnell Glacier can involve two boats across Swiftcurrent Lake and Lake Josephine. We failed to book a ticket on the boat ahead of time so we were hopeful to get to Many Glacier early enough to get on the wait list. We were the next ones up on the wait list when the 8:30 boat was full, so close! We decided not to wait for the 9:00am boat and to do Iceberg Lake hike instead of Grinnell Glacier and try for the boat the next day. We met a family from California in line for the boat and ran into and visited with them, again, in the hotel lounge at the end of the day.
We started the Iceberg Lake Hike about 9:00am. The first part of the hike was pretty steep but it lessened up to a moderate trail, though it was a pretty tough hike the entire way. The hike did have outstanding the views the entire time. This trail also went to Ptarmigan Tunnel and we were hopeful to try to do it and Iceberg Lake but smartly just did one. I don't think our legs could have done the additional mileage. Just past where the trial split, we were apparently pretty close to a grizzly bear as the guy in front of us got a picture of his nose and ear only and the group behind us saw him in the brush close to the trail but we never saw him. We made it to the lake about 11:30am. It was a picture perfect postcard view! There were apparently more icebergs than normal but we didn't mind! We saw a heard of goats across the lake which just added to it! Dark clouds forced us to leave Iceberg Lake sooner than we wanted (about noon) and we ran into a shower or two on the hike back, though nothing to get us soaking wet. The showers did help keep the hike back cooler. The hike back only took about 2 hours with us arriving by 2:00pm or so.
The high light hike from Many Glacier is up to Grinnell Glacier, though our other hikes from here were no less also fantastic! In order to save milage, the hike to Grinnell Glacier can involve two boats across Swiftcurrent Lake and Lake Josephine. We failed to book a ticket on the boat ahead of time so we were hopeful to get to Many Glacier early enough to get on the wait list. We were the next ones up on the wait list when the 8:30 boat was full, so close! We decided not to wait for the 9:00am boat and to do Iceberg Lake hike instead of Grinnell Glacier and try for the boat the next day. We met a family from California in line for the boat and ran into and visited with them, again, in the hotel lounge at the end of the day.
We started the Iceberg Lake Hike about 9:00am. The first part of the hike was pretty steep but it lessened up to a moderate trail, though it was a pretty tough hike the entire way. The hike did have outstanding the views the entire time. This trail also went to Ptarmigan Tunnel and we were hopeful to try to do it and Iceberg Lake but smartly just did one. I don't think our legs could have done the additional mileage. Just past where the trial split, we were apparently pretty close to a grizzly bear as the guy in front of us got a picture of his nose and ear only and the group behind us saw him in the brush close to the trail but we never saw him. We made it to the lake about 11:30am. It was a picture perfect postcard view! There were apparently more icebergs than normal but we didn't mind! We saw a heard of goats across the lake which just added to it! Dark clouds forced us to leave Iceberg Lake sooner than we wanted (about noon) and we ran into a shower or two on the hike back, though nothing to get us soaking wet. The showers did help keep the hike back cooler. The hike back only took about 2 hours with us arriving by 2:00pm or so.
We checked into our room at Many Glacier Hotel as it was ready already! Many Glacier Hotel is a very historic hotel and was currently undergoing renovation when we were there. Therefore its massive lobby, with live bark trees was closed and the lounge was being used as the lobby. Luckily, the dining hall was still open as was about half of the rooms. Luckily I was able to catch a tour of the hotel the next day.
After getting into our room, we checked out the gift shop at Many Glacier Hotel for moleskin as I was developing a blister but they were out. So we drove over to Swiftcurrent Inn (the other hotel in that area) to check out their store and gift shop (which did have it in stock).
We went back to Many Glacier Hotel, unloaded the car and enjoyed a shower. We then chilled in the lounge, in front of its big windows overlooking Swiftcurrent Lake and visited with the family from California. We heard about their hike to Grinnell Glacier and their experiences in Yosemite. We let them use our wifi code as there was no cell reception (or even TV) on the east side of the park. They had only driven in for the day and wanted to get a little wifi in before heading out. We had dinner in the dinning hall. The food was higher end than we expect but it was delicious. Huckleberry is the flavor of choice in that area and we had it many ways including in our drinks!
After getting into our room, we checked out the gift shop at Many Glacier Hotel for moleskin as I was developing a blister but they were out. So we drove over to Swiftcurrent Inn (the other hotel in that area) to check out their store and gift shop (which did have it in stock).
We went back to Many Glacier Hotel, unloaded the car and enjoyed a shower. We then chilled in the lounge, in front of its big windows overlooking Swiftcurrent Lake and visited with the family from California. We heard about their hike to Grinnell Glacier and their experiences in Yosemite. We let them use our wifi code as there was no cell reception (or even TV) on the east side of the park. They had only driven in for the day and wanted to get a little wifi in before heading out. We had dinner in the dinning hall. The food was higher end than we expect but it was delicious. Huckleberry is the flavor of choice in that area and we had it many ways including in our drinks!
We ended the evening in the big chairs in front of the large windows of the lounge overlooking Swiftcurrent Lake as the sun set over it. We have traveled to a lot of places and I always hesitate to say I want to go back to one as there are so many more to see but this is one place I could come to again!
Iceberg Lake Hike - 9.7 Miles round trip; 1275 ft elevation gain
Safe Travels,
B&E
Iceberg Lake Hike - 9.7 Miles round trip; 1275 ft elevation gain
Safe Travels,
B&E