We enjoyed the first few miles of Glacier’s Highline Trail last week, so we decided to hike the full length today. The fall weather around here continues to be amazing, so we need to take advantage of it! After teaching seminary, we drove up to Glacier. As we climbed ever higher on the road to Logan Pass, we could see fog down in the valley. The sun was just peeking over the mountains to the east, making for an incredible scene:
The clouds had settled into the valley, nestled amongst the huge mountains.
It was cool to watch the fog drift slowly across the trees, causing the green pines and firs and the yellow aspen and larch to slowly appear from the mist.
As we started at the trailhead, the weather was a bit challenging. A 30mph wind was blowing and the temperature was in the high 30’s– not a good combination. We were in shorts and long-sleeved shirts, so it was chilly. But they say “always start hiking cold, and you’ll warm up”. We did, although it helped when the wind died and the sun warmed up everything a bit. It proved to be a gorgeous day for hiking: sunny with temperatures in the 50’s.
The Highline Trail winds along mountainsides, occasionally dropping down in a gradual slope, and at other times rising through switchbacks up a slope. The views along the trail are unparalleled.
Pepper has grown fond of wearing brightly-colored shirts while hiking (witness the bright pink one from last week). Not to be outdone, I chose a neon orange shirt.
The fall colors were even more pronounced than last week– it’s surprising what only a few days can do as the trees continue to turn. Here’s a cool aspen alongside the trail:
We stopped for lunch at Granite Peak Chalet, an old (historic landmark) building near Swiftcurrent Mountain. The chalet overlooks much of Glacier National Park, so despite the wind at the summit, it was awesome to eat while watching the sun and clouds moving across the distant peaks.
Twelve miles and five hours later, we found ourselves at the far end of the trail. What a hike! I can see why it’s considered one of the top ten hikes in North America. Some have compared it with the Kalalau Trail along the Na Pali Coast of Kauai– I haven’t done the latter, but hope to in the next year or so. I’ll report back.
I snapped a few pictures of a little creek near the trailhead.
Today marks our tenth visit to Glacier this year– quite a pace! Every time we go, there’s something different and magical we find. We’ll be back.