September 15, 2012

Wonderful Parks


Glacier, Yellowstone, Grand Tetons,
Sawtooth, Jedediah Redwoods


Our travels through Glacier



We stayed at the Avalanche Lake campground
on the west side of the park



 We walked Rudy in the campground several times
as he was not allowed on the hiking trails



He patiently waited in the camper while we were on hikes



Taking a hike along the Avalanche Creek



As we climbed higher the creek
turned into a sunlit red rock gorge



After 3km we reached windy Avalanche Lake



The waterfalls at the far end of the lake were spectacular 



Up close of the fan at the bottom




Another hike was to Virginia Falls



Brilliant Red Rocks in the creek



It was time to drive the famous Going To The Sun Highway 
We travelled early to avoid all the mid day traffic



Huge mountains surrounded us as we climbed higher



There are many extreme switch backs so the rules are
your vehicle can't be more than 21' long...we were 20'



The road is carved right out of the cliff



It travels all the way up the side of a huge valley



In the full sunshine we were almost at the top  



Logan Pass Visitor Centre is at the summit
Clements Mountain is in the background   



We took the Hidden Lake boardwalk hike
Yikes...the high altitude made it tough



It led right up to the mountain and then around it to the left



to a beautiful green meadow where Arlene is looking at...



  Hidden Lake with Bear Hat Mountain towering above



Saw our first mountain goat up close...on the boardwalk 



We heard that the Highline Trail was exciting and it was
Good thing there was a rope to hold on to as
the highway was a long way down below us



This shot was tricky as we also had to hold on to the rope



Clements Mountain with a full moon next to it



Now who is the best looking Ranger



After a few days we headed on to the Many Glacier area
Its on the northeast side of the park with this big lodge



There is lots of wildlife in this beautiful area 





A camper showed me this grizzly in his spotting scope
and with my full zoom I caught the big fella eating



Big Cow Moose enjoying a meal in Fishercap Lake



Grizzly and her three cubs heading into the forest



As we drove out of the valley slowly
we spotted this Grizzly having a soak in the lake



I was taking pictures with my zoom and then
he came out of the water and headed towards us



I dashed back into the truck as he came up the bank
onto the road and crossed right in front of us
Yikes...it was amazing



Then we headed for the Two Medicine Lake area
in the southeast side of the park



On the way we spotted this Big Black Bear



Wolf Mountain at the head of Pope Lake



Two Medicine Lake Lodge



Yummy...Huckleberry Ice cream on the deck



You can tour the entire park in one of these classic vehicles



We had a cool little campsite near the lake



It was close to our own private little beach
We enjoyed a bottle of wine and watched for wildlife



We scanned the area with our binoculars



And were fortunate to spot another Big Black Bear
foraging for berries high in the meadows



The tour boat on Two Medicine Lake



Wolf Mountain was glowing with the rising sun
when we left early heading for Yellowstone Park

We loved Glacier and hope to return soon