Day Two – Shangri-la
I volunteered to coordinate a hike over Shangri-la as one of the Glacier Mountaineering Society family day events for GMS week. Four of us showed up in the Swiftcurrent parking lot for the climb and hike early Sunday morning. It was a beautiful day – sunny and not too hot. We started up the Swiftcurrent Pass trail then turned off the trail making our way up through the trees and enjoying the huckleberries along the way. We crossed the stream and climbed to the base of the rocks. We climbed through the rocks making our way onto Shangri-la.
The view looking back at Swiftcurrent Lake and the Many Glacier area. Fishercap Lake is in the lower right.
Eric, Abigail and Amanda on top.
We followed the stream up toward the lake. We had lots of opportunities for water pictures.
We found the old mine marker. I have been told the “BH” is for Bull Head Mine Company.
Eric getting the best perspective for a picture
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We had lunch at the lake and enjoyed the wildflowers.
After lunch we walked around the lake and then we needed to climb up the ridge at the head of the lake. It was in this section we met the only other person we saw after leaving the Swiftcurrent Pass Trail and before arriving at Iceberg Lake. He had been sitting on a big rock near the head of the lake while we were eating lunch. He explained that he had been on Shangri-la two days earlier and had left a camera lens on a rock. He found it today and was heading back down to the Swiftcurrent Pass trail. He did not want to go out the Iceberg Lake Trail because that trail would be too crowded.
After reaching the ridge and working our way around the mountain we will be looking down on Iceberg Lake.
Last look at the Lake on Shangrila.
The view of Iceberg Lake as we come around the mountain.
Iceberg Lake with the surrounding mountains.
Descending to Iceberg Lake (Amanda's picture)
As we descended, we noticed something strange – there was no people noise coming from Iceberg Lake and we could see no people on the lake shore. We guessed that the Iceberg Lake Trail had been closed and wondered what that meant for us. As we walked around the lakeshore we met Ranger Kaylyn who was eating lunch on the abandoned beach. She told us the Iceberg Lake Trail had been closed mid-morning due to seven bears (a couple sows with cubs and other singles) frequently the trail area for the past couple days. The Park had decided that there were too many bears in the vicinity of the trail. Ranger Kaylyn was waiting there to escort us out but she told us not to hurry - this was the first time in her years of guiding hikes to Iceberg Lake that she had ever been alone at the lake.
Ranger Kaylyn took our picture at Iceberg Lake.
The Group
Abigail on an iceberg.
We saw no bears on the trail from Iceberg Lake back to Swiftcurrent. We did see this huckleberry loaded bear scat in the trail. (That is my 52-millimeter lens cap next to the scat for perspective.)