Glacier Park Chat
, not a great morning to be up on a ridge. We gathered for an 8AM departure to beat the heat (per last evening's presentation). I bundled up in my down vest, jacket and winter hat. As we left the Chalet area we got to see the parked mule train that had just arrived. I heard the staff was pleased with the surprise watermelon.
Our workshop leader, Jeff, would stop along the way to discuss the geology and flora as we hiked along this glacial arete. I couldn't film as much as I would have liked due to the wind. There was one purple plant that I called Lyalls or Mountain Penstemon that he called Hairy Beardtongue. There were lots of wildflowers along the Highline Trail
but very little as we started the steep climb except for one patch of mixed flowers with Paintbrush being the standout.
I am still amazed at how many people do this .875 mile ascent (970 gain) after hiking almost 7 miles from Logan Pass and even worse for those hiking the 7 back, rather than the 5 miles down The Loop Trail. I don't think they realize how much gain they will have on the way back. Jeff stopped a few times on the way up to talk about the geology (in picture below, small stromatloites)
which is always fascinting and I wish more of what he told us stuck in my head. When you see this Trail from below you wouldn't think there is much room to gather a small group but there are a few areas as well as some rock chairs and ledges.
The cold wind and lack of sun sure didn't help as we, I mean I, slowly continued, this very steep and somewhat slippery climb. Every quarter mile seemed longer. There were about three somewhat level spots and that was it. The views, of course, were incredible as it felt like you could see everything as you hiked to the top of the Continental Divide, including all those glaciers (Vulture, Two Ocean and Rainbow) and in this photo, also the Chalet:
I couldn't film very much as I was afraid the wind would blow the Ultra out of my hand. I've wanted to see this view in person for many years, and even though the weather was treacherous for this desert lizard, it was everything one could hope for
.
The reward was worth it and Jeff knew where to go to get out of the wind. He talked more about what we were seeing but I was getting so cold and had taken my movies and pictures, so I said I was heading back down. The journey down was delicate as the trail was a bit slick in places. I did still take some more photos.
As we got lower the wind was a little less aggressive and the sun would come out for a couple seconds here and there.
There were still lots of people going in both directions on this .8 mile steep trail. Everyone was kind but there were a couple odd incidents including a young kid running down past us and then sitting on a rock. The other was a family with no jackets and the woman had a blanket wrapped around her. Deborah advised not to go with the young girl due to the extreme wind gusts but they kept on.
The intersection with the Highline was crowded. There would be a little less traffic as I headed back to the Chalet. I enjoyed the wildflowers again and finally got to see a marmot so I stopped to film. This was its best youtube pose; great rock colors too:
I also saw a deer. I heard others that came later got to see a grizzly. I came up behind a man that was talking to himself so I hustled by and tried to stay ahead of him. I was glad to arrive back at the Chalet to warm up.
We would break for lunch (I was glad to have Tortilla Soup) and then head up Swiftcurrent Pass for the second part of our geology workshop. At the Chalet you have to bring your own food.
To see this awesome hike, check out my video to see more
Besides the view from the fabulous Overlook, I got lots of great photos of the glaciers in the Livingston Range as I was able to zoom and had great light to work with. I wish I had researched what my views would be so that I could instantly ID the glaciers. However, I had done research when we did the Ahern Pass Workshop in 2021 so I'm able to ID them all for you. Technically this day I saw most of six glaciers: Livingston Range had Vulture, Two Ocean and Rainbow. Lewis Range: Jackson, Grinnell, Salamander, and Gem.
More photos on HAZ https://hikearizona.com/photoset.php?ID=71095. If you sign up for HAZ, you can avoid the ads and won't be hassled by hikearizona.com; the sign up is just to avoid ads. However, if you hike in Arizona and other areas, you can find lots of info there.
