Saturday, October 13, 2012

Grinell Lake Hike, Glacier National Park, MT

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 Grinell Lake

Trail Description:
Mileage: 8 miles round trip without taking the boat
Elevation Gain/Loss: 220 ft
Trailhead: Many Glacier Hotel or Grinell Lake/Grinell Glacier trailhead @ Swiftcurrent campground

something was wrong with how I wore my rain pants, can you tell? :) - we hiked here with on and off rain

Initially, we planned to hike Grinell Glacier, however, we were advised that about a mile to Grinell Glacier was still closed due to heavy snow accumulation, and considering the steepness and iciness, the trail was closed for hikers. The park ranger recommended us Grinell Lake instead. Though he mentioned the trail also just opened not because of ice but because of consistent bear sightings. 
Grizzly Bear @ Glacier National Park ( taken with a zoom or telephoto lens)
He said the trail is still actually not really free from bears yet, but they opened it already because for the past 3 days, there was no longer threatening grizzly bear activities. He mentioned we may still likely see bears. He gave us a little bit bear safety lesson like not staying too far away from a group of people, or if it were just the two of us, we should keep on making noise like calling out loud and clapping hands loudly at regular intervals to make our presence known to the bear so they can safely move out of the way. The bears usually do not attack people if they were not surprised, they usually move away from people if they hear them from a distance. That is the importance of making noise while hiking. Keeping your silence in this kind of trail is not encouraged because you want your presence be known to the bear so that they can move away before you get a chance to bump into them. He said bear bells usually do not work as efficiently as human noise in making the bears distance away. It is also important to keep distance with the bear if in case we see them, once you see the bear, it is not the time to talk anymore. Calling out loud and clapping should be before seeing the bear. He also told us to avoid running because trail running is not recommended in trails with possibility of encountering a bear because of the high risk of shocking a bear when running. For more information on bear safety, please visit Glacier National Park's page on bears.
don't worry, we were not this close to the grizzly, this was taken with a zoom lens
Though a little bit scared with the bear warnings in the trail, we decided to take the hike as long as we follow the instructions. :) We did see grizzly bear while hiking, but the bear was too far from us across Josephine Lake on the Grinell Glacier trail, while we were on the Grinell Lake Trail. 
 Josephine Lake ( we were on this side of the lake, while the three bears were across the lake and up the slopes, photo of bears below )
can you spot the three grizzlies here?
We were thankful that those grizzly bears were not on our trail but at the closed trail instead to Grinell Glacier. The two closer shots of grizzlies above were actually taken from inside our car when we were driving out from Many Glacier area. At that time, we understood why a few days ago, the trail was closed for 2 weeks because of heavy grizzly bear activities. Thankfully, our hike was safe and did not encounter bears up close. What added confidence to our hike was the presence of park rangers patrolling the area for bears because they just opened up the trail. 
What are the features in Grinell Lake hike? We hiked 8 miles since we did not take the boat ( the boat will cut the hike to only 3 miles, but it is not free ). What is great without taking the boat is that the hike meandered on 2 lakes: Swiftcurrent Lake and Josephine Lake before reaching Grinell Lake, with a lot of bear grass and other wildflowers.


Bear Grass lining the trail to Grinell Lake ( we would have missed this scenery if we took the boat to cut the hike by 5 miles)

Anyway, let me describe the features of the hike through more pictures below:
we also would have missed these wildlfowers (top and bottom) lining the trail had we cut short our hike by taking the boat
 there were several stream crossing in the hike
stream from melting snow ( thus the blueness in color)
 Josephine Lake
♥♥
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28 comments:

  1. actually camped there 3 weeks and visited twice more - saw bear and bear kills, but it was wonderfl and yu have captured it wonderfully

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  2. I've always wanted to hike, sis! Buti ka pa. Nakakainggit :/

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  3. The views are incredibly stunning, I love all the green here.

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  4. what can i say? breathtaking photos Beth! so loved the ones with you and Khai. the sceneries and the bear sightings make me go wild about nature. ;)

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  5. I saw three and one is too many. lol I would have been terrified. All that walking, but it is so beautiful. I see why you are so slim.

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  6. Picture perfect! Thanks for sharing =)

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  7. Lovely photos. How big is the bear? Sis, with regards to your question, What's wrong with your rain pants, Can't figure it out. Baliktad ba?

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  8. OmG! that was an amazing place for an adventurous Elizabeth! Great photos too! I won't dare to hike with bears around though. :)

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  9. wow, these pictures are all awesome. you're so lucky and blessed to see places like this. and thanks for showing the beauty of that part to us! i bet you had a great time. :)

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  10. that bear looks so scary yet so fluffy makes me want to hug it, however, it might end me up being a meal, i love the trail you guys went, so relaxing, very environmental jud mo magtiayon ba

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  11. What a beautiful hike! I am one of those crazy people who would have liked to have seen a bear while hiking.

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  12. wow nice work on the exposure :)

    that's quite an experience specially with the bears :)

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  13. An amazing Bear encounter! I love how you managed to take those pictures knowing that Grizzlies are roaming around the area. And the wildflowers..ahh..I've never seen flowers of that kind before. Thank you so much, Betchai. I feel like I'm in a different place every time I read your blog!

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  14. The Josephine Lake looks so beautiful! and gee, those bears look cute from a distance...the Bear flowers are so lovely as well as those wildflowers! The hanging bridge looks a little bit scary to walk on haha, hmmm I can't figure out what's wrong with the way you wore your pants...I love the color of jacket of course! You captured the melting waters magnificently as always and that last photo of a plant is magical!

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  15. Oh Boy! Your pictures are good! I am planning to grab one and make it my cover photo on Facebook, if you'd let me borrow it :). Amazing!!! You're lucky to have that chance to commune with nature.

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  16. Oh no, such an experience with a bear.

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  17. Wow! The photos here are so awesome!

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  18. Oh! So the grizzly bear does not attack you unless you surprise it! Good knowledge to know! : )

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  19. man, so beautiful! love all the photos...:)

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  20. That kind of bridge scares me :(, I would love to try that kind of adventure once my little one could hike 10 miles,heheheh..all images are beautiful.

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  21. It's always a joy to visit your site, Betchai. I feel refreshed by all the amazing photos and your breathtaking adventures. I haven't in my life ever seen a bear just yet. Sa package palang ng Bear Brand. LOL! Thanks for the lovely share once more.

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  22. Wow! Another amazing place! :)

    That bear is so adorable! ♥

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  23. Beautiful photographs, such views are enrapturing. I am greeting

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  24. That’s some adventures shots there…

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  25. wow magnificent photos! grizzly bear is very scary they are the biggest bear ever. good to know u are not that close. but your photos sure are amazing thanks for sharing!

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  26. the water shots are so awesome! so blue that it almost looked like cancun or vn.

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THANK YOU SO MUCH!!