The sun rises late over the eastern mountains and we were tempted to sleep in, but we got going quickly so that we could catch the shuttle bus to the top of Glacier Park. We did not account for all the other people also planning on catching the bus so when we got to the pickup point there were only three seats left. I sent the boys on ahead of me with strict instructions to not wonder off when they got to the top. Their shuttle was a direct service, but mine was involved a transfer at Avalanche, which only got to Logan Pass 50min after them. It was an incredible drive to the top of Logan Pass. The road works delayed the traffic quite a bit, but it gave us time to admire the wonderful views. I noticed a precipitous trail on a cliff face high about the road – I made a note to walk it. At the top I was relieved to find the boys all waiting for me. They had already explored the visitor center and knew which trails they wanted to do. Ant was all for going back down – been there, seen it and already done! We started out on the Hidden Lake Trail. The width of the trail made us feel like we were on a dual carriage way – it was so wide and well worn. We soon appreciated the width as there were so many people on it and passing would have been a problem. It is a bit like the 14’er trails in Colorado. It was glorious to be so high and see so many wild flowers (pic). We saw big horn sheep, mountain goats and marmot (pic).One mountain goat caused a people jam because he was relaxing on a rock ledge right next to the trail, at eye level. He was a great photo op. The boys attached themselves to two ladies walking along the trail at our pace. They chatted constantly and I chuckled many times when I heard the comments they made about our trip. Our two lady friends were most patient and showed so much enthusiasm when talking to the boys. I always appreciate the effort people make towards the boys. Upon return to the visitor center we decided to do the cliff face trail I had spotted earlier – Garden Wall trail. It was pretty scary even though there was a steel cable to hang on to. We caught another shuttle down the eastern side of the road – towards St Mary’s. We hopped off the bus so that we could take the trail to see St Mary’s Falls. This trail was quieter and more secluded in amongst the forest. There was a tremendous volume of water coming down the falls and the color of the water was a wonderful light green/blue (azure???). The falls flowed into a lake which we walked along for quite some time. Upon returning to the top of the pass we found at least 100 people waiting for the shuttle busses. We quickly got our names onto a waiting list and yet again the boys made friends with a family stuck in the shuttle line with us - the 1 and ½ hour wait passed quickly. Rocky was so pleased to see us when we returned to the camper at 7:30pm. He had been stuck in the camper for 11 hours. This is one of the problems of National Parks - so much to see and do, but you are unable to take your pet along with you on the trails.
While we were making dinner a ranger popped in to warn us of an approacing storm - but only before Saturday and today was Wednesday! They warned us of heavy rain and snow. We decided to make a fire but the winds were too strong so we packed it in after some scary moments when the flames flared up. After such a long day our beds were a welcome relief.
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