We started our second day at Glacier National Park by heading up to the Many Glacier area, which is a bit more remote and considered by many to be the best that the park has to offer. We weren’t in the park more than ten minutes before spotting two (!) grizzly bears walking along a rocky ridge, high above us and a good distance away. Too far to get any decent pics, unfortunately.

After our bear sighting, we settled on the Grinnell Glacier hike, which would take us most of the day at 11-12 miles (round trip) and ~1600 feet of vertical gain. Lori was a bit apprehensive about running into more bears, especially since the park seemed relatively deserted compared to the Sun Road area yesterday. So we strapped on our ridiculous bear spray canisters and set out!

The first half of the trail was a pleasant stroll along two lakes: scenic, flat, and uneventful other than the red squirrels that would angrily chirp at us as we passed by. The second half began with a sign warning us that we were about to enter an area that bears had been frequenting recently. Lori was thrilled by this, I assure you.

As we ascended the trail, we were treated to an amazing view of Grinnell Lake below us, as well as several waterfalls around us. The trail was mostly deserted, but we’d see people every 15-20 minutes or so, which was enough to reassure us that we weren’t completely alone on the mountain. As we neared the top, the temperature dropped considerably and we were both glad that we were carrying packs full of warmer clothes.

At the top of the mountain, we took in views of Grinnell Glacier and Upper Grinnell Lake. The lake was full of glacial ice that was constantly creaking while it shifted and melted. It took us a minute to sort out where the sound was coming from, and when we finally figured it out, I recorded a short video (make sure your volume is on!):

We didn’t encounter any more bears on the trail, but we did see a lot of mountain goats—including one particularly stubborn one that barred us from proceeding down the mountain by standing in the (extremely narrow) cliff path and refusing to move. Eventually, it casually sauntered off and reappeared behind us, where it proceeded to pose majestically in exactly the fashion that a mountain goat should (see below).

Below are some photos from the day; click for larger versions!

Look at that magnificent bastard!

Lori at Upper Grinnell Lake, the destination of our day hike.

Lori on the trail, overlooking (Lower) Grinnell Lake. It’s a long way down!

A dock on Swiftcurrent Lake, near the start of our hike.

I snapped this as we were exiting the park today, near sunset.