I could hardly sleep last night waiting for it to be light enough to get up and get going. The Moon was starting to be full, so my hope of being able to see the Northern Lights for the first time were dashed, but given the amount of smoke in the air it probably was not going to happen anyway.
An overview of today's trail mileage
8.5 miles from Swiftcurrent trail head to Granite Park campsite
The first order of business is to get the campsite broken down and get our gear together
can't wait to get started
Just another reminder of the fire closures as we start into the backcountry. And perhaps a bit of a scare tactic as there is a full tank of potable water at the Granite Park Chalet and a very clear stream as well... Note The Loop trailhead notice, more on this later in the bonus insights
Have bear spray ready to rock and roll
The trail leaves the Swiftcurrent area on a lovely wide path
It is a very lush approach to the end of the valley.
The trail is well traveled, but leaving somewhat early we didn't meet anyone during these first few miles. Leaving early we hopped to see some wildlife. I had remarked that the one animal I have never seen in the wild is a moose... be careful what you wish for....
We had gotten a glimpse of a cow moose and what we thought was her young but could not get a very good look without disturbing them, but then no more than a mile beyond this big boy stands up in the tall grass as he heard us approach. the rack on this bull moose had to be five feet across!
The fire smoke was not so bad this morning. Below is a photo of Redrocks Falls with the guys enjoying the view. Below that is an internet photo of the same location on a clear day.
internet photo
This first valley was full of one lake after another, reaching Bullhead lake almost at the end of the valley
Grinnell Glacier. (Below) There is a trail that leads up to the Glacier from the Many Glacier Hotel area.
reaching the end of the valley
End of the valley (above and below)
Starting our steep climb for the day, out of the valley and over swiftcurrent pass
The first view back up the valley from where we came. Bullhead lake is the largest in the foreground
One of the two are three large glacier feed water falls feeding all the lakes in the Swiftcurrent valley
climbing higher
and higher
and higher still
around the corner and still higher
Finally up and over the pass. You can peer into the next valley
what a view !
Stopping at the top of the pass for lunch
Joe
Cory
Coming down into the next valley you get a sense of what the smoke is obscuring.
(Above) what we saw. (Below) what we should have seen
internet photo
A brief downhill and Granite Park Chalet comes into view. We actually had no idea this place existed (or we would have booked it!) but like Mt LeConte in the Smoky Mountains you can hike in and stay in very nice accommodations
The Chalet was built in 1914 by the Great Northern Railway
If you are not staying here you can still stop in, have lunch on a table inside, warm yourself by the fire and purchase some snacks. the crew that runs the facility comes in and stays the entire season. The Chalet was closing next week and they were looking forward to packing out for the season.
They did not sell beer!
After resting a bit (they have cellular service, so we texted out messages and photos) we went down and around to the Granite Park campsites, our designated stopping point for the day.
Granite Park Chalet from the campsite
First order of business when you get to camp is to hang your food bag
Then rest and enjoy the day. It was about 2 pm when we made it into camp.
The deer come out immediately and they try to lick anything that they can. They are attracted to your salt on that includes your pack, cloths and trekking poles
After dinner it was just nice to lay in the tent and look out on the view. This was only the second night in a tent in years. We all normally use hammocks and it still a trial and error to get comfortable enough to sleep well.
The sunset was superb!
Bonus insight:
The closure sign at the campsite reminded everyone that The Loop trailhead was closed. Ironically this is the actual trailhead start on our permit. We had asked for Swiftcurrent and the Ranger had confirmed but what got printed was The Loop. We debated on bringing this to the attention of the ranger station at Swiftcurrent, but we concluded that this was better left to asking forgiveness than permission and if the fire escalated and Rangers checked, if our car was not at The Loop parking lot, everyone would have concluded we either got our car and got out or did not park there because of the fire danger. Our car was parked at Swiftcurrent and the license plate number was on our permit.
Second bonus insight:
Campsites are often judged by the quality of the view from the privy. In the case of Granite Park Chalet it is judged to be one of the best.
Open air, very little smell
Summary:
8.5 miles
~7 hours with stops
2400 feet of elevation gain
Animals:
Moose- Cow, Calf, and Bull
Ptarmigan
Ptarmigan
Mountain Goat (Cory and Joe)
These pictures leave nothing to be desired!! What sights!! It's hard to believe that all that beauty could be in trouble with fires, but I suppose they let them burn for a reason. Anyhow, including what the places looked like without the smoke was a great idea. None of the beauty was lost on me. Waiting for more----
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