CCoC
Member
- Joined
- Jun 24, 2016
- Messages
- 9
Hi there,
I'm new in the Forum, looking forward to our trip in Glacier NP from the 6th to the 11th September. I received already some good tip but as I am always eager of new inputs, here is my first post on BCP, I hope you guys don't get bored by its length!
First, I have some practical questions. Maybe they look silly but it's hard to get answers just googling:
- We have a minivan-rv (<20ft), can we only stay at one of the Xanterra campgrounds or are there others that work on a first come first served basis? In this latter case, are there real hopes to get a spot? How does it work exactly? Do I just drive and look for a car-accessible campground along the roads? Do I have to expect NOT to find any spot and being forced out of the Park if I do not book another Xanterra campground?
- When we'll go hiking, and hopefully camping in the backcountry, do I just park close to the trailhead and leave the car? Should I be concerned about belongings in the car?
The Hikes:
- Since our main aim is wildlife watching, after long reads, I have selected some areas/trails that look (according to the falcon guide) more interesting. In particular, grizzly and wolves would be one target (we'll have a spotting scope), lynx and cougar, wolverine one dream, otter, weasels and beavers a lovely sight!
- Reading around it seems to me that the area around Many Glacier could be promising for wildlife. What I thought so far was a hike to helen lake, the huckelberry mt. lookout (I'm a Peacock reader ) and the area around Polebridge. We would love to do 1 overnight, and a couple of dayhikes. Even a base camp (for 2 nights) would be great.
-I am reading the Falcon guide for Glacier an Waterton, but - in contrast to the Yellowstone one - it hardly mention wildlife-viewing hikes... So, any tip would be highly appreciated!
-It looks like it is not very easy to make loops within the park, its more like shuttle or out and back...am I correct?
Also I realize that most likely we will be able to do one overnight loop/shuttle only and we will do some day hike the rest of the days. Now, I'd like to choose the hike and book the CG from here, since there is this online booking system available. In case, I guess it's possible to change the plan there according to availability.
I see some chances for the overnight (but please, feel free to write down your suggestions):
--- Two Medicine==>StMary
1st day) 2Med-PitamakanPAss-GrizzlyMedLake-Atl Creek CG
2nd day) AtlCreek-TripleDivide-StMary
--- Around Many Glacier:
1st day) Many Glacier ==> Elizabeth (or Helen) Lake through Ptarmigan tunnel
2nd day) back to MG via Redgap Pass
I read that the free shuttle works until labor day. If this is really the case, is there a way to get from, say, Cut Bank ranger station or St Mary to Two Medicine (could be as well St Mary==>Many Glacier or Goat Haunt to MG)?
Regarding the day hikes:
We might be interested in the 2Med-Pitamakan-Dawson Loop. After watching some video, pictures and google earth as well, we are a bit concerned about the ridge/cliff between the two passes. It looks that there is a lot of exposure, is the trail in that area in the range of 1ft large or something around 5ft?
What about the Huckleberry lookout? Looks feasible even with a late start (let's say ==>going to the sun rd early in the morning and start the trail around 10am)
Thanks a lot,
Francesco
I'm new in the Forum, looking forward to our trip in Glacier NP from the 6th to the 11th September. I received already some good tip but as I am always eager of new inputs, here is my first post on BCP, I hope you guys don't get bored by its length!
First, I have some practical questions. Maybe they look silly but it's hard to get answers just googling:
- We have a minivan-rv (<20ft), can we only stay at one of the Xanterra campgrounds or are there others that work on a first come first served basis? In this latter case, are there real hopes to get a spot? How does it work exactly? Do I just drive and look for a car-accessible campground along the roads? Do I have to expect NOT to find any spot and being forced out of the Park if I do not book another Xanterra campground?
- When we'll go hiking, and hopefully camping in the backcountry, do I just park close to the trailhead and leave the car? Should I be concerned about belongings in the car?
The Hikes:
- Since our main aim is wildlife watching, after long reads, I have selected some areas/trails that look (according to the falcon guide) more interesting. In particular, grizzly and wolves would be one target (we'll have a spotting scope), lynx and cougar, wolverine one dream, otter, weasels and beavers a lovely sight!
- Reading around it seems to me that the area around Many Glacier could be promising for wildlife. What I thought so far was a hike to helen lake, the huckelberry mt. lookout (I'm a Peacock reader ) and the area around Polebridge. We would love to do 1 overnight, and a couple of dayhikes. Even a base camp (for 2 nights) would be great.
-I am reading the Falcon guide for Glacier an Waterton, but - in contrast to the Yellowstone one - it hardly mention wildlife-viewing hikes... So, any tip would be highly appreciated!
-It looks like it is not very easy to make loops within the park, its more like shuttle or out and back...am I correct?
Also I realize that most likely we will be able to do one overnight loop/shuttle only and we will do some day hike the rest of the days. Now, I'd like to choose the hike and book the CG from here, since there is this online booking system available. In case, I guess it's possible to change the plan there according to availability.
I see some chances for the overnight (but please, feel free to write down your suggestions):
--- Two Medicine==>StMary
1st day) 2Med-PitamakanPAss-GrizzlyMedLake-Atl Creek CG
2nd day) AtlCreek-TripleDivide-StMary
--- Around Many Glacier:
1st day) Many Glacier ==> Elizabeth (or Helen) Lake through Ptarmigan tunnel
2nd day) back to MG via Redgap Pass
I read that the free shuttle works until labor day. If this is really the case, is there a way to get from, say, Cut Bank ranger station or St Mary to Two Medicine (could be as well St Mary==>Many Glacier or Goat Haunt to MG)?
Regarding the day hikes:
We might be interested in the 2Med-Pitamakan-Dawson Loop. After watching some video, pictures and google earth as well, we are a bit concerned about the ridge/cliff between the two passes. It looks that there is a lot of exposure, is the trail in that area in the range of 1ft large or something around 5ft?
What about the Huckleberry lookout? Looks feasible even with a late start (let's say ==>going to the sun rd early in the morning and start the trail around 10am)
Thanks a lot,
Francesco