Tag: mcdonald creek

  • The Clowny Ducks

    The Clowny Ducks

    “I’ve got two ducks” cracked the radio. “I’m on my way” I replied back to Ava. We were leapfrogging each other as we worked up McDonald Creek to always have eyes on the water as we surveyed up for this small, charismatic Harlequin Duck. Each spring, the ducks begin their unique west-to-east migration from the…

  • Avalanche Lake Hike on New Year’s Day 2024

    Avalanche Lake Hike on New Year’s Day 2024

    With a low snowpack to the start of our winter, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to hike up to Avalanche Lake on the first day of 2024. We ended up with the gorgeous lake all to ourselves. With nobody else around, most all of the animals not making a peep, and snow to absorb…

  • Apgar Lookout – Spring 2023

    Apgar Lookout – Spring 2023

    The forecast called for a sunny, bluebird day in the high 40s, so we packed up and decided to see how far up the Apgar Lookout Trail in Glacier National Park that we could get. Imagine our delight when we realized that there was a decent boot pack all the way to the summit and…

  • Reverse Garden Wall Trifecta 2022

    Reverse Garden Wall Trifecta 2022

    The traditional way that we’ve done the “Garden Wall Trifecta” (climbing Bishops Cap, Pollock Mountain, and Piegan Mountain) has been starting at Logan Pass, climbing them in the order of Bishops Cap, Pollock, then Piegan, then coming out via Lunch Creek. Since we only had one car, we decided to drop bikes at Logan Pass,…

  • Mt Brown Lookout 2022

    Mt Brown Lookout 2022

    As the snow continues to recede, we’ve been finding more places to hike for views. We headed up the Sperry Trail and took the trail to Mt Brown Lookout. In the past, trees obscured much of the views as you steeply climbed, but the burn from a couple of years ago has really improved the…

  • Avalanche Lake Spring 2022 Bike and Hike

    Avalanche Lake Spring 2022 Bike and Hike

    The forecast called for a lovely spring day on Kristen’s birthday, so we decided to load up the bikes and head on up to Glacier National Park to bike, then hike up to Avalanche Lake. On the west side of the park, the Going-to-the-Sun Road is closed at Lake McDonald Lodge. When they’re not working…

  • McDonald Creek Trail 2021

    McDonald Creek Trail 2021

    A quick drive from the West Entrance of Glacier National Park takes you to the head of Lake McDonald where McDonald Creek empties into it. The McDonald Creek Trail works its way up the playful creek, in an easy-going fashion with ample views of the crystal clear water. The trail begins as a level, ADA…

  • Grinnell Lake – Spring 2019

    Grinnell Lake – Spring 2019

    As part of Glacier National Park’s Harlequin Duck project, a few of us headed over to the east side of the park to look for Harlequin Ducks. Sean (one of the park’s wildlife techs) and I went up to Grinnell Lake in the Many Glacier area of the park. While we didn’t find any Harlequins,…

  • Biking Going-to-the-Sun Road – April 2019

    Biking Going-to-the-Sun Road – April 2019

    After a bunch of spring rain, we decided to haul our bikes up to Glacier National Park and bike Going-to-the-Sun Road on a sunny Sunday. We were not disappointed! The weather was gorgeous and we were able to bike up past the Loop. On the west side of Glacier, the Going-to-the-Sun Road is closed to…