Wordless Wednesday

From our recent trip to Vancouver Island, British Columbia...

September 27, 2023

Elk Falls Provincial Park, British Columbia

Many Glacier Hotel & Swift Current Lake - St. Mary, Montana (Part Two)

Glacier National Park Road Trip (Fall 2022)

September 14-15, 2022

Many Glacier Hotel & Swift Current Lake

After walking around the grounds of Many Glacier Hotel, we began our drive back to St. Mary, only to notice a group of people standing on the side of the road, looking up the mountain at something. I quickly pulled over, grabbed my camera, and ran toward the group. Yes! They were watching a grizzly! It took a while for me to spot it with my naked eye since it was pretty far away (I might have mistaken one or two boulders for a bear before I finally locked my gaze on the bear with a hump), but as soon as I did, I used my telephoto lens to get a closer look. He was busy munching on something (Weeds? Wildflowers? A small animal?) and never once glanced toward the gathering crowd on the roadside. I'm happy I was a safe distance from this guy, but I wish I could have gotten a few photos that show his face better than what I took.    

Practicing Safe Distancing!

Zoomed In

Once I had shot two or three dozen frames, and it was obvious the bear wasn't going to accommodate the paparazzi, I returned to the RV and we headed down the road. We decided to pull over and have our lunch along the banks of creek. It was absolutely gorgeous and very peaceful sitting in the sun, listening the flow of the water.

Happy Campers!

Avalanche Lake Hike - Glacier, Montana

Glacier National Park Road Trip (Fall 2022)

September 12, 2022

Avalanche Lake Hike

After breakfast, we headed out to the Apgar Visitors Center. It's a short drive from our campground, with plenty of RV parking, but the Center isn't very large. After checking out a couple of maps, I decided to take one of the free shuttles to Avalanche Lake Trailhead. The hike begins at the Trail of the Cedars Trailhead, which is a one-mile loop near Lake McDonald. The Trail of the Cedars is more of a walk than a hike, but it's a good warm-up before starting on the Avalanche Trail. 

Trail of the Cedars Boardwalk

Avalanche Creek

Avalanche Trail is very popular, but there is plenty of space to spread out and not feel like you're in a huge crowd.

Avalanche Lake is situated at the base of Bearhat Mountain (8694 ft.) to the northeast. Little Matterhorn is in view to the south. The waterfalls originate from Sperry Glacier, which is out of view beyond Little Matterhorn. 

Avalanche Lake

When I arrived at the lake, several people were looking through binoculars at something across the water. When I learned that they had spotted a bear, I was eager to get some photos, but he was very shy, hiding behind the shrubs as he feasted on berries. I finally got a couple of pictures, but had to zoom in tightly, so they're not very sharp. Still, I was thrilled to finally see a bear in the wild. And from a safe distance!

I would definitely do this hike again!

Wordless Wednesday

 

Near Many Glacier Hotel & Swiftcurrent Lake

Glacier National Park

September 2022

This is the only grizzly bear we saw while in Glacier National Park. While I would have liked to have gotten a better shot with my zoom lens, I'm glad he wasn't too close!

Click on image for larger view.

Wordless Wednesday

 

Avalanche Lake

Glacier National Park

September 2022

I wish we had been just a little bit closer to this black bear. He was on the other side of the lake and very difficult to see, even with my zoom lens.

Click on image for larger view.

Olympic Peninsula Trip - Day Four - Maple Glade Rain Forest Trail

Wednesday, September 20, 2017 (Part One)
Day Trips: Olympic National Park - Maple Glade Rain Forest Trail

The Quinault River Inn (with its five RV spaces) is on the edge of a residential area and I spotted this bus waiting for the kids when I woke up and peered out the back window. It felt a little odd "camping" so close to these houses, but it was quiet in the evening so no complaints from us. 

It was chilly in the trailer, so I turned up the heater and made coffee. Another beautiful morning by the river.

Here's a shot of our campsite. Nice level gravel pad with some grassy areas and a picnic table.

Our neighbors on one side left after breakfast, so we pretty much had the place to ourselves for our final day.

After breakfast and puttering around, we drove over to the North Shore and stopped at the Quinault River Ranger Station. It was getting warm in the sun and the sky was full of beautiful white clouds against the bright blue sky. Thankfully, we didn't see a single cougar or bear! (Probably a good thing since I forgot the bear spray and bear bells* in the trailer.)

The fall colors were just beginning to appear. Another week or so and I suspect this view will look a little bit like New England.

The Maple Glade Rain Forest Trail is a well-maintained half-mile loop in a gorgeous glade. The bigleaf maples look as if they're dripping with moss and the ground is covered with enormous ferns. We pretty much had the trail to ourselves, passing only two couples heading the other direction. This lush forest reminded me of a couple of scenes from Star Wars and I kept expecting to see Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia fly past me on a speeder bike; either that or a group of Ewoks and Stormtroopers!

*For more about bear bells, click here. The jury's still out.

Click on the photos for a larger view of the image.