Glacier Ntnl Park – Avalanche Lake

Uncertain what to expect, I went ahead and started down the Avalanche Lake trail. Right at the start the trailhead map says it is 2 miles of uphill hiking… which turned me away initially, but the climb was not a big factor once I got started. The larger issue was just how dense the forest is along this trail, preventing any breeze. Even in September, where I expected cooler temperatures ‘way up north’, the humidity and the breeze-blocking trees had their way with me. I continued on anyway, and what a treat Avalanche Lake turned out to be; surrounded by peaks, the lake is fed by the glacial water of three streams (waterfalls?) that run hundreds of feet down the far side with a huge rumble.

What has caught me off guard about Glacier National Park is the vegetation, both the size of and the quantity. Not only were the trees very tightly packed in, the ground appeared almost manicured by Disney technicians creating a picturesque forest for Bambi. At times, the trail would become a tunnel as the vegetation would grow to 6 feet high on either side leaving only just enough room for the sun to light the path.