Molvar - Hiking Glacier and Waterton Lakes National Parks: A Guide to the Parks Greatest Hiking Adventures

The Glacier Association is a cooperating association of the National Park Service incorporated in the state of Montana in 1946 and recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization.

The Glacier Association supports educational and interpretive programming at several land-management sites located across western Montana including Glacier National Park, Big Hole National Battlefield, Grant-Kohrs Historic Ranch, the National Bison Range, and the Flathead National Forest. Support is generated through bookstore sales of educational and interpretive materials at these locations.

Proceeds from bookstore sales are returned to further the support of research, educational and interpretive activities, cultural preservation, and specialized equipment and project needs.

Anyone wishing to support the goals and activities of the association may become a member. Members receive a 15 percent discount on purchases from the association and similar discounts from many cooperating associations in other national park areas. For membership and product information, please contact: Glacier Association, Box 310, West Glacier, MT 59936; call (406) 888-5756.

This book is dedicated to Sandy Staskus and Hope Brayton. No one could ask for finer hiking partners.

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Copyright 2018 The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.
Previous editions of this book were published by Falcon Publishing, Inc., in 1996, 1999, 2007 and 2012.

TOPO! Maps copyright 2018 National Geographic Partners, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Maps The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.
All photos by Erik Molvar unless otherwise noted

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Information available

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available

ISBN 978-1-4930-3148-1 (paperback)
ISBN 978-1-4930-3149-8 (e-book)

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

Printed in the United States of America

The author and Rowman & Littlefield assume no liability for accidents happening to, or injuries sustained by, readers who engage in the activities described in this book.

This guide would not have been possible without the years of excellent service put in by the rangers with whom I had the pleasure of dealing.

I would like to thank Mr. Jack Potter, GNP Chief of Science and Resource Management, for his editorial input throughout the writing of this book, and Brian McKeon for assistance with revisions.

Dan Fagre of the Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center of the US Geological Survey provided helpful information and photos regarding the retreat of active glaciers due to climate change.

I also thank Nancy Hoffman and Tom Habecker, former Glacier rangers, for their helpful comments and suggestions concerning the guide.

Clyde Lockwood of the Glacier Association provided the initial assistance in dealing with publishing firms, and I am grateful for his support of my efforts.

Randall Schwanke, Locke Marshall, Bill Thorpe, Chrisy Gustavison, and Blandine Baritaud of Waterton Lakes National Park provided editorial assistance for the Canadian hikes.

Thanks to Renelle Jacobsen for her hospitality and friendship.

And thanks to Little Joe Manley just for being himself.

Erik Molvar discovered backpacking while working on a volunteer trail crew in the North Cascades of Washington. A newfound taste for the wilderness experience inspired him to choose a career in the outdoors, and he soon found himself at the University of Montana pursuing a bachelors degree in wildlife biology. Montanas craggy ranges were to be his weekend playground for the next five years, and two summers of bartending at Lake McDonald Lodge gave Erik the perfect opportunity to fully explore Glacier National Parks backcountry. An adventurous spirit has led Erik to embark upon backpacking expeditions throughout the Rocky Mountains, the Great Basin, western Canada, and Alaska. After studying moose behavior in Alaska on the way to a masters degree, Erik is now Executive Director of Western Watersheds Project, the Wests leading nonprofit conservation organization in addressing environmental damage caused by livestock grazing on public lands. Erik is also the author of Hiking Montanas Bob Marshall Wilderness, Hiking Olympic National Park, Hiking Arizonas Cactus Country, Hiking Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks, Hiking the North Cascades, Hiking Wyomings Cloud Peak Wilderness, Hiking Colorados Maroon BellsSnowmass Wilderness, Wild Wyoming, The Insiders Guide to Scenic Driving Alaska and the Yukon, Wyomings Red Desert: A Photographic Journey, and Alaska on Foot: Wilderness Techniques for the Far North.

Matthew Cutler grew up pursuing trout and elk in the high country of his native Utah. An inborn taste for the outdoors and the call of unspoiled wilderness lured Matt to Glacier as a seasonal concessions worker. Matts peak-bagging talents and innate good humor have added immeasurably to the experiences of his backcountry companions through the years.

Candice Hall is a naturalized Montanan who has dedicated herself to a rigorous life of physical fitness. Originally from the Dakotas, Candy forsook the flatlands to become a ranger in Glacier National Park, where she served for several seasons. Candy is now a fitness instructor in Whitefish, Montana.

The authors feel honored to share their firsthand knowledge and insights with those less familiar with Glaciers delights. Between these three, thousands of miles have passed underfoot, including all of the major trails of Glacier country. It is their hope that this book will serve as a window into Glaciers many-faceted beauty, enticing those who read it to leave the cares of the world behind and lose themselves in the majesty of the mountains.

Glacier National Park was established in 1910 to preserve over 1 million acres of unspoiled wilderness. More than 730 miles of trail in the park provide access to soaring peaks and verdant forests, mountain meadows and fish-filled lakestruly a backpackers paradise. Here hikers have the opportunity to leave the hectic pace of civilization far behind and seek a form of refuge in the silent grandeur of the mountains. Tragically, most of the visitors to Glacier National Park never stray far from their automobiles, but those adventurous souls who do plunge into the wilderness discover a wealth of natural beauty around every turn of the trail.