Glacier National Park: Day 2

The next morning we allowed ourselves to sleep in a little bit to catch up from the previous night of driving. [: Which was GREAT. Then it was back into the van and back to beautiful Glacier. 

Happy Glacier faces

 There were still some clouds on the west side, but they made for beautiful pictures as we got up high.

Seriously. Unbelievably beautiful. Earth is so awesome! Thank you, glaciers.

Lil' mountain goat up at Logan Pass.

Shadowfax the space shuttle and I. This van... he's the best. He was my car in high school. If you're looking for the greatest party van ever, do yourself a favor and go buy yourself a Mercedes Sprinter. Plus you become famous among your neighborhood/high school/cross country team/church/everywhere because everyone knows it's you when they see it. Yeah, you're welcome.

 We passed St. Mary Lake, went out of the park, drove north, went back into the park, and headed to the Many Glacier region. Iceberg Lake was our destination, a 10-mile round trip hike. As far as we Krops were concerned, that's definitely a bit more like it. We were stoked about the hike, and we weren't disappointed.

Not 2 miles in we saw a bear chillin' in a meadow. He was pretty awesome.

 We caught the end of the spring wildflowers, and they were gorgeous. Self-heal on the left and beargrass on the right.

 The trail took us in and out of spruce forests, with absolutely incredible views of glacial valleys and spurs when we were out in the open.

There were avalanche paths criss-crossing the trail the whole time. Having worked with avalanche-damaged trees for my job in the BYU dendrochronology lab, I had to take some pictures. [:

Columbian ground squirrel. They are adorable.

 The lake was stunning. The turquoise water was surrounded by a huge cirque wall that towered over us like a castle. Yellow glacier lilies filled every meadow. It was heaven. We ate our classic backpacking lunch (sliced summer sausage, cucumber, cheese, and crackers) in a meadow and soaked up the sunshine.

PS at this lake we almost got run down by a buck chasing a doe. It was life-and-death, people.

My cute mom & dad. I'm so lucky to have been raised by such healthy, active, outdoorsy parents.

Gorgeous little meadow pond near the lake.

 I'd highly recommend this hike to those who are up to the task of 10 miles. There's really not much elevation gain, and the scenery makes the miles pass quickly. Totally one of the most beautiful hikes I've ever been on.