GLACIER NATIONAL PARK - Montana and Wyoming - page 198

1,600-foot elevation gain). There is also an excellent ranger-guided hike to the glacier that
makes use of the boat, leaving the Many Glacier dock daily at 8:30am starting in mid-July
(weather and conditions permitting). The 8.5-mile round-trip outing lasts almost nine hours.
The trail twists and climbs above impossibly blue alpine lakes and within sight of the aptly
named Salamander Glacier. In the early season, hikers will get wet with runoff from the
overhanging waterfalls along the trail. Come prepared! Though the trail is one of the oldest
and most popular hikes in the park, and thus heavily trafficked, wildlife is plentiful in the
area too, and grizzly bears are commonly spotted on or near the trail. The trail often does
not open until late July and is seldom clear of snow until well into August.
Upper Waterton Lake and Goat Haunt
You won't necessarily need your passport to see one of the natural highlights of Canada's
Waterton Lakes National Park, although the fjord-like valley is reminiscent of Norway, es-
pecially when it is shrouded in fog and mist. Upper Waterton Lake runs north-south, strad-
dling the border. Boats run between the Canadian town of Waterton (headquarters for the
park) and Goat Haunt at the lake's southern end, accessible only by hiking or by boat.
On the Canadian side, Crypt Lake Trail (10.8 miles round-trip) is an ambitious and
spectacular hike that includes a natural tunnel through a rock wall, stomach-dropping
heights, waterfalls galore, and a dazzling hidden cirque. There are several hikes, ranging
from mellow to death-defying, from the Goat Haunt ranger station, and several ranger-led
hikes daily in summer. A few favorites are Rainbow Falls (2 miles round-trip, no elevation
gain), Kootenai Lakes (5 miles round-trip, 200-foot elevation gain), Lake Janet (6.6 miles
round-trip, 750-foot elevation gain), and Lake Francis (12.4 miles round-trip, 1,050-foot
elevation gain). For those willing to huff and puff, but only briefly, Goat Haunt Over-
look (2 miles round-trip, 800-foot elevation gain) offers a phenomenal view of the valley.
The isolation and lack of roads tends to keep visitor numbers down around Upper Waterton
Lake, but the mosquitoes are abundant; come prepared.
RECREATION
Hiking
One could quite literally spend a lifetime hiking in the St. Mary, Many Glacier, and Upper
Waterton Lake region. For a close-up look at a couple of stunning waterfalls in the St. Mary
area, head to St. Mary Falls trailhead, just west of Sunrift Gorge. The trail is just 0.8 mile
one-way, with a 260-foot elevation drop, to St. Mary Falls, and another 0.7 mile one-way,