Hiking – Page 6 – Valerie's Voice

Memorable Hikes – Glacier National Park in 2013

Continuing my series on memorable hikes…

Gary and I took another trip to Glacier National Park, this one in August 2013. I wrote the following piece upon our return. It’s a little different from my usual hiking stories. I added information about the memorable hikes at the end.

Giddy up and up and up….clip-clop goes the steady sound of our horses hoofs climbing 3300’ in 6.7 miles to Sperry Chalet. It promises to be another gorgeous day in Glacier National Park. This is our fourth day in the park. This morning we’ve packed our saddlebags and said our prayers for our two nights stay on the mountain.

The horses are sure footed and they know the trail well – going back and forth to the chalet many times a week. We form a line of ten horses and rider’s. My horse, Wyatt, sometimes gets a little too close to Bobbie, the much bigger horse in front of him, so occasionally Bobbie gives Wyatt a kick with his back foot. Although Wyatt deserves it, it can be a little terrifying for the rider on it’s back! That would be me. Gary is on Chester, who behaves nicely.

The scenery is great, the pace is steady and we finally make it up to the hitching rail at the chalet after 3 ½ hours without a rest stop. We have help getting off our horses and we stagger a little to get our hiking legs back but we’re not sore and we are so delighted to be at our destination.

It’s awesome! The smells are divine…mostly pine. The sun is shining on us and the air is fresh. We find our way to the outhouses first, the nicest outhouses we’ve been in, but still outhouses. Next we find the dining room and the welcoming college-age students are ready to take our lunch order that includes fresh, just out-of- the-oven, peach pie.

In 1913 the Sperry Chalet was built by the railroad (JJ Hill affiliation) to attract visitors to the park. The railroad used Italian stonemasons to build the foundation and outside walls, made from the rubble stone at hand. It opened for business in 1914. There are four small buildings: the dining hall, the chalet (hotel with 24 rooms) the old laundry building and the new (10+ years old) outhouses. There is no electricity up here and just two sinks by the outhouses for guests to use for washing up and brushing teeth. No showers. No hot water. Just bedding (1914 era), food, fresh air and mountain goats!

We find our room, take off our backpacks and head outdoors to explore God’s beautiful creation. The chalet overlooks MacDonald Lodge, to the west and down 6.7 miles. I try imaging women in long dresses riding here on horseback and hiking around camp and up to Sperry Glacier, named after Dr. Lyman Sperry, a professor of geology and zoology at Carleton College in Northfield. He was the first to reach the glacier in 1896. Tomorrow we will hike, with a naturalist, to see what’s left of the Sperry Glacier. The hike is 4.3 miles up 1500’, to the glacier, crossing over five ice fields and five rock fields (and of course, 4.3 miles back down). It’s a little farther than it used to be since the Glacier is melting.

After a relaxing afternoon sitting on the rocks taking in all the beauty we head back to the dining hall for dinner. Much to our surprise we have a full meal deal: turkey, stuffing, potatoes, gravy, cranberries, homemade bread, pumpkin dessert. It tastes so good. The staff assigned our seats so we meet fellow companions on this adventurous journey. We sit around visiting then get our packs ready for tomorrow, and go back to the dining hall for a night cap of delicious cinnamon hot chocolate.

As we crawl into bed we are careful to put our pants, jackets and shoes near by so when we get up in the middle of the night to go to the outhouse we can easily find our clothes. They say there are no secrets at the chalet since the walls are so thin. We wake up around 3 a.m. and quietly turn on our headlamps, get dressed and head down the stairs and out the door to a star-studded evening sky! We see a falling star and stand in awe. A mountain goat greets us and watches us walk to the outhouse. We are grateful for this interruption of our sleep to experience this stunning sight on a mountain!

***This is the end of my story from the first day of our trip to Sperry Chalet***

The following day we hiked with a naturalist up to Sperry Glacier. It took several hours. The scenery was amazing and the naturalist knowledgeable. I identified a lot of wildflowers, we saw many mountain goats, and we crossed ice fields and rock fields to finally arrive at the glacier. Then we turned around and made the trek back down to the lodge. It was an exhilarating day and we were tired (a total of 8.6 miles)

That evening, after another delicious meal, we packed our backpacks. We were hiking 6.7 miles down the mountain the next day, to our parked car at McDonald Lodge. It took us three hours to hike out. Etiquette is that hikers step off the trail on the down side to let horses pass, which we had to do.

The hike down the mountain was a grand way to bring closure our spectacular time at Sperry Chalet.

A sad note: Sperry Chalet caught on fire in 2017 and was severely damaged. There are hopes to have it rebuilt at some point…but it was such a unique and beautiful historic building…it will not be the same.

Memorable Hikes – Glacier National Park, Montana 1989

Continuing my series on memorable hikes…

Our boys were ages 7 and 5 at the time we took two weeks and drove to and from Glacier National Park in our mini-van, and camped for six nights in the park. Our guys were troopers – we took several hikes during our stay and overall we all hiked a total of 23 miles. We made the boys certificates at the end of the week (I can still picture us around the picnic table creating them) certifying their accomplishment and they were pleased.

A favorite picture of my two boys, 1989.

The most memorable part of the hikes was the boys carrying the hiking sticks we bought them early on. The wooden sticks had the name Glacier National Park burned into them and they had a leather loop handle with bells on them. The bells served a purpose. The bells made noise to scare off grizzly bears – to let the bears know we were on the trail. The park is home to many Grizzly bears – in this beautiful place they tolerate humans – sometimes. The first day we arrived we overheard the ranger telling of a grizzly bear mauling some hikers on a back-country trail as they neared the mama’s cubs. One needs to take the bears seriously! Fortunately we did not run into any grizzly bears on the trails.

The miles we accumulated that week were from hiking to or around Hidden Lake, Avalanche Lake, St. Mary’s Lake, Twin Falls via Trick falls and a boat ride, Ptagrin Falls, Swift Current Lake, and Grinnell Lake

Glacier is a beautiful place. It’s one of my favorite national parks and I have wonderful memories of it.

Memorable Hikes – Norway 2007

Continuing my series on memorable hikes…

Norway ~ Your Way was the name of the tour group we went with to Norway in 2007. An American partnered with a native Norwegian naturalist as a guide and he has organized one hiking trip through Norway every year for over twenty years. Ours was a group of about thirty. We traveled by bus for segments of the trip but mostly by our own legs, hiking from mountain lodge to mountain lodge. The good news was when we were not riding the bus it was carrying our luggage.

Norway is unbelievably beautiful, and indescribable. Ask anyone who has been there. We often wondered why my grandfather, at the age of 17, left this beautiful country to come to America. I know it was for economic reasons but it must have been hard. Thankfully we have contact with many relatives still living in Norway and we have built relationships with them. I love my Norwegian heritage, and my Norwegian relatives!

Because of the astounding beauty all around it’s hard to single out one memorable hike from this trip.

Our first hike was a six mile day hike near Geilo, northwest of Olso, to get our hiking legs in place. On the second day we started our lodge-to-lodge journey. We saw reindeer and mountain sheep while hiking and came upon pools from streams of melted snow and I took off my hiking boots to put my feet in the water. It was cold, but it felt good on the feet.

Every day, after a wonderful European (in this case – Norwegian) breakfast, we would make our lunches from the breakfast buffet and fill our water bottles. We also filled our coffee thermos’ for a morning coffee break, finding a place to sit on the trail and soak in the breathtaking views. We hiked between six to ten miles a day.

Sometimes it was difficult due to steep climbs, rocky paths and some snowy patches. We crossed many streams and one very challenging waterfall where we had to help each other across.

The scenery was spectacular with dozens of waterfalls, lush vegetation, and lots of wildflowers. This area we hiked lodge-to-lodge is known as the Grand Canyon of Norway. After our treks to the lodges we took several day hikes: we took a train up a mountain and hiked back down, another day the bus dropped us off so we could hike a back-country road to a small village on the sea. It was so picturesque and I remember stopping to smell a lot of roses!

We had a “free” day so we went on our own, without the group, and hiked a couple hours up a steep, defined trail and discovered a small mountain hut…a hiker’s cabin we learned…a one-room hut with a sod roof with a small Norwegian flag displayed outside, a pot belly stove inside with a small bed and table. There were emergency supplies if a hiker was in need of them. It was such a fun discovery. We signed a journal on the table inside and filled our water bottles in the clear mountain stream outside the hut.

A Fjord near the village of Mundal. I had this picture enlarged and framed and it is hanging in my kitchen.

The overall trip included so much more than hiking… we took a boat ride through a fjord, we shopped in Bergen, toured a Stav Church, and learned about Norwegian culture.

An added bonus for us…we extended our stay and spent time with my Norwegian relatives and had many more exciting adventures!

Memorable Hikes – Smoky Mountain National Park, Kentucky 1996

Continuing my series on memorable hikes...

In 1996 our family camped in Smoky Mountain National Park and went on several hikes, including a six-mile stretch on the Appalachian Trail that passed through the park.

The hike I remember most from this trip was a hike to Laural Falls, and beyond (according to my journal). As the four of us began this six-mile hike we met a couple from the Ranger Program we had attended the night before. They were coming out of the forest as we were heading into it. We stopped to chat and they told us to look for big trees ahead.

As we continued on our hike we were on the lookout for “big trees”. After hiking a while we met another couple and told them what the previous folks had told us. They looked around and said, “we think these are really big trees.” It was then we realized we were right there among the “big trees”…large enough for the guys to hold hands around to circle a tree. We laughed at our “impaired vision”. We were grateful to finally take notice of the big trees surrounding us.

Picture of a photo from my album. Great Smokey Mountains.

But more than the trees, what made this hike memorable was the Barred Owl. As we turned a bend in the trail we saw a big, beautiful, Barred Owl – perched on a lower branch – in plain sight. It was so large and so pretty and so close. I have never again seen an owl that close. I wish I had a good photo of that owl but I can still picture it in my mind.

Memorable Hikes – Ireland 2014

Continuing my series on memorable hikes…

In 2014 we met friends from Boston, in Ireland. We rented a car and drove around the southern part of Ireland on the opposite side of the road for ten days. The countryside is beautiful and green, filled with old ruins, sheep, flowers and so much more. The coast is rocky and wild and we liked Ireland.

One day the four of us hiked to Mount Brandon on the Dingle Peninsula. It was the end of an ancient pilgrimage for Saint Branden (whom the mountain is named after – I don’t know why the spelling difference.) It is steep, rugged and wonderful. It’s the second highest point in Ireland, at 952 meters, or 3,123 feet.

We stopped to ask an older man, a sheepherder whom we encountered while looking for the beginning of the trail, where the trail-head was. He confirmed our thought and then he started up the trail himself. He made it look so easy. He and his three dogs started up the trail about the same time we did but soon they were out of sight!

We started our hike at sea level in sunshine and cool weather. The trail is marked with crosses and white makers. The crosses were numbered for the Stations of the Cross. It was special to come upon each one…a mini victory each time we passed.

One of the wonderful crosses along our trail with vistas of the sea below.

The sheep were on the mountain with us and the views over land and sea were stunning. It was a difficult hike but we kept climbing. At cross #6 I thought we were half way but when we got to cross #12 and it wasn’t the end we began to wonder how much longer or higher we had to go. By now it had started to rain. We kept going…cross #13…#14…should we turn around?…let’s go to the next marker…

And then…there we were…at the top! We were excited, happy, cold and wet. We looked around to see what we could see. There was a definite edge on this peak and for a moment, a little ray of sunshine poked through the fog to give us a glimpse of the beautiful sight straight below us. We snapped a photo and then started back down the way we came up.

Fogged in at the top of Mt. Brandon, Ireland.

Though the trail was wet and slippery, the rain had stopped and we dried out on our way down the mountain. At the bottom we were proud that we completed this six-mile trek. It was one highlight from our many adventures in Ireland.

Memorable Hikes – Zion National Park, Utah 1992

Continuing my series on memorable hikes…

One of the most unusual trails we have hiked is in Zion National Park where we camped with our two sons in July, 1992.

The Narrows is the name of the canyon, and trail, between two cliffs (1,000 feet tall) with the Virgin river running through it. Most times the water level is low enough to take a hike…however, there are signs posted warning hikers of the potential danger of flash floods so you need to be sure to check the forecast before you begin your hike…you do not want to be hiking in the river when there is danger of more water rushing in.

There was a flash flood last summer that caught some hikers by surprise. Fortunately people joined arms and made it out of the Narrows safely.

Click here to read a news article.

My guys in The Narrows – Zion National Park, 1992

The day we hiked the Narrows, in 1992, the skies were sunny and we had great weather. We hiked in about a mile up the Virgin River and then turned around. It was a great adventure and thankfully we didn’t have any problems.

It was definitely a unique and unforgettable experience.

Memorable Hikes – Switzerland 2002

Continuing my series on memorable hikes…

In April of 2002, my husband, our youngest son and I went to England to pick up our oldest son, who studied at Oxford for a semester. We were curious to explore Oxford and London and then travel in Europe. After touring in England we took the Chunnel to Calais, France and saw sights in France, Germany and Switzerland.

While in Switzerland we went hiking in the Lauterbrunnen Valley (which is often is referred to as the valley of 72 waterfalls.)

A photo of the hotel and one of the 72 waterfalls in Lauterbrunnen Valley. This is a photo from a brochure picture I had in my photo album. I didn’t have a great photo of my own to share.

After settling into our chalet-style hotel we started hiking towards waterfalls that were inside a mountain. We were intrigued by this. Along the way I was awe-struck by the beauty of a different waterfalls, Staubbach Falls. There was a stream of water falling off a vertical mountain face, cascading about 1,000 feet. I think it’s so spectacular because of its simplistic beauty. I still remember seeing it for the first time…I’m not sure why it impacted me so.

We continued hiking in the valley to Trümmelbach Falls, which was our destination. These falls are a series of ten glacier-waterfalls inside the mountain, made accessible by a tunnel-lift. We were able to go inside the mountain and walk around to see the falls. They were illuminated which was nice. It was fun and interesting.

Another photo from a brochure in my photo album…waterfalls flowing outside the mountain.

After coming out of the mountain we hiked back to our picturesque hotel nestled in this spectacular valley with breathtaking views.

Memorable Hike – Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming 1999

Continuing my series on memorable hikes…

Our family took many road trips across country when the boys were younger, mostly to national parks, and we hiked a lot.

A picture – of a photo – of my three guys in the Tetons (from our 1999 photo album).

One memorable hike was in Grand Teton National Park. What made this hike memorable were the butterflies. I find it interesting that I mentioned seeing beautiful butterflies on our hike in Brazil, but on this hike in the Tetons the butterflies were my companions.

One morning we started hiking together along a park trail and after hiking 4.5 miles we came to a fork in the road. For the first time ever, while hiking with my family, I decided to turn around and hike back alone while my three guys continued walking to a mountain lake. This was the first and only time I remember turning around while hiking and I don’t remember why. I do remember feeling safe, knowing it was an established park trail, and that I had enough water.

What made this hike memorable were the butterflies. While I walked alone along the path they fluttered along the side of me all the way back. I couldn’t believe it…they were my escorts, my guardian angels. I remembered it as one butterfly but my journal reminded me there were several butterflies.

My journal also reminded me that the guys continued another 2.7 miles to the mountain lake, Lake Solitude. It was there they turned around and hiked back to the ferry landing. My husband hopped on the ferry, but our two sons decided to continue hiking all the way back to the trailhead for an additional 2.5 miles which made their total 17 miles for that day.

I often think about this story and my butterfly companions. It makes me smile.

Psalm 121: 1-2

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

Memorable Hikes – Brazil 2004

Hiking is a favorite hobby of mine and my husband. We have gone on hundreds of hikes over the years…it is what we like to do, at home and on vacation, so I thought it would be fun to write a series about some memorable hikes. It’s tough to rate them as favorites so I’ll stick with “memorable” and not rank them in any kind of order. I keep a vacation journal so I have notes on most of our hikes (some more detailed than others I’ve discovered). Here is the first in my series of memorable hikes that I will post weekly, for awhile anyway.

Several years ago our son was a Rotary exchange student in Florianopolis, an island off the southern coast of Brazil. It is a gorgeous island and known for it’s beautiful beaches along the Atlantic Ocean. He lived there one year and had a great experience. His host families were wonderful and genuinely cared for him. It was a delight to meet them when our family went to visit after he had been living in Brazil for seven months.

His first host family (mom, dad and one son – their other son was on Rotary exchange in the US) took our family on a hike along Lagoa da Conceição, a large lagoon on the island of Florianopolis. The island itself is beautiful…and to hike along the inland lake was a special treat.

It was a hot day. The trail was semi-rough and we hiked for about an hour and a half. I saw many butterflies along the trail, including a black and purple one. I had already spotted several butterflies on this trip to Brazil, including the beautiful, iridescence blue ones and a lime-green one.

What I remember most about this hike was the destination… as we neared the end we walked down toward the lake and there on the beach were some shade trees, a swing set, a few chickens running around and children playing in the sand. There was a quaint open-air café on the sandy shores of Lagoa da Conceição. It was a great spot to stop, rest, cool off, swing and get something cold to drink, and food to eat. We were the only customers at the café. It was family- owned and run. We found a wonderful place to sit at a table under the trees near the water.

We ordered a beer; it tasted so good because the beer was so cold and the air was so hot, and so were we from hiking in the heat. Next the appetizers started coming – shrimp, squid, and other kinds of fish – all delicious. Then we ordered main dishes for everyone to share family-style. We spent over two hours eating and enjoying our time together in this lovely setting.

And then, to our surprise and delight, they had ordered a boat taxi to bring us back to the trail-head. Instead of hiking back we had a pleasant, relaxing boat ride on the beautiful lake, Lagoa da Conceição.

It was a lovely day and memorable hike with wonderful friends.

Movement at Temperance River State Park

One beautiful afternoon during our stay up on the north shore, we walked along Temperance River towards Lake Superior, from the parking area to a wooden bridge that crosses over the river to the other side of the park. While on the bridge we looked downstream to the mouth of the river and there was a young man fly-fishing. As we looked upstream, towards the water falls, our son and his wife alerted us to watch for fish jumping out of the water trying to swim against the flow. It was fun to spot several fish jumping over the course of a few minutes. Some types of fish return to the stream of their birth to lay eggs. To accomplish this, they must swim upstream against the current of the stream. It looked like a tough job.

If you observe closely you can see a fish jumping in this 9 second video. Click link:

IMG_8497

The fish jumping was one of the interesting movements we saw that afternoon.

The other interesting movement we witnessed was on the rocky beach of the state park.

I didn’t have opportunity to get a good photo of this lone dancer on the rock, but I wanted to capture the memory.

We continued hiking to the lake and found a semi-shady spot to sit down and read our books on the rocky beach when I noticed on the other side of the beach a woman dancing by herself on an outcropping of rocks. I was far enough away so she didn’t know I was watching her, but there were others close-by and she would have known they were there, but still she danced with abandonment.

And it brought me much joy.

I sensed her enthusiasm and love for the beauty surrounding her and she was expressing it by dancing. I try to express these feelings by writing and photography but part of me wants to secretly find a hidden beach somewhere and dance to my heart’s content!

“Let all who come to Love rejoice, let them sing for joy! And protect them, so that those who live in your love may dance in your light!”

An excerpt from Psalm 5 from the book Psalms for Praying by Nan C. Merrill