{"id":4052,"date":"2020-03-19T10:02:21","date_gmt":"2020-03-19T02:02:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/?p=4052"},"modified":"2020-03-20T05:57:40","modified_gmt":"2020-03-19T21:57:40","slug":"20190724hiddenlake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/2020\/03\/19\/20190724hiddenlake\/","title":{"rendered":"Day 13 of 2019 Western US Tour, July 24, Hidden Lake and Sun Road"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our fourth day in the wonderland of Glacier National Park.
\nPlan of the day was to visit Hidden Lake (overlook) at Logan Pass, together with a few trails and overlooks on the eastern part of Going-to-the-Sun Road.
\n

\"Hidden<\/a>

<\/br>Hidden Lake and Bearhat Mountain<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Weather forecast foretold a rather windy day in Glacier National Park. Luckily, we had some leeway with our schedule, so I hiked the grueling Iceberg Lake + Ptarmigan Tunnel trail the day before, and leave the relatively easy Hidden Lake Trail for today.<\/p>\n

And unlike the previous two days, we had a well-rested night and set off at a comfortable 10am along Going-to-the-Sun Road. Immediately out of Saint Mary Campground, the sights of majestic mountains were hard to miss.<\/p>\n

\"Going-to-the-Sun<\/a>

 \"Going-to-the-Sun<\/a><\/br>Going-to-the-Sun Road<\/br>Before Red Eagle Mountain.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

\"East<\/a>

 \"East<\/a><\/br>East Flattop Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Red<\/a>

<\/br>Red Eagle Mountain across Saint Mary Lake<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Going-to-the-Sun<\/a>

 \"Going-to-the-Sun<\/a><\/br>Going-to-the-Sun Road<\/br>Little Chief Mountain on the left.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

\"Otokomi<\/a>

<\/br>Otokomi Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Mahtotopa<\/a>

 \"Mahtotopa<\/a><\/br>Mahtotopa Mountain and Little Chief Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Goat<\/a>

<\/br>Goat Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

We made our first stop at a roadside overlook of Saint Mary Lake.<\/p>\n

\"Going-to-the-Sun<\/a>

<\/br>Going-to-the-Sun Road<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Red<\/a>

 \"Red<\/a><\/br>Red Eagle Mountain across Saint Mary Lake<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Saint<\/a>

 \"Saint<\/a><\/br>Saint Mary Lake<\/p><\/div>\n

Of the previous two sets of photos, the ones on the left were taken in the morning, and the ones on the right afternoon four hours later. High winds meant weather changed quickly here in the park.
\nAnd despite winds blowing strong, tour boats on Saint Mary Lake seemed to be business as usual.<\/p>\n

\"Tour<\/a>

 \"Tour<\/a><\/br>Tour Boat on Saint Mary Lake against High Winds<\/p><\/div>\n

\"View<\/a>

<\/br>View of Saint Mary Lake<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Mahtotopa<\/a>

<\/br>Mahtotopa Mountain and Little Chief Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

After a few photos, we quickly retreated to the car and headed off.<\/p>\n

\"Little<\/a>

 \"Little<\/a><\/br>Little Chief Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Citadel<\/a>

 \"Citadel<\/a><\/br>Citadel Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Going-To-The-Sun<\/a>

<\/br>Going-To-The-Sun Mountain<\/br>Lovely veil of the clouds.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Heavy<\/a>

 \"Heavy<\/a><\/br>Heavy Runner Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Piegan<\/a>

<\/br>Piegan Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Going-to-the-Sun<\/a>

 \"Going-to-the-Sun<\/a><\/br>\"Going-to-the-Sun<\/a> \"Going-to-the-Sun<\/a><\/br>Going-to-the-Sun Road<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Clements<\/a>

 \"Clements<\/a><\/br>Clements Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Reynolds<\/a>

 \"Reynolds<\/a><\/br>Reynolds Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

At first, our plan was to park the car at Logan Pass and then hike the Hidden Lake Trail. Unfortunately, parking at Logan Pass was extremely limited, so after circling the parking lot for a few minutes with no open spot, we decided to head back and resort to the park’s shuttle bus.
\nAnd just East of Logan Pass, a segment of Sun Road was overlooking a gorgeous valley. That’s when the sun emerged from the clouds and put a beautiful paint stroke on all that eye can see.<\/p>\n

\"Heavy<\/a>

<\/br>Heavy Runner Mountain in Back<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Valley\"<\/a>

<\/br>\"Valley\"<\/a><\/br>Valley<\/p><\/div>\n

We made a brief stop at Lunch Creek, which was a creek originated from Pollock Mountain. I had no idea why it’s called this name, maybe because it’s halfway on the Sun Road?<\/p>\n

\"Pollock<\/a>

 \"Pollock<\/a><\/br>Pollock Mountain<\/br>And a waterfall along Lunch Creek on the right photo.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

\"Lunch<\/a>

<\/br>Lunch Creek before Reynolds Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

If I remembered correctly, parking at Lunch Creek has a no-so-abundant time limit.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"View<\/a>

<\/br>View of Mountains along Going-to-the-Sun Road<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Valley\"<\/a>

<\/br>Valley<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Mountains\"<\/a>

<\/br>Mountains<\/br>I liked the composition that Clements Mountain on the right, and Reynolds Mountain on the left, seemed to be guarding Reynolds Creek in the middle.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

\"Going-To-The-Sun<\/a>

 \"Going-To-The-Sun<\/a><\/br>Going-To-The-Sun Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n

Finally, we found a parking spot at Jackson Glacier Overlook (so that we don’t need to head all the way back to St Mary visitor center). After a rather lengthy wait, we got onto the shuttle bus to Logan Pass (because we just missed one).<\/p>\n

\"Distant<\/a>

<\/br>Distant Jackson Glacier<\/p><\/div>\n

Hidden Lake Trail<\/h3>\n

Finally, it’s the Hidden Lake part, arguably the most popular hiking trail in Glacier National Park. Unfortunately, for the week of our visit, the second part of Hidden Lake Trail from overlook to lakeside was closed due to bear activity.
\nHere’s GPS tracking:
\n