{"id":525,"date":"2015-04-19T07:11:09","date_gmt":"2015-04-19T13:11:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=525"},"modified":"2019-03-16T11:54:11","modified_gmt":"2019-03-16T17:54:11","slug":"glacier-lake-division-mountain-banff-national-park-canada-7-28-14","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=525","title":{"rendered":"Glacier Lake & Division Mountain, Banff National Park, Canada (7-28-14)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lupe and SPHP had a great time on the easy trail to Glacier Lake and beyond.\u00a0 Amazingly, although it was the height of tourist season in Banff National Park, Lupe met absolutely no one else the entire day until\u00a0very close to the end of\u00a0the return trip.\u00a0 Perhaps a sign at the trailhead explains why Lupe and SPHP\u00a0enjoyed a day of\u00a0such unexpected solitude.\u00a0\u00a0The sign\u00a0said that since Glacier Lake is at a fairly low elevation, the trail to Glacier Lake is among the first to be snow free early in the year.\u00a0 Consequently, it is a popular trail in late spring and less so later in the summer.<\/em><\/p>\n

The turnoff for the Glacier Lake trailhead is located a short distance (less than a kilometer) NW of Saskatchewan Crossing on the W side of Icefields Parkway Hwy 93. (Saskatchewan Crossing is in northern Banff National Park at\u00a0the intersection of Icefields Parkway Hwy 93 and Hwy 11 which heads E to Rocky Mountain House.)\u00a0 The trailhead is at a\u00a0large gravel parking area still quite close to\u00a0Hwy 93\u00a0at the end of a short gravel road.<\/em><\/p>\n

Having taken a couple of gorgeous long day hikes (Iceline Trail and Cirque Peak)\u00a0with Lupe\u00a0involving a lot of elevation gain on the previous two days, SPHP at least, was ready for something a bit less strenuous.\u00a0 SPHP had noticed on the maps during previous trips to Canada a large lake called Glacier Lake in northern Banff National Park.\u00a0 The trail to Glacier Lake did not involve much elevation gain, so SPHP decided maybe\u00a0this would be a great\u00a0opportunity for Lupe to explore the Glacier Lake Trail.<\/p>\n

Lupe set out from the trailhead at 8:54 AM.\u00a0 The day promised to be rather hot for the Canadian Rockies.\u00a0 It was already 52\u00a0\u00b0F out with totally clear blue skies and no breeze at all.\u00a0 Only one other vehicle was parked at the spacious trailhead parking lot.\u00a0 The Glacier Lake Trail started out heading SW through a forest with lots of squirrels, which made Lupe quite happy right away.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe a bit N of the great footbridge across the North Saskatchewan River.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The trail was level until approaching the N. Saskatchewan River where it dropped down to the high bank on the E side of the river.\u00a0 At 1.1 km from the trailhead, there was a large excellent footbridge across the N. Saskatchewan.\u00a0 The river was flowing strongly and a beautiful icy blue-gray color.\u00a0 Before crossing the bridge, Lupe explored just a little bit to the N along the 20 foot cliffs above the E bank of the river, just to watch the water roar along over the rapids upstream of the bridge.<\/p>\n

\"Looking<\/a>
Looking upstream from the footbridge across the North Saskatchewan River.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After crossing the N. Saskatchewan, the trail climbed back out of the river gorge before resuming a level trek SW through the forest.\u00a0 After another 1.2 km, Lupe reached an open grassy area on a little bluff above the Howse River.\u00a0 From the bluff was a wonderful view to the SW of the Howse River, a big meandering braided stream in a huge flat valley, and Mt. Outram<\/a><\/strong><\/span> (10,646 ft.)<\/strong><\/span> in the distance.<\/p>\n

Off to the NW side of the river a low green forested ridge was in sight ahead.\u00a0 Lupe would have to climb over this ridge to get to Glacier Lake.\u00a0 Unfortunately, mosquitoes, which were bothersome all day, were particularly voracious and numerous at the Howse River viewpoint. \u00a0Lupe stayed only long enough for a quick photo and pressed on.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe at the Howse River viewpoint. Mt. Outram in the distance.\u00a0 The Glacier Lake Trail climbs over the low forested ridge at the right to reach Glacier Lake.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The trail dropped down from the viewpoint to the N bank of the Howse River, which it followed W across a small meadow before leaving the river and heading back into the forest.\u00a0 Although the trail remained quite close to the floor of the river valley\u00a0and not far N of the river\u00a0for a considerable distance, the Howse River stayed hidden by the forest and never came back into view.\u00a0 The trail turned SW again and gradually started to climb.<\/p>\n

Eventually Lupe came to a stream where she could cool off and get a drink.\u00a0 The trail climbed steadily at a moderate pace as it followed the stream, crossing it 5 times on small plank bridges.\u00a0 Even after leaving the stream, the trail continued climbing for a while.\u00a0 Finally, Lupe reached the top of the low ridge, which was the highest elevation attained on this day’s entire hike.\u00a0 The top of the ridge was flat for some distance.\u00a0 Surprisingly, the ground was damp, even muddy in places.\u00a0 Lupe barked at the numerous squirrels in the forest with great energy and enthusiasm.\u00a0 She was having a wonderful time.<\/p>\n

Having crossed the ridge, the trail started heading down towards Glacier Lake, which was not visible yet through the dense forest.\u00a0 The trail wound around, still heading generally SW and lost all of the elevation Lupe had gained climbing the ridge.\u00a0 (Glacier Lake itself is actually 10 meters below the Glacier Lake trailhead.)\u00a0 Thousands of moths were fluttering around this portion of the forest.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe reaches Glacier Lake. Division Mountain<\/a><\/span><\/strong> (9,910 ft.)<\/strong><\/span> and the SE Lyell Glacier in the distance.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After a while, a sign came into view ahead at a trail intersection.\u00a0 By the time Lupe reached the intersection, Glacier Lake was visible just ahead through the trees.\u00a0 Lupe was now 6.6 km from the Howse River viewpoint.\u00a0 The sign indicated that the trail heading S led to the Glacier Lake campground, which is located at the E end of the lake.\u00a0 Another trail continued WSW along the N shore of the lake.\u00a0 Despite the relative proximity of the campground, which couldn’t have been very far away, Lupe neither saw nor heard anyone.<\/p>\n

Lupe, being a very intelligent dingo,\u00a0headed straight on down to Glacier Lake and got in to cool off.\u00a0 By now it was getting plenty\u00a0warm out.\u00a0 Moths were flying all around, and there were quite a few that had flown down and become stuck on the surface of the lake.\u00a0 They were fluttering madly about desperately trying to escape.\u00a0 There was no sign of any hungry fish willing to eat them.\u00a0\u00a0The fish\u00a0were probably all mothed out.\u00a0 The lake was calm and smooth, other than the tiny ripples generated by the struggling moths.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe takes a shady break shortly after reaching Glacier Lake.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe was at the ENE end of Glacier Lake, which filled the entire broad valley ahead.\u00a0 Glacier Lake is roughly 3.5 km long and almost 1 km wide.\u00a0 It was a light milky blue color and somewhat opaque.\u00a0 Looking ahead to the WSW, the lake was bordered by large mountains.\u00a0 Division Mountain lay beyond the far end of the lake, and the SE Lyell Glacier on it drew the eye like a magnet.\u00a0 Lupe rested in the shade of a low tree branch near the shore of Glacier Lake.\u00a0 She snapped at flies and was bothered by mosquitoes.<\/p>\n

Lupe was now 8.9 km from the trailhead.\u00a0 A sign back at the trailhead had said that a rough trail continued 4.5 km along the N shore of Glacier Lake.\u00a0 It was supposed to be possible to hike beyond the lake and reach the glacial moraines.\u00a0 The valley upstream below Division Mountain and SE Lyell Glacier looked like a great place to explore, so after a brief rest, Lupe headed out along the trail on the N shore of Glacier Lake heading WSW.<\/p>\n

Not too far along this trail, Lupe came to a place where her barking at squirrels echoed back very clearly at her from the other side of the lake.\u00a0 She found the echoes quite puzzling, as she could never see this dog that barked every time she did.\u00a0 SPHP seemed unduly amused by the situation, so after a few minutes, Lupe continued on to\u00a0maintain her dignity.\u00a0 She\u00a0passed by a couple of old campfire sites along the way.\u00a0 Despite being described back at the trailhead as a rough trail, this trail was actually in pretty good condition all the way to the far end of the lake.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
SW beyond Glacier Lake were views to the S across the Glacier River of these splendid mountains, one of which is possibly Mt. Forbes<\/span><\/a> (11,867 ft.)<\/span><\/strong>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once Lupe got past Glacier Lake, the trail was no longer pinned back in the forest at the foot of the mountain along the N side of the valley.\u00a0 Instead it went down onto the broad flat valley floor.\u00a0 This was an area that was quite open, but with lots of bushes with little red berries and a few stands of trees scattered around.\u00a0 There were pockets of water here and there, too, where Lupe could cool off. SPHP became more cautious as it seemed like this might be a likely place for bears, although the notion that they might well prefer higher country to avoid the heat this time of year gave some comfort.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
A closer look at the mountains to the S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Beyond\u00a0Glacier Lake, the\u00a0trail was fainter, but still easily followed, which Lupe did until it ended suddenly at an eroded bank of the Glacier River.\u00a0 The Glacier River is the main\u00a0water source for Glacier Lake.\u00a0 It\u00a0was a very pretty icy blue color, but deep and swift enough to preclude any thought of fording it.\u00a0 Happily, a short stroll upstream along the N bank of the river soon led to another faint trail.<\/p>\n

Lupe followed this new faint trail upstream for some distance, but eventually the Glacier River moved over to the N side of the valley forcing the trail back up into the woods at the base of the mountain.\u00a0 At first this trail seemed to be OK, but quite soon Lupe started coming to more and more deadfall timber on the trail.\u00a0 Lupe didn’t have any real problems with it, but it slowed\u00a0SPHP down considerably.<\/p>\n

Soon the deadfall became so thick that it became difficult to tell where the trail was, or if there was even still a trail to follow.\u00a0 At times the main part of the Glacier River moved a bit off to the S and Lupe could get back down on the valley floor for short distances, but there were little side flows\u00a0and pockets of water and mucky, marshy ground which made even that route difficult.\u00a0 After trekking along for what seemed like quite a while, but couldn’t have involved much distance, the trail seemed to just completely end in a jumble of deadfall in the forest.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe enjoys a rest on the moss SW of Glacier Lake where the trail vanished.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe and\u00a0SPHP\u00a0stopped and had\u00a0a late\u00a0lunch.\u00a0 Lupe\u00a0rested very comfortably\u00a0on some green moss and enjoyed her Taste of the Wild, while SPHP\u00a0paused to consider the situation.\u00a0\u00a0Perhaps 1\/2 km farther upstream was a low forested ridge jutting out to the S from the mountain.\u00a0 This ridge forced the Glacier River back to the S side of the valley.\u00a0 It looked like once\u00a0the low ridge could be reached, it was likely the rest of the trip to the glacial moraines below Division Mountain and the SE Lyell Glacier would be pretty easy.\u00a0 SPHP guessed\u00a0the glacial moraines were at most only 2 or 3 km beyond the low ridge.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, the afternoon was already wearing on.\u00a0 Pretty soon it would be time to turn back.\u00a0\u00a0SPHP decided to allow another 30 minutes to try to find the trail again or some other clear route to that low ridge.\u00a0 Sadly 30 minutes came and went. \u00a0Lupe and\u00a0SPHP had not made much headway through the deadfall timber.\u00a0 The forest was nearly impenetrable.\u00a0 The valley floor was blocked alternately by the Glacier River or a slow slog around deep pockets of water and mud.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe near her farthest point of advance along the Glacier River. Division Mountain and the SE Lyell Glacier tantalizingly out of reach.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Division<\/a>
Division Mountain & the SE Lyell Glacier and from the Glacier River.\u00a0 What magnificent sights lurked around the corner just out of reach on this glorious day?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At this pace, it was going to take a another hour just to get to the low ridge.\u00a0 Clearly it\u00a0was too late in the day for that.\u00a0 Very reluctantly, and convinced they were not far from magnificent sights ahead,\u00a0SPHP informed\u00a0Lupe it was time to turn back.\u00a0 Lupe’s spirits were not dampened at all.\u00a0 She was going to get a second shot at barking at all the squirrels she had seen along the way!<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe gets refreshed in Glacier Lake on the way back.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The entire return trip was along the exact same route.\u00a0 At the bridge over the N. Saskatchewan River, Lupe saw the only other hikers she encountered the entire day.\u00a0 A couple from Monterrey, Mexico were standing on the SW end of the bridge.\u00a0 They said they had never been to Canada before.\u00a0 They and their son, who was out of sight exploring the river bank somewhere below the bridge, had flown into Edmonton and they were now touring the Canadian Rockies.\u00a0 The Mexicans\u00a0were very impressed, both with the spectacular scenery and the annoying mosquitoes.<\/p>\n

\"Good-bye<\/a>
Good-bye to Glacier Lake, Banff National Park, Canada<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe arrived back at the Glacier Lake Trailhead at 7:16 PM.\u00a0 It was a still roasting 81 \u00b0F out.\u00a0 The sun was still blazing like a demon in a clear blue sky, although it would soon disappear behind the mountains.\u00a0 The G6 was beastly hot after being closed up all day.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP hopped in and headed N on the beautiful Icefields Parkway Hwy No. 93, cruising along with the windows partially down so our heroic dingo could enjoy the wind\u00a0in her face while she and\u00a0SPHP gazed happily\u00a0at the magnificent Canadian Rockies.<\/p>\n

Although the round trip to Glacier Lake and beyond had been quite a long day hike of over 10 hours, it was actually a pretty easy day until the trail beyond the lake had disappeared beneath the deadfall timber.\u00a0 After\u00a0two long day hikes in a row with substantial elevation gains, this less strenuous hike was a rather welcome relief to SPHP.<\/em><\/p>\n

The sad part was that the most fantastic scenery near Divide Mountain and the SE Lyell Glacier proved tantalizingly close, yet just out of reach.\u00a0 SPHP\u00a0is absolutely convinced that this area merits further exploration.\u00a0 It was a shame the last section of trail was such a shambles.\u00a0 At Lupe’s point of farthest advance, she was only 2-3 kilometers beyond Glacier Lake.\u00a0 Just being able to go just a little bit farther would have made a lot of difference.<\/em><\/p>\n

Lupe suggests any other dingoes\u00a0hoping to explore the area near Divide Mountain and the SE Lyell Glacier persuade their SPHP’s to get an earlier start.\u00a0 Better yet, obtain a wilderness pass (required for overnight stays) and make a reservation at the campground at Glacier Lake.\u00a0 With base camp so close, success would be ensured despite the deadfall timber.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP would love to see photos any successful adventurers who get close to the SE Lyell Glacier are willing to share.<\/em><\/p>\n

Links:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Next Adventure<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Prior Adventure<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Want more Lupe adventures?\u00a0\u00a0Choose\u00a0from\u00a0Lupe’s 2014 Canadian Rockies & Beartooths Adventure Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span>,\u00a0Dingo Vacations Adventure Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span> or Master Adventure Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0Or subscribe free\u00a0to\u00a0new Lupe adventures<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lupe and SPHP had a great time on the easy trail to Glacier Lake and beyond.\u00a0 Amazingly, although it was the height of tourist season in Banff National Park, Lupe met absolutely no one else the entire day until\u00a0very close to the end of\u00a0the return trip.\u00a0 Perhaps a sign at the trailhead explains why Lupe … Continue reading Glacier Lake & Division Mountain, Banff National Park, Canada (7-28-14)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":532,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[105,32,30,31,106,96,92,91,104,90,94],"class_list":["post-525","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2014-canadian-rockiesbeartooths","tag-american-dingo","tag-banff-national-park","tag-canada","tag-canadian-rockies","tag-carolina-dog","tag-division-mountain","tag-glacier-lake","tag-howse-river","tag-lupe","tag-north-saskatchewan-river","tag-southeast-lyell-glacier"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/adventuresoflupe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/P1050343.jpg?fit=1651%2C1238&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/525","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=525"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/525\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20816,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/525\/revisions\/20816"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/532"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=525"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=525"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=525"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}