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Stunning Beauty

by les winkeler, the southern

Friday, August 3, 2007 7:42 AM CDT

Glacier National Park, located on 1.4 million acres in northwest Montana, is deceptively beautiful.

Standing at the base of Lake McDonald, at the foot of Grinnell Glacier or staring at the snow-covered top of Heaven's Peak, you'd swear there is nothing on earth that can compare to the grandeur and beauty of those locations. Then, you turn around to see something equally awe-inspiring.

That beauty explains the fact that about 2 million visitors per year flock to this remote location to hike, camp, fish and sight see.

Ironically, the glaciers for which the park is named are disappearing rapidly.

"Back in 1850, they made an estimate of over 150," said Melissa Wilson, a public affairs officer with the National Park Service. "Now, we're down to 27 named glaciers."

Although the causes of global warming are open to debate, the shrinking of the glaciers seems to indicate the earth is indeed getting warmer.

"It's ongoing definitely," Wilson said. "There was one study with the U.S. Geological Survey, if the current climate trends continue we should expect there would be no glaciers left in Glacier by 2030."

Another natural phenomenon readily apparent at Glacier is fire.

"We had a fire on the east side of the park last year, it burned near St. Mary's, 34,000 acres in total," Wilson said. "Fire is definitely a part of the natural ecology of the park.

"There are some resource benefits to the fire. There are some trees their seeds only become dispersed after a fire. We always encourage people to make sure they put their fires out. We don't want unnaturally caused fires."

Established as a national park in 1910, Glacier National Park has 27 glaciers, six peaks over 10,000 feet, about 743 miles of hiking trails, 653 lakes and more than 1,600 miles of streams.

"You can hike," Wilson said. "One of the most popular hikes is Grinnell Glacier. It's in an area known as Many Glacier, on the east side of the park.

"It's also known for its wildlife. There are good odds of seeing wildlife like grizzly bear and mountain goats."

The park is teeming with wildlife.

Visitors can see grizzly bear, black bear, moose, mule deer, white-tailed deer, Rocky Mountain goats, bighorn sheep, marmots and assorted other critters.

"You have a good chance of seeing the mountain goats on the trail from Logan Pass to Hidden Lake," Wilson said. "In Many Glacier, people often see wildlife, including the goats and grizzly bears. Bighorn sheep are often seen along the Going to the Sun Road.

"There are wolves in the park, but those are rarely seen. We have black bear. There are no guarantees you'll see them, but people do see them."

The Going to the Sun Road is a route most park visitors are know well. The 50-mile road meanders through the park from the West Glacier entrance to St. Mary's. The road crosses the Continental Divide at Logan Pass.

"I think it's something like 75 percent of the people travel the Going to the Sun Road," Wilson said.

The road is currently undergoing rehabilitation.

The National Park Service has instituted a free shuttle system this year to minimize traffic during construction.

"There are 16 stops along the road," Wilson said. "This is something that is brand new. We're still working out some kinks. It runs approximately every 15 minutes on the west side and every 30 minutes on the east side."

The park also offers camping and fishing opportunities.

For more information on the park go to: www.nps.gov/glac/index.htm.

les.winkeler@thesouthern.com / 351-5088