Glacier National Park is known for its unique beauty with glaciated peaks, lots of wildlife, and panoramic views both in the car on the Going to the Sun Road and on hikes throughout the park. In response to the recent increase in traffic, Glacier has adopted a permit system requiring reservations to enter between 6:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. in addition to the regular park entry fee. I was lucky enough to get one months in advanced, so I had seven days where I could come and go as I pleased. Others who are not so lucky must stay off of the scenic drive or enter after hours. I realized quickly that this new system resulted in many hikers showing up for an alpine start with trails getting busy well before their usual midday rush.

The Highline Trail from Logan Pass is the most popular hike in the park, traversing above the road and leading to the Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail and the backcountry Granite Park Chalet. The entire trail is in sub-alpine meadow where bighorn sheep, mountain goats, and mule deer often roam, grazing on the delicate plant-life. I had been looking forward to this hike for months, and I hoped that it would be scenic despite the smoky haze enveloping the high peaks as a result of the wildfires blazing throughout the west coast.

The day started with a 4:00 a.m. wake-up call to get to the Logan Pass Visitor Center before the parking lot filled up. Although I had won the entry permit lottery, I still wanted to beat the crowds on this popular trail, so I entered the park around 4:30 a.m. and got to the parking lot just as it was starting to fill up around 5:30 a.m. The sky morning sky was lit up in shades of pink and orange with the sun rising on the other side of the mountains. I was glad to be sheltered by the towering peaks, and thankful that I wouldn’t have to hike in the sun until late in the morning. I was very surprised by the volume of hikers present this early in the day, but I hoped the trail wouldn’t be too busy.

I started out the hike on my ass. That’s right folks, not ten steps from the parking lot I took a huge and flailing spill, with eager hikers all around. A nice gentleman ran over and said, ” oh you poor girl let me help you up sweetheart. ” This is not how I imagine the day. Beginning. I got up quickly brushed off the desk, the dust, and fled jogging down the trail and fled my face flushed with embarrassment, jogging down the trail.

As I ran the sloping trail it was much flatter than expected rolling up and then down at a gentle grade as I went. There were a few groups of hikers ahead of me, but I passed them close to the trailhead in an attempt to have some peace and quiet on the park’s most popular route. When I was ahead of most of the hikers I could see I slowed my pace to conserve some energy for the day’s long trek. My goal was to get to the Grinnell Glacier Overlook and then assess whether or not I should keep going towards the chalet to create a traverse down to The Loop or turn around and backtrack the way I had come. The former would require me finding a ride back to my car, but the latter would be quite a bit of extra mileage in the afternoon sun.

Walking along the path my eyes were glued to the horizon. Luckily, I looked down enough to see deer tracks in the dirt along the path. They were on top of the footprints from yesterday’s hikers going in the same direction that I was, so I assumed they had been here overnight. As I rounded the next bend two mule deer stood grazing in the middle of the trail. I froze hoping not to startle them backing slowly away. They were just twenty yards in front of me staring right in my direction. They moved towards me, sniffing the air with curiosity, faster than I could back up. I didn’t want to startle them by turning and walking more quickly away from them, but I also wanted to keep my distance. I slowly brought my arms up, talking to them in a gentle but assertive manner to see if that would encourage them to move away from me without inciting any unpredictable behavior. They weren’t phased and kept approaching me. Finally, they passed by coming about ten feet away from me as I slowly skirted the perimeter of the trail moving away from them.

Signs all around the national parks warn visitors from coming too close to wildlife, so I felt bad for encroaching on their space. I couldn’t believe that despite my efforts to give them a wide berth they came so close to me, so I thought about how I could put more space between me and them if I encountered other curious creatures. I decided to make a concerted effort to be more alert about my surroundings to prevent another close encounter.

Every turn in the path yielded unique and beautiful views. One minute I was next to meadows of wildflowers blooming in every color imaginable and the next I was walking through a rocky scree field. Every so often I looked up at the peaks I was traversing, scouring the cliffs for agile mountain goats shimmying their way along the crumbling limestone. Soon looking up over the horizon I could see a small cottage perched on the ridge in front of me just above treeline. As I approached the spur for the Grinnell Glacier Overlook I could see the trail rising high above the Highline Trail and reaching up into a small saddle between the high peaks above. It was intimidatingly high up, making me dread the climbing that was about to ensue.

As I ascended the steep slope I quickly became out of breath, my feet dragging from exhaustion. I guess my five hours of sleep the night before was catching up with me. To take my mind off the grueling climb I thought about the little cabin over the ridge. I imagined what it would be like to live there, waking up every morning to the amazing views of the surrounding peaks. I would put a kettle of water on the wood stove to boil and make fresh scones for breakfast. There would be a rustic little porch with a swing that I sat in as I sipped my morning coffee, shielded from the chill air by a fluffy blanket over my lap.

Lucy would be curled up, her head in my lap, as she snored softly. I’d bite into a flaky scone laced with dark chocolate, dates, and orange zest, its crispy outside still warm and tender middle melting in my mouth. During the day I would hike the trails and mountains in the distance picking huckleberries to turn into a tart pie. The crust would be flaky and crisp just like the huckleberry pie I ate from the Two Sisters Cafe in Babb the day before. A loud growl from my stomach brought me back to reality, my body begging for a snack. I ignored it and kept pushing upwards telling myself I’d eat my breakfast in front of the glacier views.

When I finally reached the overlook, I was taken aback by the beauty of the landscape below. The Highline Trail had traversed along the Garden Wall for the entirety of its winding course, so seeing over it and down into the valley below was like solving a mystery. Below me there were huge snow fields melting into a crystal blue lake, glistening in the morning sun. I felt lucky that the sun had not yet crested the tall peaks, leaving me nice and cool for the hike up, but sitting here basking in the sun was nice and warm.

There were only three other people at the top with me, a rare lone moment in front of a beautiful national park view. A curious mountain goat descended from its perch in the mountains high above to investigate our presence. As it came closer to where I was sitting, I clicked my trekking poles together in an attempt scare it off. It wasn’t fazed, but after sniffing around continued walking along the ridge. Looking down, the Highline Trail looked like a ribbon of dirt stretching along the landscape. I could see a line of brightly colored ants walking along it, no doubt the crowds of people I had jogged by early in the morning. After about a half hour of basking in the sun, the overlook became quite crowded with other hikers so I started the descent.

At the bottom of the spur I decided to make my way to the Chalet where they had restrooms and I could make a decision whether or not to continue to The Loop or backtrack to Logan Pass. When I got there many people were milling about and I was able to appreciate the grandeur of the building that had looked so small from a distance. It was a fairly large stone building with a few other bunkhouses around it. I could see clean linens and a large communal kitchen, similar to the AMC Huts I’m so fond of in the White Mountains. Here I talked to a park ranger who encouraged me to continue down to The Loop especially in the now very sunny warm weather. It was only four miles to the Going to the Sun Road from here and eight miles back to Logan Pass, and he assured me that an eager park visitor would jump at the chance to give me a ride with the promise of my prime parking spot I had risen so early to acquire.

My decision was made as I started down to The Loop parking area via the Granite Park Trail. I was soon under the cover of pine trees that lined the trail, and the shade made the walk so much more pleasant. It had been very exposed and sunny from the Grinnell Overlook spur to the Chalet so this was a much needed reprieve from the hot weather. Monarch butterflies danced in the warm breeze as I strode along the trail, landing on the myriad of wildflowers around me. I soon descended to an area of the forest that had seen a massive forest fire not too long ago. My shade was suddenly gone and I was surrounded by new growth. There were waist high aspen trees and huckleberry bushes instead of the towering pines. The lack of trees also meant that I had gorgeous views of the peaks in the distance.

I had planned to jog most of the rest of the way to the trailhead, but after two big hikes in as many days my quads felt like rubber bands snapping with every step. I decided to take it at a slower jaunt, which was probably for the best seeing as the dusty trail was losing elevation quickly so the chances I could slip were increased with higher speeds. Although hot, the rest of the descent was pleasant enough and I was glad to arrive back in civilization as the noon sun blazed down. After talking to one nice couple from Arizona, they gladly gave me a ride to the Logan Pass Visitor Center in exchange for my parking spot as the ranger had predicted.

The much-anticipated Highline Trail lived up to the hype, yielding gorgeous views from start to finish. Its relatively easy grade makes it understandably the most popular trail in the park, and it was great that there was challenge to be had ascending to the Grinnell Glacier Overlook. This path is perfect for virtually everyone who visits the park because it is so versatile and traversing any amount of its beauty is sure to lead to awe-inspiring views. I was lucky to see mule deer, bighorn sheep, and mountain goats along the way, which exceeded my expectations in regard to wildlife viewing. I loved every second of my time on the trail and I was lucky to have some gorgeous views despite the haze that has engulfed the area for the past few weeks.