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قراءة كتاب Glacier National Park [Montana]

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Glacier National Park [Montana]

Glacier National Park [Montana]

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دار النشر: Project Gutenberg
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creek opposite Goathaunt Camp. Otters have been seen in the lakes in the evening. Marten have bobbed up irregularly at the ranger station.

Bird life is abundant in this district, because of the variety of cover. Waterfowl are frequently seen on the lake. A pair of ospreys nest near the mouth of Olson Creek. Pine grosbeaks, warblers, vireos, kinglets, and smaller birds abound in the hawthorne and cottonwood trees, and in the alder thickets.

FLATTOP MOUNTAIN AND GRANITE PARK

Glacier Park has within its boundary two parallel mountain ranges. The eastern, or front range, extends from the Canadian boundary almost without a break to New Mexico. The western, or Livingston Range, rises at the head of Lake McDonald, becomes the front range beyond the international line, and runs northwestward to Alaska. Between these two ranges in the center of the park is a broad swell which carries the Continental Divide from one to the other. This is Flattop Mountain, whose groves of trees are open and parklike, wholly unlike the dense forests of the lowlands with which every park visitor is well acquainted.

A trail leads south from Waterton over Flattop to the tent camp called "Fifty Mountain" and to Granite Park, where a comfortable high-mountain chalet is located. Here is exposed a great mass of lava, which once welled up from the interior of the earth and spread over the region which was then the bottom of a sea. The chalets command a fine view of the majestic grouping of mountains around Logan Pass, of the noble summits of the Livingston Range, and of systems far to the south and west of the park. Extending in the near foreground are gentle slopes covered with sparse clumps of stunted vegetation. In early July open spaces are gold-carpeted with glacier lillies and bizarrely streaked with lingering snow patches. Beyond are the deep, heavy forests of Upper McDonald Valley.

The chalets may also be reached from Sun Camp and Logan Pass over a trail along the Garden Wall, from the highway 2 miles above the western switchback by a 4-mile trail, from Avalanche Camp and Lake McDonald over the McDonald Valley trail, and from Many Glacier by the beautiful trail over Swiftcurrent Pass. A short distance from the chalets a spur from the trail to the Waterton Lake leads to Ahern Pass, from which there is an unexcelled view of Ahern Glacier, Mount Merritt, Helen and Elizabeth Lakes, and the South Fork of the Belly River. This spur is only a mile from the chalets. At Fifty Mountain Camp, half-way between Granite Park and Waterton, a second spur, a quarter of a mile long, takes one above Flattop Mountain to the summit of the knife-edge. From here there is a fine panorama of Mount Cleveland, Sue Lake, and Middle Fork of Belly River.

A foot trail 1 mile long leads from the Granite Park chalet to the summit of Swiftcurrent Mountain upon which a fire lookout is located. For the small amount of effort required to make this ascent of 1,000 feet, no more liberal reward of mountain scenery could be possible. Another foot trail leads from the chalets to the rim of the Garden Wall, from which there are splendid views of Grinnell Glacier and the Swiftcurrent region.

Animal life is varied and easily studied at Granite Park. Bear and deer are common in this section. Mountain goats are frequently seen above Flattop Mountain or near Ahern Pass. Mountain sheep graze on the slopes of the Garden Wall. Ptarmigan should be looked for, especially above Swiftcurrent Pass.

Granite Park is a paradise for lovers of alpine flowers. On the Garden Wall, the connoisseur should seek for the rare, heavenly blue alpine columbine. Here are expanses of dryads, globe flowers, alpine firewood, and a wealth of others. Early July is the best time for floral beauty.

LOGAN PASS

Logan Pass lies between the headwaters of Logan and Reynolds Creeks. It crosses the Continental Divide and carries the Going-to-the-Sun Highway from Lake McDonald to Upper St. Mary Lake and the trail from Sun Camp to Granite Park.

Though there are no overnight stopping places on the pass, its accessibility by automobile makes it a starting place for several delightful walks, chiefly to Hidden Lake, which occupies a basin only recently evacuated by ice, and tiny Clements Glacier, which sends its water to both the Arctic and Pacific Oceans, and which has been termed "Museum Glacier" because it encompasses in its few hundred acres of surficial area all of the principal features of a major glacier.

Ranger-naturalist services, including short field trips, are available daily throughout summer on the pass.

AVALANCHE CAMP

Avalanche auto camp is located in a grove of cedars and cottonwoods on a picturesque flat at the mouth of Avalanche Creek. It is equipped with modern toilets, showers, and laundry, but has no stores or gasoline station. A Government ranger naturalist and a camp tender serve the camp, which is on Going-to-the-Sun Highway.

Near the upper end of the camp, Avalanche Creek has cut a deep, narrow gorge through brilliant red argillite. It is filled with potholes scoured out by stones swirled in the foaming torrent. Drooping hemlocks, festooned with goatsbeard lichen, keep the spot in cool, somber gloom even on the hottest midday. This gorge is the home of the water ouzel, which is often seen flying back and forth in the spray.

From the gorge, a self-guiding trail leads 2 miles to Avalanche Basin, a semicircular amphitheater with walls over 2,000 feet high over which plunge a half dozen snowy waterfalls. A dense forest and calm lake repose on the floor of the cirque. Fishing is good in the lake. The narrow canyon through which the trail leads from the camp offers fine views of Heaven's Peak, Mount Cannon, Bearhat Mountain, Gunsight Mountain with the cirque bearing Sperry Glacier, and the canyon in which Hidden Lake reposes. In the early season the walls of the basin and canyon are draped with countless waterfalls. The sides of Cannon and Bearhat offer one of the most opportune places for seeing mountain goats. In late season huckleberries are abundant.

A ranger naturalist conducts an entertainment every evening in the campfire circle in the auto camp.

LAKE MCDONALD

Lake McDonald is the largest lake in the park, being 10 miles long and a mile wide. Its shores are heavily forested with cedar, hemlock, white pine, and larch. At its head, impressive, rocky summits rise to elevations 6,000 feet above its waters. The Going-to-the-Sun Highway runs along its southeastern shore. Its outlet is 2 miles above Belton station.

Lake McDonald Hotel is on the highway near the upper end of the lake. It has a store for general supplies, a gasoline station, curio shop, and all modern conveniences. Its dining room, facing the lake, is one of the most appropriate and charming in the park. Its lobby is filled with well-mounted animals and birds of the region. It is the focal point for trails to Sperry Chalet and Gunsight Pass, Upper McDonald Valley, the summit of Mount Brown, and Arrow Lake. There is good fishing in Arrow and Snyder Lakes.

Private cabin camps are located at the head and foot of the lake. A general store and gasoline filling station are located at the foot of the lake. A well-equipped public auto campground is at Sprague Creek, near Lake McDonald Hotel.

Ranger-naturalist services are available at the hotel. Lectures on popular natural history are delivered each evening in the hotel lobby and at the Sprague Creek campfire circle. A cut wild-flower exhibit is also placed in the hotel. Self-guiding trails lead to Fish and Johns Lakes, short distances from the hotel.

SPERRY CHALETS

Sperry Chalets are located in a picturesque high-mountain cirque, with precipitous, highly colored Edwards,

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