The weather has deteriorated. wind, rain, cold-can the weather be any worse? So should we go on the boat ride on St. Mary lake followed by the the hike to St. Mary falls? Yes, we go. Dressed to the nines. Got to the dock with several people waiting for the boat ride, but only four of us willing to do the hike with Ranger Larry Mink.
Much discussion here about the glaciers. Only 25 left. A definition of a glacier-must be 25 acres in size, 100 ft. thick and moving. Anything less and it is declassified as a glacier and becomes an ice field. They are disappearing at a great rate here and in the next 10 years or so, no more glaciers in Glacier National Park.
Back to our boat ride. At the end of the lake, we got off and hiked a short path to a waterfall and then set off at ranger speed towards St. Mary waterfall. The weather improved somewhat-sun, clouds, rain, hail, sun and finally a downpour of rain. So glad we went. How often to you get a National Park Service naturalist with only 3 other people vying for his attention? The falls were not remarkable, but the color of the glacier dust and the underlying rock colors made them interesting. Lots of color along the route-many shaes of green-moss, lichen, plants grasses, trees.
Ranger Larry said that people only remember certain bits of the tons of information that they gather in a hike or lecture here at the park. What I will remember is that as the glaciers disappear, the glacial dust that is carried into the beautiful glacial lakes, giving them the beautiful blue color, will disappear and the lakes will eventually lose that blue color. How sad.
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