Every place that inspired the LATITUDE series has special meaning for me. But there is one that stands out among the rest. GLACIER.
I knew long before setting eyes on Glacier National Park that it was a place close to my husband’s heart– which of course, meant that it would be close to mine in a way that we always find love for the things our partners love. But I had no idea that seeing it would effect me so significantly.
On our first trip up the Going To the Sun Road, I was overcome by the beauty and grandeur that surrounded me. Blue skies met sliced mountain peaks, slivered waterfalls slicing into the green, windows down, Eddie Vedder singing to us through the speakers. I looked over to my husband and we both had tears in our eyes. We had found the place we both adored.
High up in Northern Montana, sharing it’s land with Canada, Glacier feels like another world. Remote and wild, to see Glacier’s best requires hiking deep into her bowels, sharing the wilderness with grizzly and moose.
As much dramatic as Glacier’s soaring peeks and icy heights can be, there is a softer side. The quiet found in the glassy reflection of Lake Bowman or Kintla Lake, the hush of the grasses along the North Fork river.
Glacier is where our souls find rest, the one place we’ve found that we never want to leave.
favorite trail | ptarmigan tunnel trail
I lovingly refer to this trail as “the death march”. We embarked on this 10 miler after we’d already hiked 5 miles into Iceberg Lake and my boots were not in the greatest shape at that point and by the end of the hike, I could barely walk. That being said, the views were spectacular and the trail grueling but isolated. An excellent reminder of just how insignificant we are in this vast landscape.
don’t forget | bear spray
There is a strong grizzly population in Glacier and we’ve seen more of them in this park than any other– from the car and from the trail. Making noise while hiking is the best way to keep from surprising one of the great bears– we sing or just shout out random words. Bear spray has been proven to be the best deterrent if a grizzly becomes a threat. Shooting one will just make it mad.
what i love most | the wild
While Glacier has it’s fair share of visitors, you can really get lost in the wild here without too much effort. You are sharing the same air as magnificent mountains and fierce predators, feeling lucky simply for coming back alive from each hike. It is an exhilarating place.
Glacier inspired four paintings in the LATITUDE show, see them on my website here, here, here, and here. LATITUDE can be seen at Art & Light Gallery through March 31, 2016.
All images by me.
