Today was a Plan C day!
Plan A, driving to the east side and exploring Two Medicine Lake, was scuttled due to a hostage/fatality incident closing HWY 2, the route to the east side (
https://www.usnews.com/…/great-falls-police-report…
).
Plan B was interrupted by a grizzly bear. I took the shuttle to Jackson Glacier Outlook and planned to hike from there to St. Mary Falls. About 1.5 miles in, after I saw Deadwood Falls and a hanging bridge, four people hurried toward me from the direction I was heading. They had seen a grizzly on the trail about .25 miles down and only .25 miles from my destination. The grizzly started walking toward them, so they turned the other direction. I decided that even with my bear spray attached to my waist belt and ready for me to use, the wise decision was to turn around.
Plan C: I hopped on the shuttle and hiked to Baring Falls and St. Mary Falls. Only minor glitch: the last shuttle out left at 4:50 pm, so I hightailed it out of there at a fast pace for the final 2.3 miles (under 17 mins/mile).
Jackson Glacier, expected to fully melt by 2030.
The trail from Jackson Glacier Outlook
Clear water – Deadwood Falls
Hanging bridge
St. Mary Lake
Baring Falls
The pool of water under St. Mary Falls
St. Mary Falls
