Appekunny falls.  A walk in the wild.  Lions and tigers and bears. Oh, my.

Not all hikes are marathons.  Not all hikes are epic.  Not all hikes need to be stories of horror and hardships.  This is one of those hikes.

This summer I was fortunate to have some guests visit me while working at Glacier.  Of course, I needed to actually work this summer. But it was nice to have people to hike with during my couple of days off.   Let’s call them Nancy and the Buckeyes.  Which also happens to be the name of my high school band.

Now, N & the B’s got in a couple of long hikes before I joined them during their vacation week.  And maybe one (or two) of them over-did it just a bit.  So for a tweener day, a nice little stroll from the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn down to Appekunny Falls seemed to fit the bill just fine.

I love this area of the park.  When I do my tours and pick up and drop at the Many Glacier Hotel, I always tell my guest that they are in the midst of the very best of the best.  As far as views, wildlife, history, and every aspect that makes GNP such a special place.

The MGH never loses its charm.  Old World, fake Swiss looking, and along the lakeshore.  Love the heavy sediment bands of the old Belt Sea that add so much color to the mountains. It just completes the scene.

I also never get tired of looking at Mt Henkel.  Kind of a funky name (after a local from the early mining days in 1896), it was my first and probably favorite mountain climb in the park.  Have not been up there in MANY years, mostly because the face (the best approach) has been closed for equally MANY years because of bear activity which has become the norm and not the exception.  But it’s fun to gaze upon and remember the glory days of my 20s and 30s.

After taking a sketchy forest trail that parallels the road, we do find ourselves in true bear country.  Terrain, foliage, and contours, all scream ‘here be bears.’  Which was appropriate.  Because there was one.  With her cub.  Yeah, I’m not a big fan.  I made sure I put enough Buckeyes between me and Ursa Major for a clean getaway.

I’ve been to Appekunny Falls quite a few times over the years, but never in the early morning hours when the sunlight was on it and the water wasn’t hidden in shadows.  So today, was really a treat.  Especially for someone like me who is coming up on forty years of hiking experience in Glacier.

Looking back down the drainage towards Mt Wynn was all bleached out in the early morning sun, but I could still capture the rugged beauty of a waking day.

And this wouldn’t be a post if I couldn’t squeeze in a little picture of my Shadow.  After all, Peter Pan had his, and everyone knows that a great role model Peter Pan is for all of us old guys who still like to act as if we are twelve-year-olds.

In the end, all of the Buckeyes followed by hoof prints away from the danger zone and we eventually made out way back to SWC. Where the Big N was doing something crafty with eggs and a rice cooker for a morning meal. 

Of course, I got talked into one last trip on the Upper Bear Trail (and thru the Heart of Darkness) in prime griz country.  After all, you really should touch death at least once a day.  I guess that’s how you appreciate your life and what a precious gift it truly is. A nice simple seven-mile morning in a beautiful place with great people.

See? Hiking doesn’t have to be that hard.