Grinnell Glacier Trail
When planning a hike to Grinnell Glacier keep in mind this report from the NPS during the summer of 2008.
Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail opened 7/25/08.
Clear of snow as of 8/16/08 Michael Jamison of the Missoulian reports on a bear charge deterred by bear spray on July 24, 2010 in Glacier National Park on the Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail. According to the NPS that wasn't the only incident involving bears and bear spray in the last few days. The Grinnell Glacier Trail starts at the far northwestern end of Lake Josephine. There are several ways to get to this point. The easiest is to catch Glacier Boat at the Many Glacier Hotel Boat Dock. Otherwise you can hike on either shore of Swiftcurrent Lake. Park behind the Many Glacier Hotel if you wish to hike on the southern shore of Swiftcurrent Lake. The trailhead starts just west of the last wing of the Many Glacier Hotel. The other option is to drive past the turnoff for the Many Glacier Hotel and take the first left into the parking area just north of Swiftcurrent Lake. Both trails meet near the western boat dock for Glacier Boat at the western end of Swiftcurrent Lake. At this point there is a semi paved trail that connects between Swiftcurrent Lake and Lake Josephine. When you get to the shore of Swiftcurrent Lake once again you can hike on either shore, the northern trail around Lake Josephine is more direct with a gradual ascent, however this trail is frequently closed due to grizzly bear activity. The northern trail around Lake Josephine turns into the Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail at the end of Lake Josephine. This route is well marked by trails signs installed by Glacier National Park. The trail becomes much trickier footing wise after passing Lake Josephine. Care should be taken to beware of your footing as the spectacular views tend to distract you from the trail surface. The trail from the Lake Josephine boat dock at Oster Shelter goes along a boardwalk until it meets up with the connector trail to Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail, at this point there is a series of steep, but short switch backs. Those hikers that hiked along the north shore of Lake Josephine avoided these switchbacks but put more actual miles into their hike. The Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail starts a gradual ascent until you reach a series of gradual switch backs. It then returns to a gradual ascent until you reach the waterfall that at times covers the trail with a ice cold spray. at this point the trail at times is carved out of the rock face. Care should be taken when going around blind curves to make sufficient noise to alert any bears to you presence. The Grinnell Glacier Overlook continues it's gradual ascent to glacier moraine. The final, and for many, major ascent is up the glacier moraine formed by Grinnell Glacier. It is a good idea to take a break before these rocky steps. Big Horn Rams tend to congregate at this point on the rock face to provide you with entertainment while you gather you strength for the final ascent. At this point you can't see Grinnell Glacier. In 2008 I was not able to get to this trail until mid August, two weeks earlier the steps were carved out of snow up to Grinnell Glacier Overlook. In mid August of 2008, these normally dry rock steps had turned into a shallow creek bed. Please bear in mind that wildlife prefer the ease of travel on established trails. The last time that I hiked this trail wa August of 2008 and didn't see a bear. (actually for the first time in ten years I didn't see a single bear while hiking in Glacier National Park. On the North Shore Trail of Lake Josephine I did see a moose with a calf on the trail. The safest method I know of viewing wildlife is from The Morning Eagle on Lake Josephine. By the time I started up the trail to Grinnell Glacier this moose and calf were in the water at the head of the lake. Upper Grinnell Lake was mostly frozen, all three glaciers visible from the overlook were covered with snow from the past winter. The icebergs frozen in the lake were remnants from 2007. This is the roughest trail that I'm familiar with in Glacier National Park. During 2008 the trail was even more tricky then usual. The Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail was finally clear of snow, but the trail in places had become a stream bed from late summer runoff. One portion of the trail, which is always tricky, with steps carved into the rock face was now a good place to cool off in the frigid waterfall that sprayed over most of the trail. The water is just above freezing, if you don't want to get wet bring a raincoat. The rocks on the icebergs on Upper Grinnell Lake are the size of a house! The tip of Salamander Glacier is visible in the upper right hand corner of this photograph taken in August of 2006. Salamander Glacier was once a part of Grinnell Glacier @ 90 years ago. The icebergs on Iceberg Lake are much smaller and less abundant.
"...a man who keeps company with glaciers comes to feel tolerably insignificant by and by. The Alps and the glaciers together are able to take every bit of conceit out of a man and reduce his self-importance to zero if he will only remain within the influence of their sublime presence long enough to give it a fair and reasonable chance to do its work." My guess was Late July 2008 for the Grinnell Glacier Trail to be cleared of snow. (the trail opened July 25th but was not clear of snow until the second week of August.) Wildflowers peaked by early August in 2008. The North Shore of Lake Josephine is a 'favorite lunch spot' for wildlife. When you are hiking through chest high cow parsnip you need to be extra vigilant for bears. Cow parsnip is a popular forage for deer, elk, and bear. The underbrush restricts wildlife movement and the trail is an essential passage for bears, moose, elk and bighorn sheep. If your not prepared for a bear encounter take the 8:30 am Glacier Boat from the Many Glacier Hotel boat dock and join the free (the boat ride is $18.00) ranger guided trip along the Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail. If your looking for peace and tranquility then time your hike so that you are not on the trail when 40 hikers start out from the end of Lake Josephine. Grinnell Glacier late summer 2007 after a LONG Montana fire season. Ashes from those fires darken the glacier. Sixty years ago the foreground rocks were completely covered by this glacier. Click here to see what this glacier looked line in the 1930's. This is a strenuous hike. It can be made easier but still strenuous if you take Glacier Boat from Many Glacier Hotel. Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail is a very busy trail. Glacier Boat literally brings hikers in by the boatload. For years I was told that it was a very difficult trail, so I hiked to Sperry Chalet, to Ptarmigan Tunnel, to Granite Park Chalet instead of hiking to Grinnell Glacier. None of these other hikes can match the view along the Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail. Only Ptarmigan Tunnel comes close to having as memorable a destination as Grinnell Glacier Trail does, in addition all of those hikes are more strenuous then the Grinnell Glacier Overlook Trail. My memories will be of the final demise of this once great glacier. In 2006 USGS reported that Grinnell Glacier lost 9% of it's surface area. From the number and size of icebergs that were present in August and September of 2006 I'm not surprised about the news of the rapid shrinking during 2006 of Grinnell Glacier.  I remember first seeing a print of Grinnell Lake taken from the Grinnell Glacier Trail and thinking what a poor color reproduction the print was of the water color in the lake. Well if you hike the Grinnell Glacier Trail you can see for yourself that glacier flur from Grinnell Glacier transforms the lake surface into a turquoise color. 
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