Waterton Lakes national park part 2

Another day on the way in we saw 20 deer, 6 elk, and 4 black bears (a mama and 3 cubs-numbers 19-22 on our trip)! This day we took a shuttle to Cameron lake in order to do a through hike called Carthew Alderson. This 12.5 mile trail goes through 4 different ecosystems while gaining just over 3,000 ft in elevation. Most of that gain is in the first 4 miles with steep switchbacks through burned forest thriving with fireweed to Summit lake. We enjoyed a nice snack at the lake followed by more switchbacks to get up over Carthew ridge to the overlook. These switchbacks were along rocky exposed ridgelines and had a few marmots on trail to navigate. The views were 360 once you summitted the ridge and it was just gorgeous. From the forest to the ridgeline you could see several glacial lakes across the border in Montana. After the ridgeline you started descending (sometimes sliding on loose rock) through the valley with several other lakes along the way. The hike ended with 4 miles through dense forest and what another hiker called a “bear cafeteria” aka pushing through all the bear snacks including berries and cow parsnip. We made sure to make lots of noise and had our heads on a swivel. This was definitely one of our favorite hikes of all time with all the different types of views but we’re very glad to get ice cream and head back to the pups to rest and recharge.

Our last day in the area we took a boat shuttle across the lake to Crypt Lake trail. This is a very well known adventure for this area but you can only access it by 2 shuttles a day and have to make it back for the return boat. The hike up through the forested steep switchbacks leads to more uphill climbs in the valley past waterfalls and sweeping views of the mountains. This area of the park hasn’t had a wildfire in 500 years so the undergrowth and brush are very thick. We were warned of nearly daily black and grizzly bear sightings on this trail but no one on our return boat including us saw any. Towards the end of the trail it turns into a cliff edge, then you climb a ladder on the side of a mountain, to a tunnel that you have to stoop through and scuttle sideways, then along a steep drop off with a thin space to walk on with chains to hold onto. This all leads you to gorgeous Crypt Lake. Another beautiful and pristine alpine lake that was frozen over a month before. We walked around the lake, including to the southern side which technically is in Montana! We of course had to photograph the walking to a different country, and stand on the glacier on the US side. Once back on trail we saw some teenagers cliff jumping into the lake, and I decided it was something I couldn’t pass up. The lake temp was still past “refreshing” and I was glad for the short swim to the exit rocks since my entire body was already numb. After drying off a bit and snacking on some gnocchi, it was time to start back for the boat. There was a side loop on the way down to another waterfall but with the time crunch to get to the first boat we pushed the speed in order to complete the side quest. Some areas were a little technical, so that was interesting, and the waterfall was moderately beautiful. Probably wouldn’t do the side trail again, but glad we did it this time. The first boat back is first come/first served so that’s what made it stressful, not knowing how many people were at the dock before you until you arrived. And the next boat isn’t for another 2 hours. After basically running down the trail we arrived to the dock and…there were maybe 8 people there before us. Needless to say we made the first boat. In total it was 12.5 miles and 3200 ft of elevation gain. We enjoyed a nice relaxing foot soak in Waterton lake while chatting with some trail runners and then were ferried back to the main park.Read more