Tag: Montana

Glacier National Park, 2019: Wildlife

Michael Rappa

Here are some animals I encountered during my hikes in Glacier National Park. I was particularly thrilled that I was able to see a bighorn sheep in the wild on my way back down from Grinnell Glacier.

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Ram on the Grinell Glacier Trail
Ram on the Grinell Glacier Trail
Moose walking away from lake, viewed from high up on the Grinell Glacier Trail.
Chipmunk at St. Mary Falls
Chipmunk at St. Mary Falls
Mountain goat high up on a mountain at Two Medicine.
Mountain goat high up on a cliff at Two Medicine.
Marmot on the Highline Trail
Marmot on the Highline Trail

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Panoramas

Michael Rappa

This is a collection of panoramas from my visit to Glacier National Park. For the most part I didn’t take any deliberate panorama shots on this trip–these were all stitched together from separate photos that I later realized would make good panoramas. The exceptions are the two night shots, which were sort of deliberate in that I aimed the camera in the dark at different angles for long exposures and hoped for the best (the Lake McDonald one, in particular, turned out pretty well).

The first four photos below feature views from the hotels where I stayed in Apgar Village and Many Glacier; the next three were taken during my hikes of the Highline and Grinnell Glacier trails, and the final photo is a view that should be familiar to fans of The Shining or Big Sky.

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Lake McDonald
Many Glacier: Swiftcurrent Lake
Many Glacier: Swiftcurrent Lake
Many Glacier: Swiftcurrent Lake
Highline Trail
Red pool near Grinnell Glacier.
Grinnell Glacier Trail
St. Mary Lake: Wild Goose Island

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Twin Falls Trail

Michael Rappa

These photos are from my hike of the Twin Falls Trail in the Two Medicine region of Glacier National Park. I had booked a boat (which I nearly missed after hitting road construction on the way to Two Medicine) to the far end of Two Medicine Lake, where I embarked on a guided hike to Twin Falls. I normally prefer to hike on my own, but being by myself in grizzly country, I thought it best to stick with a crowd, and considering the trees along the trail that were marked with giant grizzly claw scratches, I think it was the right call.

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Twin Falls Trail
Twin Falls Trail
Twin Falls Trail
Twin Falls Trail
Twin Falls Trail
Twin Falls Trail
Twin Falls Trail
Twin Falls Trail
Twin Falls Trail

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Running Eagle Falls Trail

Michael Rappa

These photos are from my hike to Running Eagle Falls in the Two Medicine region of Glacier National Park–actually, more of a stroll as it’s a short, easy trail to get to the falls.

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Running Eagles Falls Trail
Running Eagles Falls Trail
Running Eagles Falls Trail
Running Eagles Falls Trail
Running Eagles Falls Trail
Running Eagles Falls Trail
Running Eagles Falls Trail
Running Eagles Falls Trail

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Two Medicine Lake

Michael Rappa

These photos were shot around Two Medicine Lake, located in the Two Medicine region of Glacier National Park, a lesser-seen area of the park that takes a bit of driving to get to, but is worth the trip if you have the time.

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Two Medicine Lake
Two Medicine Lake
Two Medicine Lake
Two Medicine Lake
Two Medicine Lake
Two Medicine Lake
Two Medicine Lake
Two Medicine Lake
Two Medicine Lake

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Trail of Cedars

Michael Rappa

These photos are from my hike of the Trail of Cedars, an easy stroll through the woods that hooks up with the highly-recommended Avalanche Lake Trail around the halfway point.

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Trail of Cedars
Trail of Cedars
Trail of Cedars
Trail of Cedars
Trail of Cedars
Trail of Cedars
Trail of Cedars
Trail of Cedars
Trail of Cedars

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Three Falls Trail

Michael Rappa

These photos are from my hike of the Three Falls Trail on the eastern side of Glacier National Park last September. It could actually be called the Dozen Falls Trail if you count all the pretty cascades I passed along the way. First was Baring Falls, followed by St. Mary Falls, and then a long uphill climb to majestic Virginia Falls, to which photos cannot do justice.

I connected to this trail, a portion of which is part of the multi-state Continental Divide Trail, from the Sun Point Nature trail. On my way back, I considered diverting to the Saint Mary Falls trailhead and taking a shuttle back to my car at the Sun Point parking area, but chose instead to hike back the way I came, continuing up the short trail to Sun Point before heading back to my car, which amounted to about 6-7 miles worth of hiking that day.

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Three Falls Trail: St. Mary Falls
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail: Virginia Falls
Three Falls Trail: Virginia Falls
Three Falls Trail: Virginia Falls
Three Falls Trail: Baring Falls
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail
Three Falls Trail

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American Northwest Trip, 2019: The Movie

Michael Rappa

This movie compiles all of the videos I shot during my trip to Glacier National Park, Montana and Seattle, Washington in September of 2019. One correction: the photo captioned as Victoria Falls is actually Virginia Falls, not sure how I made that mistake given that all the photos I shot were captioned properly.

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Sun Point and Nature Trail

Michael Rappa

These photos are from my hike along the Sun Point Nature Trail in Glacier National Park, as well as from Sun Point itself, overlooking Saint Mary Lake, where, for the third year in a row, I encountered engagements and/or wedding photo shoots at a national park, one of which is featured in this collection.

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Sun Point
Sun Point
Sun Point
Sun Point
Sun Point: I stumbled onto a wedding photo shoot.
Sun Point
Sun Point
Sun Point
Sun Point
Sun Point Nature Trail
Sun Point Nature Trail

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American Northwest Trip, 2017: Around Yellowstone

Michael Rappa

This is a collection of miscellaneous photos from my visit to Yellowstone that didn’t fit into the themes of any of my previous posts, including various wildlife encounters, landmarks, scenic pullouts, and some buildings. The shots featured here run the gamut from the Montana to the Wyoming ends of the park.

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The famous Roosevelt Arch at the North Entrance.
Roadside bison encounter.
Roadside bison encounter.
Roadside bison encounter.
Just outside Lamar Valley.
Cars look like ants next to this rock.
Tatonka.
Squirrel!
Large bird in tree near Norris Geyser Basin.
Lake Yellowstone Hotel
My home for the final three nights in Yellowstone.
One photo to commemorate the half-dozen times I crossed the Continental Divide at various locations on this trip.
Old Faithful Inn
Old Faithful Inn
Kepler Cascades
This beautiful specimen was standing right in front of the lobby door of my hotel and then dashed off as soon as I opened the door. I should have taken a picture of him through the door when he was still just a couple of feet from me.
One good thing about it raining upon my arrival: I was able to get iconic shots at the entrance without other people around. One bad thing about the rain: I was only able to take one quick shot of the entrance sign that didn’t come out very sharp.

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