mountains – Michael Rappa

Glacier National Park, 2019: Panoramas

August 1, 2021 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

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

July 11, 2021 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

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Running Eagle Falls Trail

April 24, 2021 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

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Canada Trip, 2016: Franey Mountain

February 1, 2021 Michael RappaLeave a comment

The centerpiece of our stay in Cape Breton was our hike of Franey Mountain, an 1,100-foot ascent that took us between 3 and 4 total hours up and down. It could have been done more quickly but we took our time, soaking in and photographing the beautiful scenery of the Cape Breton Highlands along the way (as well as a pretty bird that I believe was a ruffed grouse).

There are two trails that lead to the top. The one we chose for the climb turned out to be the better one in terms of the views–we chose the other trail for the hike back down, which was much less challenging but also much less interesting from a scenery perspective. I don’t remember which was which, but if you’re looking at a map, the straighter looking trail is probably the less interesting one. Either way, you are likely to take both: one on the way up and the other on the way down.

Overall, it’s a beautiful hike. Climbers who reach the peak are rewarded with spectacular views of lush green mountains along a picturesque coast, as well as the opportunity to sign the hiker’s guest book attached to an Adirondack chair at the top. If you find yourself in Cape Breton, Franey Mountain is definitely worth a visit.

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Franey Mountain in the Cape Breton Highlands, Nova Scotia, Canad

Jen sitting at the top. Franey Mountain in the Cape Breton Highl

Sign-in book at the top. Franey Mountain in the Cape Breton High

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California Trip, 2014: The Road Back from Yosemite

November 3, 2020 Michael Rappa

My drive back to San Francisco from Yosemite was quite an adventure. I took a scenic drive along Route 49, also known as the Gold Rush Trail, which winds up and down mountains, featuring beautiful scenery and numerous hairpin turns without any railings. The more treacherous turns are not pictured here because I was too busy trying to stay on the road to think about stopping to photograph them. 🙂

Most of the time I had the entire road to myself. When I stepped outside to take photos it was so quiet that I could hear a pin drop. Overall, it was definitely a detour worth taking. The road continues north well past where I exited; it would be cool to do the whole thing someday.

Click on any photo to open a gallery. The first photo is from the road out of Yosemite, the rest are from Route 49.

Yosemite, CA: On The Way Out of the Park

California Route 49: I would eventually cross that bridge.

There were lots of hairpin turns more treacherous than this one.

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Two Medicine Lake

October 15, 2020October 17, 2020 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

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Trail of Cedars

June 11, 2020 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

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Virginia Trip, 2018: Shenandoah National Park

June 7, 2020 Michael Rappa

These photos are from our drives along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park, including hikes of Hawksbill Summit Trail and Bearfence Viewpoint Trail. Along the latter trail we missed the turn for the easier hike and ended up doing a difficult rock scramble though crevices and steep climbs. I’m sure the rock scramble on this trail is not a problem for experienced hikers, but for us it was a bit harrowing, especially since we were concerned about losing daylight before we made our way back down to the car.

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Skyline Drive

Skyline Drive: Hawksbill Summit Trail

Skyline Drive

Skyline Drive: Bearfence Viewpoint Trail

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American Southwest Trip, 2018: Bryce Canyon Lookouts

May 30, 2020October 4, 2020 Michael Rappa

These photos are from three different lookout points in Bryce Canyon National Park. The first few were taken at Piracy and Fairview Points as the sun finally peeked through the clouds toward the end of a dreary day. The majority of the remaining photos were taken on the following sunny day at various spots along the Inspiration Point trail.

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Piracy Point

Fairview Point

Inspiration Point

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Glacier National Park, 2019: Three Falls Trail

March 28, 2020March 30, 2020 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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