12 miles of hiking • 2000' elevation gain •
Start Time: 11:30a Finish Time: 3:30p
After spending 5 days/4 nights in the backcountry on the Bowman-Kintla Horseshoe, we had an extra day to kill at GNP, so we decided to give the Highline Trail a go. GNP has started offering a free park shuttle, which I highly recommend. We were able to park our car at Apgar, take it to Logan Pass, start the hike, then pick up the shuttle at the end of the hike at The Loop parking lot. The shuttle allows you to take in the scenery without having to focus on the windy Going To The Sun Road.
The first 5 or 6 miles featured a steady stream of hikers in various states of preparedness. Apparently the sign at the trailhead warning of bear activity didn't seem to phase most people. I saw very few people with bear spray, much less enough water or other supplies for a day hike in the summer heat. This is not a trail to take in the middle of summer if you are expecting any kind of solitude! Re-entry was hard for us and this trail made it a little more difficult.
That being said, this really is an amazing hike. It has a minimal elevation gain and you can really move on it if the trail conditions are just right. We saw lots of marmots and ground squirrels. I did find a marmot with a ziploc bag around his head and tried to get it off, but he ran off down the hill. To be fair, I was actually going to grab the bag because I thought it was just a plastic bag someone had left behind and it wasn't until I actually got close that the bag started moving and I realized a marmot had his head caught in it! Poor little guy. I think he finally got it off, but at that point it was on a steep incline so I erred on the side of safety.
Shortly after that, I came across a hiker with a skinned up knee. I offered to bandage him up and promptly took my first aid kit out of my pack and went to work. I had a great conversation with him and his wife (locals from Kalispell) and one of my hiking partners also helped with some leukotape to keep the coban in place. It never fails...I can't seem to go on a hike without rendering first aid at some point. :)
We made good time to the Granite Park Chalet and I took a very brief break before continuing down the trail trying to stay ahead of my hiking partners who were keeping up a pretty steady pace. I finished about 15 minutes before they did, and we took the shuttle back to Apgar.
This trail offers stunning views and I cannot recommend it enough if you ever find yourself in GNP. Just try to avoid it on the weekend and in August if you can. :)
