December 25, 2010

Jen's picks for Glacier National Park

We received a new issue of Backpacker magazine recently and opened it to find Jen's smiling face inside.

The January issue contains the annual Readers' Choice Awards, and while we knew Jen was to be featured as an expert on Glacier National Park we weren't expecting its arrival before Thanksgiving.

Turn to the "Our Backyard" feature on Page 56 to see her picks for the park:
  • Go to Two Medicine for solitude. Jen suggests the Dawson-Pitamakan loop, which at 16 miles (with an additional boat ride) was one of her most challenging dayhikes.
  • Big bloom at Cobalt Lake. Also in the Two Medicine area, the fields of red monkeyflower near Cobalt Lake can be spectacular. It's about 11 1/2 miles round trip.
  • Sneak a peek from Mount Oberlin. Check with the rangers at Logan Pass to make sure the easy 1 1/2-mile scramble is open - there are sensitive plants along it. From the 8,180-foot summit, look down on Bird Woman Falls.
  • Don't forget winter. The park is still open, even though Going-to-the-Sun Road is closed to vehicles. Park at Lake McDonald Lodge and ski or snowshoe instead.
Also, in the masthead on Page 7, Jen's "Where I'd Take an Editor Hiking" pick is Piegan Pass. With an allotment of just five words, the suggestion omitted the stop at the Many Glacier Hotel's Swiss Lounge after the 12 3/4-mile trek from Siyeh Bend.

Update: Backpacker recently put Jen's "Our Backyard" feature online here. Click "The Experts" to see her bio.