Hike Location: Glacier National Park
Geographic Location: west of St. Mary, MT (48.67654, -113.57957)
Length: 6.7 miles
Difficulty: 7/10 (Moderate/Difficult)
Date Hiked: July 2018
Overview: A somewhat long out-and-back passing three major
waterfalls.
Park Information: https://www.nps.gov/glac/index.htm
Directions to the trailhead: This hike starts at
Glacier National Park’s Sun Point, which is located on the park’s
Going-to-the-Sun Road 9.4 miles west of the park’s east entrance at St.
Mary. Ideally you can park in the Sun
Point parking lot, but because the lot fills quickly during the peak season you
may need to park at the St. Mary Visitor Center and ride the free park shuttle
up to Sun Point.
The hike: For my
general comments on Glacier National Park, see my forthcoming hike that starts at Logan Pass. The hike described here
is the most popular hike in Glacier National Park’s very popular St. Mary
section. This hike passes three major
waterfalls without pegging the difficulty meter, and its relatively low elevation
makes the trail snow-free for more of the year than the park’s higher elevation
trails. Also, while I have listed this
hike as a 6.7 mile out-and-back, in peak season you can shorten the hike to
only about 5 miles by using the free park shuttle, an option I will describe at
the end of the hike.
 |
| Sun Point Trailhead |
Start at
the signed Sun Point Trailhead, which is located at the southeast corner of the
Sun Point parking lot. The gravel trail
immediately enters the pine forest and heads gradually downhill. Ignore a short-cut trail that exits right and
quickly arrive at the sunny rock outcrop known as Sun Point. Sun Point juts well out into St. Mary Lake,
so it offers fantastic lake views in three directions.
 |
| St. Mary Lake near Sun Point |
The trail surface
turns to dirt as it curves right at Sun Point to begin heading west-northwest
with the lake downhill to your left. The
park’s official name for this trail is the Sun Point Nature Trail, but very
little on the ground indicates such. Most of this hike passes through an area that
burned in a wildfire a few years ago, so it is exposed to the sun these days. Drink plenty of water and wear a hat and/or
sunscreen.
 |
| Baring Falls |
After
descending only 100 vertical feet over the first 0.9 miles, you reach the base
of Baring Falls. Water falls about 20
feet over a rocky ledge, and the surrounding sheer rock cliffs make for a stark
setting. Just past the waterfall, you
pass the park’s boat dock at the lowest elevation on this hike. For a fee you can ride a concession boat from
Rising Sun to this point, and this boat gives another option to reduce this
hike’s length if so desired.
The trail
continues its westward course as a gradual climb ensues. The added elevation gives more nice views
across St. Mary Lake to the finger ridges that lead up to Mount Logan from its
south shore. At 1.6 miles, the spur
trail to the St. Mary Falls Parking Lot on the Going-to-the-Sun Road exits
right. Do not confuse this parking lot
with the St. Mary Falls Shuttle Stop; the trail to the shuttle stop exits to
the right at 2 miles into the hike.
 |
| Hiking toward St. Mary Falls |
Now
officially on the St. Mary Falls Trail, the meandering trail descends
moderately through more area that burned a few years ago. At 2.2 miles, the backpacking trail to
Gunsight Pass and Piegan Pass exits right, and the Continental Divide Trail (CDT)
enters from the right here. Now heading
southbound on the CDT, continue descending and soon reach the bank of the St. Mary
River, where the trail curves right to begin heading upstream.
2.5 miles
into the hike, you reach St. Mary Falls.
This waterfall impresses with power rather than delicacy: the river
provides lots of water to fall, and the sheer grey rock cliffs make for another
stark setting. Because this waterfall
lies less than 1 mile from the Going-to-the-Sun Road, it is a very popular
destination, and there were at least 50 people here enjoying the aquatic
setting when I passed through here.
 |
| St. Mary Falls |
To bag your
third waterfall of this hike, cross the footbridge over the river just below the
falls and briefly walk downstream along the south bank of the St. Mary
River. Soon the trail curves right to
begin heading up Virginia Creek. At this
point you leave the burned area and reenter the dense greenery that will
accompany you the rest of the way to Virginia Falls. I spotted a moose deep in the greenery here,
the first moose I have seen while on a hike.
 |
| Lowest waterfall in Virginia Creek |
Virginia
Creek contains several small waterfalls that give preludes of what is to
come. The grade remains moderate, as
this trail gains about 300 vertical feet in the last 0.7 miles to the
falls. At 3.3 miles, you reach the
highest elevation of this hike at the base of 50-foot Virginia Falls. Though it has far less water than St. Mary
Falls, Virginia Falls is a taller more elegant ledge-type waterfall with some
surrounding greenery. Also, while
Virginia Falls still attracts quite a few visitors, its more secluded location
means it does not see the crowds that St. Mary Falls does. Take some time to enjoy this attractive spot.
 |
| Virginia Falls |
The CDT
continues by following the St. Mary Lake Trail as it heads east away from
Virginia Falls, but there are no more nearby points of interest. Thus, most day hikers turn around at Virginia
Falls. To reduce the retracing of steps and
shorten the hike, you could take the spur trail to the St. Mary Falls Shuttle
Stop (NOT the one to St. Mary Falls Parking Lot) and ride the free shuttle back
to Sun Point. The spur trail is 0.3
miles long, and it climbs moderately through a slightly rocky area to reach the
shuttle stop on the Going-to-the-Sun Road.
Ride the shuttle east to Sun Point to complete your three-waterfall tour.
No comments:
Post a Comment