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| | | Three Falls Hike: Baring - St Mary - Virginia, MT | | | |
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Three Falls Hike: Baring - St Mary - Virginia, MT
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| Hiking | 6.72 Miles |
1,060 AEG |
| | Hiking | 6.72 Miles | 4 Hrs 38 Mns | | 1.79 mph |
| 1,060 ft AEG | 53 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | 8-1-2022 written 12-5-2022 Fellow glacierchatter Bill, and Nina stopped by and picked me up around 8 so we could go have breakfast at Two Dog Flats Restaurant before heading out for our hike. We decided to drive up to Sun Point Trailhead and hope to find a place to park, which turned out not to be a problem. It was VERY, VERY windy (25 MPH with gusts up to 39 and we got blasted with all that). The hike, which is normally somewhat protected by trees, is no longer that so the wind was particularly brutal.
We headed on down the trail enjoying the instant views and turquoise colored rough water. We checked out some of the wildflowers, altho they were limited. We would encounter hikers off and on all the way until the hoard at St Mary Falls. When we got out a little in the open it was quite a fight with the wind. St Mary Lake can be notorious for its winds that seem to come from Logan Pass down into the Valley. Nonetheless, the views are spectacular, especially with all the mountains around you. And now because of the effect of the 2015 Reynolds Creek fire (probably human caused) that included 500 hazard trees that were removed during that time, you get a real good visual of Goat Mountain.
The fire burned 4800 acres along the Going to the Sun Road and into the St Mary Falls area  . (FYI also The 18,840-acre Thompson fire was the park’s largest in 2015, when 2 percent of the park burned.) We stopped at Baring Falls for just a short time. The feeling here is definitely a lot different without the tree cover; however, it's still a pretty little Falls and lots of people were enjoying playing in and around it and in the creek of the same name.
We stopped to watch a chipmunk eat its find on the top of a rock, made for some good pictures and movie as the background was pretty awesome  . As we neared some of the junctions with other trails that will take you to St Mary and Virginia Falls, the people traffic picked up even more. This area is also where you used to have complete cover from the trees that are now totally exposed.... just a little hard to get used to that "naked" feeling. We spent a short time at St Mary Falls before proceeding to Virginia Falls. In a short way from the river, the tree cover appears for the rest of the hike and the elevation starts.
You come pretty quickly to Lower Virginia Falls which is always worth a quick look-see before proceeding up to the main Virginia Falls. Two things: the wind was blowing so it was hard to shoot any pictures or movies because of the spray. Second, there must have been some sort of obstruction in the river above as the normal veil like falls had a split so it wasn't nearly as beautiful as normal.
We didn't stay long before heading down to the bridge that crosses the creek to get a view up toward Virginia Falls high above you. This area has such pretty rocks including in the creek. We ended up waiting a while for Nina and when she didn't show up, I made my way back up the trail where I found her sitting near the trail at Virginia Falls. On our way back to St Mary Falls we encountered a somewhat strange couple and their dog. And come to find out, the gal had injured her knee so Nina played nurse maid. Just before the St Mary Falls, we stopped and watched people jumping from the big rock platforms into the bottom of the Falls  . I took pictures and videos. I don't recall ever seeing that before. I don't know what the Park Service thinks of that in regard to liability. It does look like fun and if I had known, I might have given it a shot.
We crossed the bridge and made our way through the crowds of people coming to the Falls. I have never seen so many people, and they kept coming. We started to get a little cloud cover on our way back which was nice. And even though the trees were all burned, some are exposing that white bark so it was somewhat picturesque. We stopped again at Baring Falls where my birder companions noticed a few Waxwing birds. Fortunately, I did get some decent pictures. They are very pretty birds. I also saw a fat squirrel scurry off and got a picture of its backend. There was also some nice flora in the area and as usual, quite a few people enjoying being around the Falls. On our way back to Sun Point, we stopped and visited with a ranger for a few moments before getting back to the TH. She was new to Glacier Park and said she's been keeping pretty busy.
We went back to the KOA and changed before going to Frog's Cantina in St Mary for dinner in an outdoor setting with live music. It was pretty nice; I had not eaten there before but they did have Indian Fry Bread taco which was delish! My Huckleberry Margarita, while large, needed more tequila. Later that evening at the KOA I got treated to a lovely crescent moon evening. Tomorrow, I would meet up with Tina and Sharon over at Many Glacier.
Part 1 of 3 [ youtube video ] to near St Mary Falls
Part 2 of 3 [ youtube video ] St Mary Falls to Virginia Falls and back to St Mary Falls including the jumpers
Part 3 of 3 [ youtube video ] St Mary Falls including jumpers and back to Sun Point and evening at the KOA |
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Wildflowers Observation Moderate
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For me, sometimes it's just as much about the journey as the destination.
Oh, and once in awhile, don't forget to look back at the trail you've traveled. |
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