Glacier National Park~Vacay Summer 2012

Matt and I were blessed with being able to take 2 weeks of vacation this year.  It is a very special year because we were celebrating 10 years of marriage!!  I still can't believe how quickly time has passed and just how different our life is 10 years after marriage than I had planned.  What a journey it has been with many highs and lows, but it is so exciting to be able to say that Matt and I are happier, more content, and more excited for the future with each passing day.  I am so thankful for a guy who stands besideme, who has helped carry me through some difficult days, and challenges me to see the world differently on a daily basis.  We are definitely not the same people we were the day we married and I am very grateful that we have grown together.  We definitely don't see eye to eye on everything, but I think that is how we continue to grow as a couple~challenging each other's perspectives and respecting each other's opinions. 

When we first start talking about where we wanted to celebrate our 10th anniversary we talked about another trip to Alaska and Peru, but in the end we decided we were so hopeful that a trip to China was coming soon that we wanted to save our money for that trip; so Glacier National Park seemed to fit the bill.  We'd been told by people who have been there that it was as close to Alaska as you'd get in the lower 48.  Let me tell you, we were not the least bit disappointed with Glacier.  I recommend it to anyone I meet: gorgeous scenary, lots of wildlife, and miles of hiking. 

Our first stop was Grand Teton NP.  We spent a couple of days there to break up the long drive to Glacier.  We had been to Teton several summers ago, but we only spent a couple of days there after Yellowstone and felt that it wasn't near enough time.  We love the Tetons.

7,000 feet straight up from the valley.  They are very impressive looking mountains.  I can't help but see a very creative God when I see these.

Hanging out at Teton Marina.  We spent all of our evenings here.

We spent my 31st birthday swimming through Firehole Canyon in Yellowstone NP.

We picked up Bobby about 10 days into our trip.  He spent 3 days in the park with us and then helped us drive back.  We made the most of those 3 days in Glacier: 2 12 mile+ days and kayaking.

Our first glimpse of the Many Glacier area: our favorite spot and home for 6 days.

On one of the many trails.  Matt and I counted that we hiked approximately 80 miles on this trip.  It's a lot, but it's awesome to think that we are getting to see places that very few others see.

A mama black bear and 3 cubs!!  We have never seen so many bears and never 3 cubs!!!  Bear watching was definitely a highlight.  We never did see bears on the trail only safely from the road.

A hungry black bear eating berries. :)

We went to Canada for a day.  This is us at Waterton Lake.

Big bull moose at Cracker Lake.  The only people at this lake were us and one other couple.

Hike to hidden lake.  This was as far as we could get on the trail.  The park service had closed it passed this point because of lots of bear activity on the lake due to trout spawning.

Ptarmigin Tunnel trail.  From the lake we hiked up the trail you can faintly see in the background: 3 switchbacks that lead to the tunnel through the mountain to the interior.

Funny story: on this day we were the only people in this hanging valley.  We had seen some signs of bears but hadn't seen an actually bear. Most of the trail was in the open, but there were parts taking us through thick brush taller than us.  At one point, we started to go through the brush calling for bears to let them know we were coming-the last thing you want to do is surprise a bear.  Just as Matt pushed through the front bush we heard a growl.  All 3 of us in unison starting walking backwards thinking there was a bear on the other side when all the sudden we realized what we were hearing was a helicopter who had just come over the ridge you seen in the picture!!  Talk about bad timing.  It certainly got our hearts racing though. 

Dressed for our 10 anniversary dinner at Many Glacier Lodge.  This was after 3 days of hiking and camping.  Meaning 3 nights of no shower!!  I think we clean up pretty good in spite of that.

Grinnell Glacier hike on our 10th anniversary.  Absolutely gorgeous!!

Kayaking on swiftcurrent lake.