Glaciers in Glacier National Park

Glaciers in Glacier National Park

St Marys Lake view from Sun Point

We talk about Glacier National Park, but we don't very often stop to
think about the glaciers that actually created those beautiful sharp peaks
and carved out those lovely valleys and lakes.

What makes a Glacier? It's a natural happening when more snow falls in
the winter, than melts in the summer. Each layer puts more weight on the ice
already there. The top layer will be hard brittle ice but, as it constantly
becomes heavier and thicker, the lower layer will become flexible. This
allows the ice to move. If the ice has been forming for a long time and
gets very thick and the mountain is steep enough, it will start to slide.
It is now called a glacier.

It may take thousands of years for a huge glacier to form. Most of the
glaciers in Glacier National Park are considered geologically new. Most were
formed in the last few thousand years.
As these glaciers slowly slid down the mountain side they took with them
rocks and soil and therefore changed the landscape. They actually carved out
the side of mountains and created valleys and lakes as they melted.
But now the sad part is that, because of warmer winters, we now have
less snow and more melting. Our Glaciers are shrinking as they melt. All of
this is because of climate changes.
Many Glaciers have formed and melted over the last few thousand years.
Geologists have made studies of the glaciers, rocks and soil they
took down, as they moved.

As of a study made in 2005, Glacier National Park has 27 slowly moving
glaciers. This forms the beautiful valleys and lakes throughout the park.
Glaciers on each side of mountains can wear the mountain into sharp peaks
called Horns. One such Mountain is Mt. Reynolds at Logan Pass.
Sometimes a large bowl is formed at the head of the glacier and will become
a lake such as Avalanche Lake , these are called Cirques. At times two
glaciers will work on the same mountain from each side, and it becomes like
a wall. These are called Aretes. The Garden Wall can be seen from
Lake McDonald Valley. The changes made by glaciers take thousands of years.

Glaciers in Glacier National Park written by Verna Parks.

	Glacier National Park is located in the northwest corner of Montana, just north of Columbia Falls. The park encompasses more than one million acres and is home to grizzly bear, moose, elk, along with 63 varieties of wild mammals. While most of the roads in Glacier National Park are closed off during the winter, this provides miles and miles of tracks for snowshoeing and cross country skiing. Visitors are seldom around in the dead of winter, so the muffled hush of the snow covered woods is especially enticing and serene. A ski or snowshoe trip along the Going-to-the-Sun Road, which is one of the most scenic roads in North America, is a great option, according to park rangers. The road is closed to cars from September or October until snowmelt, usually in June. Several short hiking trails branch off from the road, which would be excellent for snowshoeing or skiing in the winter season. Once you have your gear, head up to Glacier National Park for an exciting adventure. Guided snowshoe trips are available, led by a park naturalist, and are highly recommended. If you are looking for an informative tour, snowshoeing is an easy way to explore the winter wonderland of this unique park. Snowshoeing will provide even the novice an effortless activity so your senses are more in tune with your environment and your guide's knowledge on the history, wildlife, geology, and biology of this precious ecosystem.
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