gleason lake hike. november 2021.

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Day Hike to Gleason Lake

Sapphire Mountains
Montana

November 2021

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Gleason Lake ... frozen in time.

Gleason Lake is nestled up in the Sapphire Mountains on the east side of the Bitterroot Valley. Since this hike is not mentioned in the hiking books, I wasn't entirely sure what to expect. I knew from looking at my map that it would be a shorter hike than many of our mountain lake treks, but that we would also have some elevation gain. And I wasn't sure how much snow we might encounter along the way. We had a little route finding to do down lower, and some snow up higher. We had some serious uphill in the middle portion, with a flatter section just before dropping down to the lake. A bit of snow around the lake, but not too bad, along with some downed trees and mud. All in all, it was a fun adventure with some good exercise. Hope you enjoy the pics. :)
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Beautiful views of the Bitterroot Mountains as we head up into the Sapphires.
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A zoomed in view of Willow Mountain seen from the trail. It's on my list.
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Hmmm... something else to go check out sometime?
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There was plenty of up getting to the lake!
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And awesome views when we got above some of the trees!
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We weren't sure how much more up we had left to go at this point, but looking back down from here we could see we were getting somewhere. :)
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We hit snow as we gained elevation. The trail leveled out quite a bit at this point.
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Getting closer to the lake. Palisade Mountain seen here.
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Got to the lake with enough time to hike around the perimeter before having a fire.
As usual, the lake is bigger than it looks here, so you have to hike around it to see it all.
If you don't take the time and effort to go around, you miss out on the best views.
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Plenty of downfall along the south side of the lake makes for a little slower pace.
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No trail. Just traipsing over, through, and around anything in our way.
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Enough downed trees to build a cabin?
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Antler rubbings.
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And a white rabbit or hare in hiding.
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We had a combination of sunshine and blue sky with clouds, snow and ice.
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​​I enjoy playing around with B&W photography at times.
​I especially love the contrast of the dramatic sky separated from the smooth icy lake with the silhouetted trees in this early winter view of Gleason Lake.
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The lake water has receded, revealing a muddy bottom with dead tree remains.
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View from the grassy end.
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Interesting discoveries here and there.

Palisade, Sapphire, and Skalkaho Mountains are all seen from Gleason Lake.
More adventures on my list for someday. :)
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Interesting evidence of the lake's higher water level in summer.
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Back around to the end we came in at.
​This is the outlet, which is empty this time of year when the lake is low.
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When the water isn't rushing through this man-made outlet, you can see the rock artwork someone cemented into the bottom.
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 I love the blue ice as the light changes on the lake just before we head back out.

Enjoying the views and diminishing sunlight as we head back down before dark sets in.
Another great mountain adventure! :)
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