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Below: Lee Duquette on the
trail that had a boardwalk for a short distance. Then there was a sign
with an arrow saying go to the right, which the two RV Gypsies did.
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Below: On the lower part of
the Rockgarden Trail, the two RV Gypsies saw moss and lichen covered
boulder fields that date back to the last Ice Age. The trail led through
black and grizzly bear habitat, and up to a viewpoint overlooking glaciers
and the mountain barrier of Rogers Pass. Lee and Karen Duquette did
NOT meet bears, thank goodness, and at times they could not be sure
where the trail was. |
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If you look on the upper right
side of the map above, it shows rocks with the symbol in the photos
below, then the trail goes into the rock area. Lee Duquette did not
have the map with him because the brochures in the parking lot were
all gone. They also did NOT like the looks of the trail going upwards,
and just were not sure of which way to continue, so they walked back
to the parking lot to look at the map on the bulletin board again. |
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Below: Then Lee and Karen
Duquette went back to where the sign with the arrow pointing right was
located. But this time, instead of going to the right, they headed up
the steep stone staircase towards the glacier. (This is the trail to
the left on the map above). |
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Below: The upper Rockgarden
Trail offered a rustic and primitive experience. It is a single file
trail with rock staircases, stepping stones, slippery and steep sections
and sharp cliff faces. It is recommend that hikers wear footwear appropriate
for backcountry-style hiking, and that hikers keep children under their
strict control. The Rockgarden Trail is NOT recommended for pets. Below,
a bit of the glacier can be seen behind Karen Duquette, although the
glacier is actually a bit washed out in the photo. |
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Below: Lee and Karen Duquette
continued up the trail and climbed over big boulders. There was one
area (shown in the photos below) with a railing that was a big help
to them. |
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Below: A glimpse of the road below. |
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Below: Another symbol in a rock, about 1/3 of the way up the trail. |
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Below: Lee Duquette did
very well on the steep trail with his new knees. |
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Below: The Rock Garden trail
wandered through an old rock avalanche area. Note in the pictures, nature
was hard at work eroding the rocks by growing trees on them. |
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Below: Karen Duquette is in the next four photos below. She is very proud of herself for making the climb with a bad knee. The knee brace helped a lot. |
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Below; The
trees were very tall here. Karen Duquette can barely be seen in the
second photo below. |
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Below: SURPRISE! Lee Duquette's
cell phone rang. It was John and Renee calling. (This was the first
time they called during any trips, so far) The two RV Gypsies were in
shock that they had cell service up on top of these rocks, when they
did not get cell service most of the time in campgrounds, or while driving.
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Below: The two RV Gypsies made it to the top of the rocks. Then the trail
went into the woods, so Lee Duquette decided that they should not go
any further, because he knew that the trail went along the top of the
ridge for miles. |
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Below: Karen Duquette photographed various views of the glacier as she climbed
up and back down the big boulders. |
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