We met a black bear on the trail! He was beautiful. A pretty good sized adult that was glossy black with a little brown on the muzzle. We were with a fairly good sized group and a number of them had pepper spray; plus, the bear was really well behaved. We made noise and he ambled on up the mountain away from us. The perfect encounter.
The bear encounter sort of overshadowed what was already an overall great hike.
Alpine hillsides blanketed in wildflowers and heather in bloom.
Magnificent mountain ridges with glaciers and dotted with lakes.
Mountian goats
Big horn sheep
Marmots
Columbia ground squirrels
Ptarmagin (a mom and her clutch)
12 ½ miles. Some icy snow patches. Lots of switchbacks on loose scree. Plenty of singing to the bears. We are tired but glad we made the trek.