The Badger Valley Trail offers a lightly used alternative route to Grand Lake, joining the Lillian Ridge Trail to form an ecologically varied route through open tundra, subalpine meadows and old growth forests.

The steep climb out of Grand Valley winds through treeline up to Lillian Ridge

It's not uncommon for backpackers to receive vists from Mountain Goat at Grand Lake

Treeline is not really a line, but rather a zone where trees gradually get smaller and more stunted until conditions are too challenging for growth

Glaciers isolated the Olympic Marmot, which evolved into its own subspecies found nowhere else

Peering down Badger Valley from a saddle on Lillian Ridge

The Olympic and Cascade mountains comprise the most glaciated area in the lower 48 states

Despite its name, 'Edible Thistle' is probably something you want to avoid!

The Lillian Ridge Trail crests at 6,438' before dropping 1,600' in 2.1 miles to Grand Lake

Sooty Grouse are the third largest grouse in North America, and one of the largest grouse species in the world

Obstruction Point is located in one of the few accessible areas of ecologically classified tundra

Southeast view toward the Needles from the Lillian Ridge Trail

Evergreen huckleberry can remain intact through November

The trail is swallowed by overgrowth on the floor of Badger Valley

The Lillian Ridge Trail runs south from Obstruction Point over the headwall of Badger Valley

Grand Lake is the first of three lakes and countless tarns in Grand Valley

The Badger Valley Trail drops quickly through open scree into a high subalpine

The bridge over Grand Creek (4,057') marks the beginning of a 700' climb to Grand Lake

A spur from the Badger Valley Trail leads to logjams on Grand Lake's outlet

Yellow Cedar is in the cypress family, distinguished by colorful, scaly bark

Garter snake in Grand Lake

Vegetation struggles to root in the steep scree slopes over Grand Valley