Last updated on April 9th, 2024
Canoes, Lake Mcdonald, © Can Stock / snehitdesign
Going-to-the-Sun Road
The Going-to-the-Sun Road is the highlight of a trip to Glacier National Park. This is one of the great roads in North America and it has some very steep sections. Follow the route from St Mary past St Mary’s Lake to the summit at Logan Pass. See goats and bighorn sheep at the summit stop and visit the Logan Pass Visitor Center. Take an easy short hike to Hidden Lake or have an adventure on the Highline Trail back down to the valley below.
Then follow the route down the western side to Lake McDonald and the Lake McDonald Lodge. When you’re done, do the route again in reverse!
Hidden Lake Trail, © Can Stock / brizardh
Glacier Park Lodge
Glacier Park Lodge was built by the early railway from gigantic trees harvested to the west. The lodge is an amazing historic monument to a by-gone era. Glacier Park Lodge is located on the southwest edge of the park at the small village of East Glacier, which includes an Amtrak stop.
Iceberg Lake Trail, © Can Stock / brizardh
Glacier Park Hikes
At Logan Pass you can take two Glacier Park Hikes – an easy hike to Hidden Lake and a challenging one down the Highline Trail. Behind the Swiftcurrent Motor in you can make a 10 mile hike to Iceberg Lake in the Many Glacier Valley. The Grinnell Glacier hike is a strenuous trek that starts near the Many Glacier Hotel. You can shorten the Grinnell Glacier hike a bit by taking two boat rides. Take bear spray on Glacier Park hikes. Glacier Park expects all glaciers to be gone by 2020.
Logan Pass, Going-to-the-Sun Road
Glacier National Park – Hotels and Lodges
St Mary Village – just outside the eastern edge of the park. The Rising Sun Motor Inn is in the park 6 miles from St Mary on St Mary Lake.
Many Glacier Hotel and Swiftcurrent Motor Inn and Cabins – at Swiftcurrent Lake in the eastern section of the park.
Glacier Park Lodge – at the southeast corner of the park on US Highway #2 in East Glacier on the Amtrak train line.
McDonald Lake Lodge and the Village Inn at Apgar – in the park at the west edge
Hidden Lake, © Can Stock / kamchatka
Glacier National Park Weather
Glacier National Park weather is best in July and August at the height of good summer weather. Snowfall can begin in September. Glacier National Park is open year round, but many facilities are not open in winter. US Highway #2 can be closed by snowfall and the Going-to-the-Sun Road is always closed in winter.
Hidden Lake Trail Flowers, © Can Stock / LoonChild
Red Bus Tours
Red Bus Tours operate inside the park. These historic touring cars start at either the east end or the west end of the park. Red Bus Tours offers round trip excursions with an option on how far you travel. You can ride the red bus over the Going-to-the-Sun Road.
Swiftcurrent Lake, © Can Stock Photo / snehitdesign
Get to Glacier National Park
A private vehicle is essential to get to Glacier National Park. Kalispell, Montana is a half hour southwest of the west side of the park. US Highway #2 runs from Kalispell to the town of West Glacier at the western edge of Glacier National Park. Then US Highway continues through the souther portion of the park to East Glacier. The Going-to-the-Sun route heads north from West Glacier through the central portion of the park and is the best section of the part to travel. The central route takes you past Lake McDonald, Lake McDonald Lodge and the Apgar Visitor Center. Then the road earns its name as the Going-to-the-Sun Road when it climbs over Logan Pass.
Going-to-the-Sun Road
You can also get to Glacier on the east side of the park. The 3 east side entrances are all reached after taking Highway 89 north from Great Falls to Browning. The more central St Mary entrance passes the St Mary Visitor Center, the Rising Sun Motor Inn and St Mary Lake. After that the central entrance goes up the popular Going-to-the-Sun Road to Logan Pass. The more northerly Many Glacier entrance provides access to Many Glacier, the Many Glacier Valley, the Many Glacier Hotel and the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn & Cabins. The more southerly Two Medicine entrance goes to Two Medicine Lake. Even further south, the road intersects with the #2 Highway at East Glacier, where Glacier Park Lodge is found.
Background
Glacier National Park is the US state of Montana. The park is joined at the Canadian border by Waterton Lakes National Park. The small Canadian National Park also called Glacier National Park, is a completely separate and different park. The glaciers in Montana’s Glacier National Park have been steadily declining over the past several decades and it won’t be many more years before there are no glaciers left in the park.
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