No matter which route you take or area you visit, you are sure to be impressed while visiting Glacier National Park. Located in Northern Montana, Glacier National Park is the US part of the Glacier-Waterton International Peace Park (Waterton National Park is the Canadian half).
Going-to-the-sun road
In the warmer months, you can actually drive straight through Glacier National Park using the Going to the Sun Road.
You travel straight through the mountains and get to a pretty high elevation. If you are not keen on mountain driving, there are a lot of tours you can take including some on these historic jammer buses.
This is a great way to see Glacier if you don’t have a lot of time but there are a lot of opportunities for hikes and sightseeing as well. The drive is impressive and doesn’t really add much to your driving time.
Watch for mountain goats or big horn sheep near the Logan Pass (we’ve seen at least one or the other them most years we’ve driven through).
Trail of the Cedars
If you are looking for an interesting and easy family hike while passing through, the Trail of the Cedars is a good one. It is only about a mile long and the terrain is easy. The path takes you to an area with huge cedar trees very different from most of the rest of the park.
Jr. Ranger Program
If you stop at a any of the visitor stations, you can pick up a Jr Ranger book for the kids. The Jr Ranger program is fantastic and Glacier doesn’t require you to go on a hike or attend a ranger talk so my kids were able to do it even though we didn’t have a lot of time to spend in the park. They even have a special book for non-readers.
East Glacier
If you are planning on travelling along to the Sun Road, always check before you go to make sure it’s open. If it’s not, don’t worry! Even in the Winter sections of the road are still accessible allowing access to portions of the park. There are also areas on the East side of the park as also well worth the trip.
Many Glacier
Many Glacier has really stunning views and is well worth the trip.
Two Medicine
The Two Medicine is as well. It was super windy while were there at the end of the season but still gorgeous. The fall colors were just starting to come out but you could definitely feel the chill in the air.
Glacier Park Lodge
If you love seeing impressive hotels and National Parks architecture, you will also want to stop in at Glacier Park Lodge just outside of the National Park by East Glacier. Just look at those big log beams. It is even more impressive in person.
The views out the back are pretty good too.
