Visiting Glacier National Park
Glacier National Park rides the Montana-Canadian border and is a must if you like exploring the natural beauty of this country. Visiting Glacier National Park was an addition to my Missoula Half Marathon weekend. We were only able to visit for a day, but I definitely want to return!
Know before you go
The best times of year to go are late June – mid-September if you want to drive the Going-to-the-Sun Road and have access to all of the areas of the park via car. We went at the end of June and there was still snow on our trail. Most roads are open seasonally given the weather.
Beyond the park pass [or paying the park entrance fee], you also need a vehicle reservation to enter during peak times + hours [6am-3pm; generally June-early September, but exact dates depend on if you’re going to the east or west side entrances]. Some vehicle reservations are released 4 months in advance and they do sell out quickly. Otherwise, the remaining vehicle reservations are released 24 hours in advance [8am MDT the day before the planned visit]. Learn more here. Outside of this window, you don’t need a vehicle reservation.
If you aren’t able to get a vehicle reservation, there is a workaround – buying a ticket for an activity within the park. We got tickets for a boat tour of Lake McDonald, which was a lovely way to spend an hour. You could also book camping, lodging, or another activity to get access.
Lake McDonald
Where to stay
We stayed at Evergreen Motel, which was on the west side of Glacier. It was a cabin with 3 double beds, a small kitchen area, and a large bathroom. It was a perfect place to crash for the evening. The beds were comfortable, there was a fridge to use, the price was reasonable, and it was a short drive to the entrance of the park.
There are plenty of options, depending on your preferences and needs. Hotels, AirBnB’s, and camping are all lodging options to consider.
Places to eat + drink
I recommend bringing snacks for your hikes inside the park. There are some little shops to buy snacks inside the park, as well, but not a lot of options for meals.
There were two great spots located near the Evergreen Motel that I highly recommend:
Glacier Distilling Company – good alcohol, friendly staff, and a nice outside area
Stonefly Lounge – dive bar with local beers on draft, good food, and free pool. Some tourists, but overall a local vibe. Apparently they have karaoke on Wednesday nights too! [we were there on a Thursday and sadly missed it]
On the way up to Glacier [driving from Missoula], we stopped at Ninepipes Lodge for lunch. We sat outside and had a lovely view on a beautiful day. My salad was pretty good, as well!
On the way home we stopped at Big Mountain Ciderworks. Food was really good. I’m not a huge cider person, but it was decent!
Flight of spirits at Glacier Distilling
Hikes + things to do
Logan Pass is located along the Continental Divide and several hikes connect to this area. Parking fills up quickly, though, and shuttles only run for part of the season, so you want to get there early to get a parking spot.
We hiked to Hidden Lake from the parking lot at Logan Pass and it was about 1.5 miles each way. It was a moderate hike – total elevation gain was around 600 feet and there was still some snow on the trail. You could extend the hike longer from here. We chose not to do this, as we did not have time and on the day we went, the rest of that trail was closed off because of bear activity.
Lake McDonald – like I mentioned above, we went on a boat tour of Lake McDonald. It was a nice way to get a rest from hiking, learn some history about the park, and see a beautiful lake in its full glory.
There are a ton of places to stop and take pictures as you are driving through the park.
There are a lot of other hikes – we just didn’t have the time to do a bunch of them!
Admiring the beauty of Hidden Lake
Other notes
Give yourself longer than you think you’ll need to drive to Logan Pass. We stopped several times for views + pictures and there was also construction on part of the road.
I recommend wearing hiking boots if you have them. I wore trail running shoes, and it was okay, but because of the snow and mud, it would have been nice to have more waterproofing.
Renting or bringing binoculars will enhance your experience. There is a ton of wildlife, and while we only saw a small amount, there is so much located in more remote parts of the park
There is a Glacier Half Marathon and it’s usually around the same time as the Missoula Marathon weekend, so if you wanted to run two races on a trip, you could realistically do that! Check out my post on the Missoula Half Marathon and things to do in Missoula if you’re thinking about running that race!
The drive from Missoula has some nice views of Flathead Lake and the mountains, as well as some cute small towns. It’s only a few hours from Missoula to Glacier, but you could easily spend half a day on the trip from hanging out in some of the small towns on the way.
If you have the opportunity to visit Glacier National Park, I highly recommend taking advantage of it!