Glacier National Park, Montana

Wander here a whole summer, if you can. Thousands of God’s wild blessings will search you and soak you as if your were a sponge, and the big days will go uncounted . . . in a few minutes you will find yourself in the midst of what you are sure to say is the best care-killing scenery on the continent – beautiful lakes derived straight from glaciers, lofty mountains steeped in lovely nemophila-blue skies and clad with forests and glaciers, mossy ferny waterfalls in their hollows, nameless and numberless, and meadowy gardens abounding in the best of everything . . . The time will not be taken from the sum of your life. Instead of shortening it, it will indefinitely lengthen it and make you truly immortal. Nevermore will time seem short or long, and cares will never again fall heavily on you, but gently and kindly as gifts from heaven.

John Muir

Sitting here in February 2021, it’s interesting to reflect that I haven’t written a post in almost eight months. I owe the lack of blog updates not to disinterest, but to the simple fact that it feels insensitive to write about traveling when the world has shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Not only can we not travel, but traveling seems so unimportant compared to the global health crisis affecting our world. That attitude kept me from posting about the one trip that Matt and I were able to safely make this year, in August 2020, when we visited four national parks in the U.S. Today, I returned to my blog because I wanted to share how nature has been the loveliest constant in my life during COVID-19.

Specifically, I want to write about Glacier National Park. Located in the northwestern quadrant of Montana, just below the Canadian border, this park occupies over 1 million acres filled with 700 miles of hiking trails. The beloved Rocky Mountains that sit outside my door here in Denver wend their way up to Glacier and then disappear into Canada, creating the most epic alpine scenery. I always thought Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park was impressive; but Glacier is called the “Crown of the Continent” for a reason. It is now my favorite park I’ve ever visited.

• 

• 

• 

In August, Matt and I flew from Denver directly to Kalispell, Montana, a tiny town that sits just 15 miles outside the park’s entrance. We are holders of the National Parks’ “America the Beautiful Pass,” which, for $80/year, gives holders full access to every national park in the U.S.

Going-to-the-Sun Road

Glacier is bisected into two distinct areas: East Glacier and West Glacier. Most of the park’s most famous hikes and trails are in West Glacier. When we visited, the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, which has jurisdiction over most of the eastern boundary of the park, had closed this side to the public due to COVID.

• 

The only road running through Glacier is the famous “Going-to-the-Sun Road,” named one of the most beautiful drives in America. It spans fifty miles between the east and west entrances to the park, crossing the Continental Divide of the Rocky Mountain Range at Logan Pass, the highest point of the road at 6,646 feet.

• 

• 

Driving along the Sun Road is an experience in itself, and if you’re not a huge hiker, simply riding this road a great option for seeing incredible vistas without putting in the effort of hiking. In fact, one of the most special moments from our trip came right before we reached Logan Pass.

• 

Right before we reached the pass, just off the road, the cliff’s edge plunged down into a lush, verdant valley. Since we were visiting in August, the valley was filled with wildflowers. I shouted to Matt to stop the car, and we did an impromptu photoshoot in the flowers. It was one of the prettiest moments of my life.

• 

Lake McDonald

During our trip to Glacier, we stayed for three days, beginning our adventure where every visit to Glacier must begin: Lake McDonald.

• 

• 

From the west side of the park, Lake MacDonald is one of the first stops along Going-to-the-Sun Road. It’s the largest lake in the park, surrounded by dense forest and soaring mountains and filled with famously bright and colorful rocks. Various hiking trails run along the lake, and in the summer, it’s possible to take a ferry ride from one side to the other. At the westernmost end of the lake lies Apgar Village, where there is a visitor center with lodging and dining areas.

• 

A few more miles down the Sun Road, you’ll hit historic Lake McDonald Lodge, constructed in 1913 to resemble a Swiss hunting lodge.

• 

• 

I suggest taking time on the beach at Apgar Village, either walking along the lakeside or renting a kayak or canoe.

• 

• 

• 

On our last morning in Glacier, we did a short morning hike that took us through coniferous forest all the way to the beach, where we then climbed up rocks and boulders to reach a few different overlooks.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Although we were on edge about the prospect of encountering a grizzly bear in the dawn hour, the only wildlife we saw was a cute little snake sunning himself on a rock.

• 

Highline Trail

The highlight of our entire trip–which spanned four national parks–was hiking the Highline Trail at Glacier. I’ll admit, I was a bit nervous going into this hike, which is famous for its first 3/4 miles of complete cliffside exposure. Because it was such a full experience, I’ll be writing an entirely separate post on this hike later–but here’s a teaser:

• 

Wild Goose Island & St. Mary Lake

If you’ve ever seen a postcard of Glacier, it’s most likely a photo of Wild Goose Island, which sits east of Logan Pass along the Sun Road. For good reason, the view below is probably one of the most famous of the park. You can see Little Chief Mountain rising up in the background. Wild Goose Island is the tiny tuft of land sticking up from the middle of the lake.

• 

Around St. Mary Lake, there are hundreds of hiking trails. Matt and I spent an afternoon hiking along the lakeside, encountering the Baring Falls waterfall and a section of the park that had clearly suffered from a fairly recent spate of wildfires. The color of the lake was unbelievably blue.

• 

• 

• 

•