GLACIER NATIONAL PK: Going-to-the-Sun Road

Friday, August 13, 2021
West Glacier, Montana, United States
                                    GLACIER NATIONAL PARK INFORMATION
The park is huge, about 1 million acres. The East and West sides are distinctly different in terms of views, trails, wildlife, lodging, weather, and geography.  
Going-to-the-Sun Road is the iconic two-lane scenic drive through the park's interior connecting the east and west sides. This engineering marvel carved into mountainsides spans more than 50 miles twisting and turning to Logan Pass where it crosses the Continental Divide. Absolutely spectacular views around every bend--impressive glaciers, beautiful valleys, cascading waterfalls, towering mountains. Drive time without stopping about two hours.
Reservations are now required to drive on the road between the hours of 6am and 6pm during the summer. Many of the popular hikes start from trailheads along the road. Heavy traffic was an understatement! Parking spaces filled up fast.

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                                                    OUR EXPERIENCE:
There is so much to see and explore decided to stay at campgrounds on both sides--8 days in West Glacier (see 8/13 entry) and 6 days on the east side in Saint Mary (8/20 entry). So glad we did this. 
We had reservations for our original plan of coming here in July. When we had to cancel, we could not transfer the ticket. Have tried for the last several weeks to go on line first thing in the morning when they go on sale; however, no luck. 
The day we arrived, headed for the park headquarters at 5:00, but it was closed because of covid. Ended up in the  long lineup of cars waiting to get into the park after 6pm. Went to the Apgar Visitor Center for brochures and maps. Rangers were outside with maps and to answer questions. Since there is no way to get tickets here, our plan is to go into the park before 6am and after 6pm.
OUR ROUTINE:  4:00-alarm; 5:00-Leave. 5-min drive to park entrance taking Going-to-the-Sun road to the trailheads for Morning Hikes.
Getting there early was key in order to get a parking spot. Coffee, muffin, even a cat nap while waiting for enough light (around 6:20). All the hikes took us twice as long as stated in the brochures. Constant stopping for pictures and appreciating the incredible beauty here took time, plus we're realllllly slow going uphill.

GOING-TO-THE-SUN ROAD-- WEST SIDE to Logan Pass:  
Almost every day we were on the road from before sunrise to early afternoon and back again at dusk. It's a fantastic experience any time of day, but sunrises were definitely our favorite time. Weather wasn't the best. Several days very heavy smoke haze, then it rained, and the air cleared for a few days.  

The scenery is truly spectacular.  Constantly stopped at the many pullouts photographing this jaw-dropping scenery. 
 
Afternoons: Back from morning hikes around 12-1:00, lunch and a nap. Very hot in the afternoons--88-91. Relaxed in the rv park, chatted with people in the park, or visited the neighboring towns for a few hours.
Dusk: After 6:00, went back into the park for sunset views.
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