Welcome to Glacier National Park
Location:
North of U.S.A.
Address:
Glacier National Park, West Glacier, Montana, U.S.A.
Area/Surface:
4.101 km²
Cities:
Whitefish, Kalispell and Columbia Falls in the west part and Great Falls and Browning in the east part.
Foundation year:
11 May 1910
Telephone:
+1 460 888 7800
Website:
www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/
hours.htm
Opening hours:
www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/
hours.htm
Prices:
www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/fees.htm
When to go:
May – September when the weather is nice, but also the number of visitors is high. During winter, most of the facilities are closed.
How to get here:
By car:
There are several routes to get here depending from which part you come. If you come from south-west you can get here on Interstate 90 Highway and then to north on the National Road 93. If you come from south-east, you can come on Interstate 15 Highway and then on the National Road 89 towards north. You can find more details on the official website.
By train:
Amtrak Rail company offers services both on the east and west parts of the Glacier. From the train station you can get to the visitor centers or hotels from the National Park with a minibus. For more details call +1 855 733 4522.
By plane:
The nearest International airport, Glacier Park International Airport is situated approximately at 48 km distance from the West entrance (Apgar visitor center) near to Kalispell. Misoula International Airport (bigger) is situated approximately 240 km away south from the West entrance. In the east part, 250 km away, you can find the Great Falls International Airport.
Glacier National Park,
United States of America / Canada
Location and relief of Glacier National Park:
Glacier National Park is one of the oldest and biggest national parks from North America. Established on 11th of May 1910, the park is situated in the gorgeous Rocky Mountains, very close to the border with Canada in the north part of U.S.A and in the north-west part of Montana American State. This huge park is spread beyond the U.S.A borders, on Alberta and British Columbia territories from Canada. It’s annually visited by over 10-12 millions tourists who come here for the fresh mountain air, for hiking, but also for the beautiful landscapes which will always charm you.
Importance, name, flora and fauna from Glacier National Park:
Together with the neighbor park from Canada, Glacier National Park is included on the list of UNESCO World Heritage since 1995. The name Glacier comes from the glaciers which totally covered the area in the Ice Age and today a part of these, can still be seen in the park. The gorgeous area where the park is spread on, has over 130 mountain lakes, most of them glacial and flora and fauna are very rich is species, some of them endemics living only here. Among over 1100 species of plants, the most important are the coniferous forests with species of fir, spruce, pine, but also the deciduous species of Canadian poplar, aspen and others.
Also, in the park live over 400 species of animals and half of them are birds. (Find more journeys on blog.worldlifetimejourneys.com) The most important are the grizzly bears (over 300 species) and the Canadian lynx, both of them threatened with disappearance. There are also moose, deer, pumas, coyotes, wolves, wolverines, otters, casters, but also the symbol of the park which is the mountain goat. Among the bird species we mention harlequin ducks, great horn owls, bald eagles, golden eagles, peregrine falcons, tundra swans, Canadian goose and many others.
Climate in Glacier National Park:
The climate in Glacier National Park is changeable depending the season and elevation. The west part of the park is higher and also wetter due to the shorter distance from Pacific Ocean. Here, the annually rainfall can be over 1000 mm and the snow can fall on higher altitudes even during summer. The temperature averages in the tourist part of the park during May and September-October are between 16 and 21º C, but in summer on lower altitudes can reach even 30º C. Because it’s a mountain national park the temperatures can drop suddenly even when is 20-30º C and because of that it’s recommended to have with you also warm clothes even in summer.
Saint Mary Lake from Glacier National Park
About the Blackfeet Indians, Rocky Mountains and the Old North Trail from Glacier National Park:
It’s estimated that Rocky Mountains from Glacier National Park started to form about 170 million years ago and the first inhabitants, American natives were established here since 10.000 years ago. From all these tribes which passed here, the most important and biggest were the Blackfeet Indians which populated these territories and the plains from the east part beginning the first half of the XVIII century. Today there are still Blackfeet Indian families who live in small communities from the Big Plain in Blackfeet Indian Reservation. These Indian people and also those from the West and South Reservation named as Flathead Indian Reservation had a big importance in these territories. They named the Rocky Mountains as The Backbone of the World. This column which was in fact a long trail of a few thousand kilometres and was spread from north in Canada until south in Mexico was and is still known as The Old North Trail which goes along the bottom of the Rocky Mountains and crosses Glacier National Park.
For 10.000 years this was the main route from north to south. Indians and other tribes from the area were using it either walking or by the help of their dogs or horses which pulled the carts full with goods. Some of them were using this trail to transport goods from a part to another, others to visit their families, others to explore the area and others for some missions to discover new things. To go on this route they needed approximately 4 years to complete. (Find more journeys on blog.worldlifetimejourneys.com) The best known explorers of the area who also got in touch with the Indians were Lewis and Clark who around 1806 had an expedition here. It is believed that this trail from the east of Rocky Mountains could’ve been even longer and older dating back 15.000 years when the people came in North America through Bering Strait.
What to see and do when going on the Sun road in Glacier National Park:
Today, The Old North Trail remains history, with the modernization of the world, but details about the past of these inhabitants and about this trail you can find more either from the Blackfeet Indian Reservations from here, either from the visitor centers from Glacier National Park. The park was modernized, in time were added more facilities, were built visitor information centers, but the most important fact is that between 1930–1932 was built the main road which crosses the park on a distance of 85 km named Going on the Sun Road in Glacier National Park.
This can reach an altitude of 2016 m in Logan Pass. A little further to south is passing the National Road 2 which connects the cities West Glacier with East Glacier and where visitors can find two information centers. However, none of these roads can offer you the wonderful views that Sun Road does. The road passes besides many mountain lakes with crystal water in which many times per day you can see the mountains mirroring. Also, it takes you through rich coniferous forests or beside gorgeous deep valleys, or through mountain passes. If you have luck you can even see some fauna species from here. It doesn’t matter from which part you choose to start, the Sun Road will leave you speechless. Visit Glacier National Park!
Amazing views in Glacier National Park
