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Montana, USA · North America · northern hemisphere
Glacier National Park is at its best for hiking in July to September. Good but not prime in June. Crowds peak in July and bottom out in January.
| J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hiking | 14 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 42 | 67 | 92 | 92 | 88 | 42 | 14 | 14 |
| Lakes & Coastline | 14 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 42 | 66 | 90 | 90 | 68 | 42 | 14 | 13 |
| Wildlife | 15 | 15 | 15 | 42 | 67 | 90 | 90 | 90 | 90 | 67 | 15 | 15 |
| Crowds |
Swipe the table sideways for the rest of the year.
The Going-to-the-Sun Road is the park, and the full length is open for roughly three months — it rarely opens before late June and the alpine section closes around the third Monday in October
Alpine day walks with real exposure on some routes. No guide needed, bear spray essential.
Planning a trip around the Going-to-the-Sun Road in early June. Opening dates swing by weeks with the snowpack, and peak-season access to Logan Pass is controlled — but the mechanism has changed in each of the last few years: 2026 drops the vehicle reservation for a ticketed shuttle and three-hour timed parking. Check the park’s own page before planning around it.
July and August, when the whole Going-to-the-Sun Road is open — it opens fully in late June or early July and closes by the third Monday in October, so September is open road and far quieter
Trail of the Cedars and the lake shores are easy and beautiful. This is serious grizzly country with a genuine record, and several trails close outright for bear activity mid-season.
Whitefish is the best base with a real town and an airport an hour out. West Glacier is at the gate and thin on options; East Glacier and the Two Medicine side are quieter and cheaper.
Going-to-the-Sun Road is under metres of snow for most of the year; ploughs often do not reach Logan Pass until early July.Jan · Feb · Mar · Apr · May · Oct · Nov · Dec
Kept out of the score on purpose. Averaging a rare catastrophe into a monthly number would tell you something false; the warning is the honest form.
Bear spray everywhere, and check the daily trail-closure list before you set out — the park closes trails for bear activity regularly and enforces it. Snow lingers on the Highline into July.
0 is this destination’s own quietest month and 100 its busiest. The scale never compares one destination to another. Source: NPS GLAC