Glacier NP Suggestions

[moabfool]

I've never been backpacking in Glacier National Park. I know places like Hole In The Wall and Goat Haunt are popular, but what about some less popular "must see" places? We'd like to have a five or six day trip, 8-11 miles per day, and spend at least one night in a back country chalet. A good mix of forest and alpine/sub-alpine would be nice too. I'm guessing about 6 people would want to go.

Thanks in advance.

-Mike

[asdf]

My wife is from Montana and has spent quite a bit of time in GNP, She spent a summer up there working at Many Glacier. When I get home I will have her post some suggestions.
So are you looking for overnight, Multi Day, Day Hikes, or All of the above?

[moabfool]

My wife is from Montana and has spent quite a bit of time in GNP, She spent a summer up there working at Many Glacier. When I get home I will have her post some suggestions.
So are you looking for overnight, Multi Day, Day Hikes, or All of the above?

I'm looking for a full-on backpacking trip. The goal is five or six days w/o ever seeing pavement or a car. I like to pack up every day, lay down 10ish miles, sit around camp for a few hours after sucking down some calories, and head off to bed. My friend told me the chalet was only a wish. If I'm gonna miss seeing something really cool just because there isn't a chalet in the area I'd rather see the cool stuff.

[stefan]

so mike, when are you planning to do this? i am sure you know there is a permit system and you should have a couple of backup choices when you try to get permits so that you can be sure to get something good. you'll definitely love it, but the glaciers are waning and aren't what they once were. but as the park is technically within the canadian rockies, the mountain peaks and cliffs are quite spectacular. the forests are beautiful and diverse, especially traversing from the east/west.

i am not sure, but in summer you need to mail in permits in advanced. when i have dealt with permits it's been during peak season in august, i'd be curious what the permit situation is like right now.

[moabfool]

i am not sure, but in summer you need to mail in permits in advanced. when i have dealt with permits it's been during peak season in august, i'd be curious what the permit situation is like right now.

I've been to Glacier, I've just never been backpacking there. I went on a solo road trip up there in the summer of '05. It was three weeks on the road and it was amazing. Week one was backpacking in Yellowstone, week two was a road trip up to Glacier and a family reunion in Island Park, week three was a backpacking trip to Havasupai, week four was spent recovering.

On a large scale Glacier NP is the most awesome place I've been. On a small scale Navajo Falls (Havasupai) is the most awesome place I've been, and I mean awesome like what it meant before people started using it to describe pizza.

The reason I'm asking now is that some National Parks (like Grand Teton (http://www.nps.gov/grte/planyourvisit/back.htm)) want your permit application by Jan 1. Others won't process applicatons until a certain period of time before your trip (Zion (https://zionpermits.nps.gov/)). Yet others process applications starting on April 1 (Yellowstone (http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/backcountryhiking.htm)). Yesterday I familiarized myself with the complexities of the Glacier National Park permit system (http://www.nps.gov/archive/glac/activities/bcguide1.htm) (ain't the internet grand?). Glacier doesn't start processing permit applications 'till April 15th-ish, and they suggest that your application doesn't arrive much before April 1st. They throw all the applications in a pile and start digging. After the pile sorted into a random stack they take subsequent permits on an as-received basis. The part that really stinks is that they have a Zion-esque permit system (or Zion has a Glacier-esque permit system :ne_nau: ). $4 per-person per-night. Yellowstone and Grand Teton issue backcountry camping permits for free, although there is a reservation fee. Still not as spendy as Havasupai (http://www.havasupaitribe.com), which is a venture run by the Havasupai Tribe.

I guess my point in asking so far in advance is to see whether it's really that important to try to get a campsite at Hole In The Wall, Fifty Mountain, and Swiftcurrent Pass because they're just so pretty, and as a result so very popular, or if I can go into a less popular area and enjoy more solitude, just as much beauty, and have a better chance of getting my first choice. Of course campsite solitude looks like a big ? in Glacier because the campsites are in clusters.

As a necessary evil I'm planning to go in the height of the season. We'll probably take most of a week at the first of August for the Glacier trip, a couple days on the way back for a trip to the summit of The Grand Teton, somewhere in there is a trip to NYC, and then I'll finish off an awesome vacation with a few days in Havasupai. August is gonna be a busy month.

[Scott Card]

I have always had in the back of my mind a Glacier National Park to Waterton Lake National Park (Canada) back packing trip. Take the boat from the U.S. side and go into Canada to a nice hotel after the trek. Beautiful country and looks very wild. Waterton Lake is one of my top ten places on this blue/green planet. Great little town on the Canadian side, tons of hikes to lakes and nice lodging.

[stefan]

As a necessary evil I'm planning to go in the height of the season. We'll probably take most of a week at the first of August for the Glacier trip, a couple days on the way back for a trip to the summit of The Grand Teton, somewhere in there is a trip to NYC, and then I'll finish off an awesome vacation with a few days in Havasupai. August is gonna be a busy month.

there is a really good chance you won't get your first choice. we didn't get our first choice on two occasions for august, and we had met the proper deadlines. so just be happy with all possibilities. more remote options which go by fewer glaciers are easier to get.